CRYPTOZOOLOGY ONLINE: Still on the Track: 12/10/14

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...

Wednesday, December 10, 2014

CFZ PEOPLE: David Braund-Phillips and Jessica Heard have got engaged

Congratulations, my darlings.

Badger cubs to be shot in latest cull plan

Badger cubs will be shot under plans to shift the controversial cull to early summer in 2015, the Guardian has learned.

The badger culls, aimed at curbing tuberculosis in cattle, have so far taken place in the autumn and have repeatedly missed their minimum kill targets. Cubs are easier to catch and shoot and are more numerous in early summer, making it more likely an earlier cull will hit its target.

But scientists have warned killing cubs rather than adults has less effect on cutting TB, while animal campaigners condemned the plan as “appallingly crude and desperate”.

The National Farmers Union (NFU), which speaks for the culling companies, said government licences permit culling to begin any time from June. The Department of Environment Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) said the timing of the culls was a decision for the culling companies.

Badger cubs are born underground in February and first emerge in April. While the cubs and their parents legally cannot be culled until the start of June, it is legal to shoot them under licence afterwards. The cullers intend to start in June or July 2015, according to Guardian sources.

However, leading badger expert Professor Rosie Woodroffe, at the Zoological Society of London, said: “They may well catch more badgers if they cull in June, because young cubs are naïve and easy to trap. But many of cubs die in their first year, especially in dry summers. So killing 100 badgers in June wouldn’t reduce the badger population as much as killing 100 badgers in November.

“Also, cubs are much less likely to have TB, so killing cubs would not have the same effect on reducing disease as killing adults.”

Read on...

MUIRHEAD'S MYSTERIES: A sea serpent head in Honolulu

An interesting sea serpent story came my way a few days ago. From the Jonesboro Evening Sun of May 11th 1905

MODEL OF CHINA`S DRAGON

Head of sea serpent recently captured displayed in Honolulu

Honolulu is the possessor of the head of a real sea serpent. The intact bones of the curious head are on exhibition in the window of a store in that city,and hundreds of curious people crowd around the place waiting to get a glimpse of the strange object,says a recent report to the New York Sun. William Herbert Melton Ayres brought to Hawaii what is probably the first head of a serpent to be placed on exhibition. He came to Hawaii seven years ago ,later went to Shanghai and a short time ago he returned to Honolulu
quite unexpectedly .

He walked into the office of the Bulletin and asked if that paper cared to have a story about a sea serpent. He was asked not to slam the door in going out. Nothing daunted, Ayres again descended on the office,bearing a large carpet bag. Depositing the package on the sporting editor`s desk he insisted upon opening it,and revealed to the surprised gaze of all the bones of the head of a huge sea monster. The jawbones measured about four feet, the head being a couple of feet wide. There were 160 teeth, 80 upper and as many lower. The specimen was utterly unlike anything seen as far as the records go. Ayres stated that he had purchased the head from a Chinese fisherman who had found the body of the serpent washed upon the shore, the body measuring 78 feet, apparently having been killed by some passing steamer.

Ayres believes that the serpent thus discovered is a descendant of the monster which inspired the dragon upon the flag of China. (Remember this is long before the flag the Communists adopted in 1949.)

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.

THE GONZO BLOG DOO-DAH MAN DOES HIS BEST

The Gonzo Daily - Wednesday

www.gonzomultimedia.co.uk/about.html

Yet another Curate's Egg of a day, but then again it always is. Two of my favourite fish died in the night, but they had both been looking a little off colour and defying everything that Graham, Tammy and I could do to help them. Sad but true. I am hearing disturbing whispers that those peculiar folk who apparently operate from a community deep in the woods on the Cornish border, are releasing a two song Christmas single. They apparently harbour the wish that "hope it replaces 'Mistletoe and Wine' in the affections of the great unwashed". I would hazard a guess that a song called 'Genocide' featuring what I can only imagine is a totally unlicensed David Bowie sample, is unlikely to be out for very long in any form before a Cease and Desist letter comes. And as for it becoming a perennial Christmas favourite? Who knows? But it is in far better taste than many Christmas songs. I can't wait for the A-Side next week.

GONZO TRACK OF THE DAY: Ralph Vaughan Williams
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2014/12/gonzo-track-of-day-ralph-vaughan.html
THOM THE WORLD POET: The Daily Poem
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2014/12/thom-world-poet-daily-poem_10.html
ERIC BURDON & THE ANIMALS AT OAKVILLE CENTRE
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2014/12/eric-burdon-animals-at-oakville-centre.html
Iconic Prog Rock Band Yes Releases "Like It Is"
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2014/12/iconic-prog-rock-band-yes-releases-like.html
Atkins May Project: US review
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2014/12/atkins-may-project-us-review.html
The Gonzo Weekly #107
www.gonzomultimedia.co.uk/about.html

Ant-Bee, Jethro Tull, Dee Palmer, Lemmy, Frank Zappa, Astronomusic, Jon Anderson, Yes, Hawkwind, and Daevid Allen fans had better look out! The latest issue of Gonzo Weekly (#107) is available to read at www.gonzoweekly.com, and to download at http://www.gonzoweekly.com/pdf/.

It has Ant-Bee Billy James on the cover, and features an interview with him by Yours truly. Doug Harr interviews the legendary Dee Palmer, once of Jethro Tull and we send Astronomusic to a desert island. Jon looks at Lemmy's autobiographt, Hawkwind go to Japan, and we remember the great Frank Zappa. And there are also new shows from the multi-talented Neil Nixon at Strange Fruit and from M Destiny at Friday Night Progressive, and the titular submarine dwellers are back with another episode of Sub Reality Sandwich (except its not). There is also a collection of more news, reviews, views, interviews and anteaters wishing to snooze (OK, nothing to do with dozy edentates, 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 complete list of artists featured in this bumper fun packed issue is: Frank Zappa, Mike Joyce, Pink Floyd,Elton John, AC/DC, Gong, Daevid Allen, Quarto Vuoto, The Who, Steve Hackett, Strange Fruit, Sub Reality Sandwich, Friday Night Progressive, Ian McLagan, Bobby Keys, Nick Talbot, Bob Montgomery, Stoner, The Doctors of Madness, Clive Palmer, The Fall, Captain Beefheart and his Magic Band, Mick Farren and The Deviants, Aviator, Mick Abrahams, Joey Molland, Steve Ignorant, Hugh Hopper & Phil Miller, Tony Palmer, Barbara Dickson,Ant-Bee, Jethro Tull, Dee Palmer, Astronomusic, Lemmy, Yes, Peter Banks, Rick Wakeman, Geoff Downes, Mabel Greer's Toyshop, Steve Howe, Jon Anderson, Patrick Moraz, Like a Storm, Tinkicker, Winter, Ancient Rites

Read the previous few issues of Gonzo Weekly:

Issue 106 (Steve Ignorant cover)
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2014/11/gonzo-weekly-105.html
Issue 105 (Adrian Belew cover)
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2014/11/gonzo-weekly-105.html
Issue 104 (Pink Fairies cover)
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2014/11/gonzo-weekly-104.html

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!

You can download the magazine in pdf form HERE:
http://www.gonzoweekly.com/pdf/

* 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/…/all-gonzo-news-wots-fit…

* 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 55 who - together with an infantile orange cat 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 infantile orange cat?
The Gonzo Daily - Tuesday
www.gonzomultimedia.co.uk/about.html

Another Curate's Egg of a day. I did an interview for Japanese TV at lunchtime, which was quite fun, and then had a Hospital appointment. In the meantime Tammy did a big clean out of the Japanese newts. Prudence was quite chipper throughout the day, she had her appetite back and ate two small but sensible meals. However in the mid-evening she was sick again, and was quite unwell for much of last night. Corinna and I finally got to sleep at about five, so anyone expecting sparkling Wildean wit from me this morning can just go and eat a bowl of............

THOM THE WORLD POET: The Daily Poem
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.co.uk/2014/12/thom-world-poet-daily-poem_9.html
GONZO TRACK OF THE DAY: Lana Lane - Someone to Believe
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.co.uk/2014/12/gonzo-track-of-day-lana-lane-someone-to.html
BARBARA DICKSON - TV INTERVIEW 2009
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.co.uk/2014/12/barbara-dickson-tv-interview-2009.html
Steve Hackett 2014 Interview: Setting The Record Straight
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.co.uk/2014/12/steve-hackett-2014-interview-setting.html
Wit and musical wizardry from legend of rock Rick
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.co.uk/2014/12/wit-and-musical-wizardry-from-legend-of.html

The Gonzo Weekly #107
www.gonzomultimedia.co.uk/about.html

Read the previous few issues of Gonzo Weekly: