WELCOME TO THE CFZ BLOG NETWORK: COME AND JOIN THE FUN

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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Thursday, July 10, 2014

MAX BLAKE: The return of Taxonomy Fail

FORTEAN BIRD NEWS FROM THE WATCHER OF THE SKIES


What has Corinna's column of fortean bird news got to do with Cryptozoology?

Well, everything actually!

In an article for the first edition of Cryptozoology Bernard Heuvelmans wrote that cryptozoology is the study of 'unexpected animals' and following on from that perfectly reasonable assertion, it seems to us that whereas the study of out-of-place birds may not have the glamour of the hunt for bigfoot or lake monsters, it is still a perfectly valid area for the Fortean zoologist to be interested in. 



TODAY'S BIG CAT NEWS

The hunt for British Big Cats attracts far more newspaper-column inches than any other cryptozoological subject. 

There are so many of them now that we feel that they should be archived by us in some way, so we are publishing a regular round-up of the stories as they come in. 

The worldwide mystery cat phenomenon (or group of phenomena, if we are to be more accurate) is not JUST about cryptozoology. At its most basic level it is about the relationship between our species and various species of larger cat. That is why sometimes you will read stories here that appear to have nothing to do with cryptozoology but have everything to do with human/big cat interaction. As committed Forteans, we believe that until we understand the nature of these interactions, we have no hope of understanding the truth that we are seeking.

  • -NEWSLINK-AUSTRILIA-Bowen lion theory has gone to ...
  • VIDEO: Deadly Big Cats in New York Wilderness - Co...
  • VIDEO: NEW SPECIES: OLDEST BIG CAT DISCOVERED
  • VIDEO: BLACK LIONS MYTH & other Real Lion Hybrid F...

  • VIDEO: Gallery of Wild and Exotic Cats and their H...
  • THE GONZO BLOG DOO-DAH MAN SINGS FOR HIS SUPPER

    The Gonzo Daily - Thursday
    www.gonzomultimedia.co.uk/about.html

    Today is Corinna's birthday, and I am insisting that she devotes it to doing her things, and not touching ow't to do with the CFZ or Gonzo, if only for this one day in the year. The other night, in passing I mentioned the old saying "fine words butter no parsnips" which reduced Corinna to a fit of the giggles because she had not heard it before. On phrases.org.uk I read the following: "The earliest version that I know of in print is in John Clarke's Latin/English textbook Paroemiologia, 1639: Faire words butter noe parsnips, verba non alunt familiam. [words, no family support]"
     
    But elsewhere in the article the uncredites author writes: "You aren't very likely to come across 'fine words butter no parsnips' as 20th century street slang - you are more liable to hear it in a period costume drama." I see this as a challenge to our collective creativity. There will be a super prize to the first person who writes me a NWA style rhyme featuring the phrase...
     
    THOM THE WORLD POET: The Daily Poem
    http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.co.uk/2014/07/thom-world-poet-daily-poem_10.html
    Rocker Rick Wakeman and Dad’s Army star Ian Lavender to open new Diss Feline Care charity shop
    http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.co.uk/2014/07/rocker-rick-wakeman-and-dads-army-star.html
    JOHN MAYALL: I love to play, it's been exciting and rewarding, and the band I'm with now is the best
    http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.co.uk/2014/07/john-mayall-i-love-to-play-its-been.html
    CFZ PEOPLE: Corinna Downes (Happy Birthday Darling)
    http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.co.uk/2014/07/cfz-people-corinna-downes-happy.html
    Yes at The Egg, 7/6/14
    http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.co.uk/2014/07/yes-at-egg-7614.html
    GONZO TRACK OF THE DAY: Astrology Suite - Erik Norlander
    http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.co.uk/2014/07/gonzo-track-of-day-astrology-suite-erik.html
     
    The latest issue of Gonzo Weekly (#85) is here to read or download at www.gonzoweekly.com. It has Raoni Metuktire aka Chief Raoni and Clearlight on the front cover and features an interview with Cyrille Verdeaux in which he discusses his work with this legendary eco-warrior and Amerindian chief. Merrell Fankhauser recounts an odd story about John Lennon and UFOs. There is an interview with Paul May about the forthcoming Atkins/May Project album, Doug Harr visits Queen in San Jose, and Rosie Curtis goes to a cosplay convention, whilst Jon muses about The Happy Mondays. There are also new shows from Friday Night Progressive, and from the multi-talented Neil Nixon at Strange Fruit and a collection of more news, reviews, views, interviews and newts in shoes (OK, no unlikeley shod caudata, but I got carried away with things that rhymed with OOOOS) than you can shake a stick at. And the best part is IT's ABSOLUTELY FREE!!!
     
    The full list of artists featured is: Jack White, Yes, Jon Anderson, Jon Davison, Robert Plant, Dave Grohl, Greg Allman, Bob Dylan, Ian Gillan, Daevid Allen, Clepsydra, Michael des Barres, Merrell Fankhauser, Arthur Brown, Spirit Thom, Galahad, The Who, Marillion, Strange Fruit, Friday Night Progressive, Annik Honore, Dermot Healy, Josephine Pullein-Thompson, Wayne Henderson, Andre Popp, Erik Norlander, Lana Lane, Hugh Hopper, Mick Abrahams, Martin Guitars, Cyrille Verdeaux, Clearlight, Paul May, Rosie Curtis, Queen, Happy Mondays, Hawkwind, Scott Walker, Beatles, 1D, Cher, Iggy Pop, Weird Weekend, Joanne Hogg & Frank Van Essex, Lava Engine, Ancillotti, Blaze, Subway to Sally
     
    Read the previous few issues of Gonzo Weekly:
     
     
    All issues from #70 can be downloaded at www.gonzoweekly.com if you prefer. If you have problems downloading, just email me and I will add you to the Gonzo Weekly dropbox. The first 69 issues are archived there as well. Information is power chaps, we have to share it!
     
    To make sure that you don't miss your copy of future issues make an old hippy a happy chappy and subscribe
    http://eepurl.com/r-VTD
     

    *  The Gonzo Daily is a two way process. If you have any news or want to write for us, please contact me at  jon@eclipse.co.uk. If you are an artist and want to showcase your work, or even just say hello please write to me at gonzo@cfz.org.uk. Please copy, paste and spread the word about this magazine as widely as possible. We need people to read us in order to grow, and as soon as it is viable we shall be invading more traditional magaziney areas. Join in the fun, spread the word, and maybe if we all chant loud enough we CAN stop it raining. See you tomorrow...

    *  The Gonzo Daily is - as the name implies - a daily online magazine (mostly) about artists connected to the Gonzo Multimedia group of companies. But it also has other stuff as and when the editor feels like it. The same team also do a weekly newsletter called - imaginatively - The Gonzo Weekly. Find out about it at this link: www.gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/11/all-gonzo-news-wots-fit-to-print.html
     
    * We should probably mention here, that some of our posts are links to things we have found on the internet that we think are of interest. We are not responsible for spelling or factual errors in other people's websites. Honest guv!

    *  Jon Downes, the Editor of all these ventures (and several others) is an old hippy of 54 who - together with an orange kitten named after a song by Frank Zappa puts it all together from a converted potato shed in a tumbledown cottage deep in rural Devon which he shares with various fish, and sometimes a small Indian frog. He is ably assisted by his lovely wife Corinna, his bulldog/boxer Prudence, his elderly mother-in-law, and a motley collection of social malcontents. Plus.. did we mention the orange kitten?

    THE WORLD ACCORDING TO DAVEY CURTIS

    Dear Jon,

    Slim pickings here for any child 'Trick O'treating  on Halloween.
    No witches, Warlocks, Wizards or any supernatural entities allowed!

    Regards

    Davey C

    CFZ PEOPLE: Corinna Downes (Happy Birthday Darling)

    OLL LEWIS: Yesterday's News Today

    Yesterday’s News Today

    On this day in 1856 the scientist Nikola Tesla was born. Tesla is best known for his work in creating the alternating current system used to transfer electricity over long distances.
    And now the news:

  • Kids strap lizard to rocket and blast it into the ...
  • Wolf mother deaths threaten pack survival but not ...
  • Ancient arachnid 'walks again'
  • Elephant in India Rescued After 50 Years of Being ...
  • Whaling rears its head briefly to unsettle Tony Ab...
  • Mystery 6-foot crocodile appears in middle of Gree...
  • Transgender algae reveal evolutionary origin of se...
  • Giant Ancient Sea Scorpions Had Bad Eyesight
  • Research calls for a new diet classification for m...
  • A song about Tesla from They Might Be Giants latest album: