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Half a century ago, Belgian Zoologist Bernard Heuvelmans first codified cryptozoology in his book On the Track of Unknown Animals.

The Centre for Fortean Zoology (CFZ) are still on the track, and have been since 1992. But as if chasing unknown animals wasn't enough, we are involved in education, conservation, and good old-fashioned natural history! We already have three journals, the largest cryptozoological publishing house in the world, CFZtv, and the largest cryptozoological conference in the English-speaking world, but in January 2009 someone suggested that we started a daily online magazine! The CFZ bloggo is a collaborative effort by a coalition of members, friends, and supporters of the CFZ, and covers all the subjects with which we deal, with a smattering of music, high strangeness and surreal humour to make up the mix.

It is edited by CFZ Director Jon Downes, and subbed by the lovely Lizzy Bitakara'mire (formerly Clancy), scourge of improper syntax. The daily newsblog is edited by Corinna Downes, head administratrix of the CFZ, and the indexing is done by Lee Canty and Kathy Imbriani. There is regular news from the CFZ Mystery Cat study group, and regular fortean bird news from 'The Watcher of the Skies'. Regular bloggers include Dr Karl Shuker, Dale Drinnon, Richard Muirhead and Richard Freeman.The CFZ bloggo is updated daily, and there's nothing quite like it anywhere else. Come and join us...

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Monday, April 02, 2012

RICHARD MUIRHEAD: A South African Oarfish

The following article appeared in the Rand Daily Mail, Johannesburg on July 26th 1910. It probably refers to the Oar Fish, but I`m not absolutely certain.

A STRANGE FISH
A strange fish was washed up on the beach in Struis Bay during the week says the Cape Times. It measured 10 feet 4 inches From nose to tip of tail, and 12 inches broad. It somewhat resembled the sole, being perfectly flat, and tapered off to three inches at the tail. It had a dorsal fin running from back of the head right to tip of tail and two small fins behind the gills. It also had four streamers on the top, and three or four under the head. These varied from 3 ft four inches to 3 ½ feet and were composed of five/fine (?) thin bones running parallel , and held together and covered by a thin red skin, which looked exactly like a piece of thin red ribbon rooted to the head. It had no scales, and was covered by dark brown spots, the size of a sixpence. The oldest fishermen hear has never seen such a peculiar specimen. It would be interesting to have enlightenment, writes a correspondent. (1)

1. Rand Daily Mail July 26th 1910

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