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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Monday, September 17, 2018

CRYPTOLINK: OGOPOGO SIGHTING?

A word about cryptolinks: we are not responsible for the content of cryptolinks, which are merely links to outside articles that we think are interesting (sometimes for the wrong reasons), usually posted up without any comment whatsoever from me. 


Video footage shows the long, dark animal making its way across a lake. It appears to wriggle in and out of the water, as the man behind the camera ...

MUIRHEAD`S MYSTERIES: The saga of the only duck on Niue island, South Pacific.

The Guardian newspaper of September 8th 2018 reported the hilarious, very odd but apparently true story of the only living male mallard duck (or so it appeared from the photo in the paper`s print edition) of the same type that lives in New Zealand,the nearest large group of islands, but by "near" NZ is still 2064 miles from Niue so we have a valid mystery here.An argument was put forth that it was a released pet or escaped pet from a yacht that had arrived and left from NZ, but frankly,if I ever go on a long distance yacht trip I`d rather take something more lively and better company than a duck. Now I am not being duck-ist or duck-phobic here, a friend and I regularly feed mallards at a big pond in Macclesfield and all they ever do is eat,quack and fight each other!
If anyone has the time and money to buy the books mentioned on this very useful website then perhaps the mystery of this duck could be resolved. 


I have e-mailed the author of the above web site, Grrlscientist and let`s see what transpires.

The story itself says was headlined `Trevor the lonely duck gets tiny island of Niue in a flap.`According to Guardian online:


"The remote Pacific atoll of Niue, a three and a half hour flight from Auckland, has a population of 1,600 humans and, as of early this year, one duck. "The arrival of the lone bird has surprised and delighted locals. He has been christened Trevor, after the  Speaker of the House of Representatives in New Zealand, Trevor Mallard. Trevor was being fed by locals and : "People are concerned because we haven’t had a lot of rain so his puddle is drying up,” said Bollen. “There’s a collective effort among the public at large to keep the duck in water. People are just going down with containers to fill up his puddle." The duck seems to have become something of a local celebrity. Apparently Niue has no wildlife at all on land so the arrival or teleportation a la Fort of a duck is something of a sensation .Apparently according to a comment on the Guardian`s online version Trevor was being harassed by a rooster.
I e-mailed Haden Talagi the Minister for the Environment, on Niue but my email came back with a "unknown contact/not recognised" message.
As of 6.15pm UK time Sept 13th when I wrote this blog , The Guardian`s online version of this story had 250 comments,see here: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/sep/07/trevor-the-lonely-duck-gets-tiny-island-of-niue-in-a-flap#comments.Most of the comments are facetious and amusing. Though this post by Lawrie Griffith is an exception:

"The NZ Herald report suggests that claims that Trevor the Duck is a mallard species is a 'fib' presumably because of the word association with Trevor the Speaker.
The Wikipedia entry for List of birds of Niue lists twenty nine species. None of which are ducks.

It does however mention unconfirmed reports of Pacific black duck (Anas superciliosa).
A google search for 'pacific mallard' resulted in entries for a type of steam locomotive, which is unhelpful.New Zealand Birds Online lists images of the NZ Mallard Anas platyrhynchos, in breeding plumage, which resemble quite closely media images of Trevor the Duck.

This breeding plumage also suggests that Trevor is not Trevor the Duck at all. But is in fact Trevor the Drake..."
Also the  point was made that mallards are an invasive species in New Zealand.

I have to admit the words "fake news" clearly flashed in neon in my mind but no, it`s an apparently a true story , not qwackers, and there is a photo of poor Trevor in his pond(the only pond on Niue apparently) in the paper.
Until next time , adieu.

BIGFOOT NEWS IN BRIEF



Michigan Fisherman Takes 'Bigfoot' Picture
“It was about six feet tall and had a human-like figure,” he told Bigfoot Evidence earlier this week, not specifying when the encounter happened. “It had ...

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.




NESSIENEWS (Caveat Lector)




Dipak Ram, an NHS consultant from Manchester, reckons he caught the creature as dark “mass” during a trip to the Loch – located in the Scottish ...


THE GONZO BLOG DOO-DAH MAN PRAYS

The Gonzo Daily: Monday/Tuesday
 
YER EDITOR SEZ:
 
Time is running away with itself once again. Because of the current family crisis things are all up in the air. Gonzo Weekly is currently fortnightly, and whilst the next issue of Animals & Men, and the next episode of On The Track are underway, there is every likelihood that they will be later than scheduled. But family comes first. As far as Corinna is concerned, I am afraid that there is still no more concrete news. Corinna - thank God - continues to be pain free, and although she has intermittent discomfort is doing rather well. We have been told that she needs more tests, and so the waiting game continues. Please continue keep us in your thoughts and prayers. I am convinced that the barrage of love and blessings you have sent us so far has borne remarkable results.
 
One of the things that I find oddly reassuring about all of this is the number of people who are praying for us. This includes a surprisingly large number of people that I have known for years, that I never knew had a religious bone in their body. It is times like this when one learns most about one's friends.
 
Meanwhile I continue to pretend that I am a popstar, because now I have sold six whole copies of my new album Coldharbour. If I continue at this rate I will get a silver disc sometime at the beginning of the next millenium. Coldharbour, by the way, can be found here: https://jondownes1.bandcamp.com/releases
 
I think it is really rather good, but then again I would say that wouldn't I?
 
ALL TODAY'S GONZO NEWS WOT'S FIT TO PRINT:
 
WAKEMANTHINGS
PROG AWARDS
HAWKWIND NEWS
THE GONZO TRACK OF THE DAY: Chad Mitchell Trio - T...
THOM THE WORLD POET: The Daily Poem
 
OTHER IMPORTANT STUFF FROM THE GONZOVERSE:
 
For those of you who are interested in such things, the Gonzo Privacy Policy is here:
 
And the CFZ Privacy Policy is here:
And, yes,
 
CHECK OUT THE GONZO STORES:
 
UK
US
 
AND OTHER STUFF FEATURING VARIOUS GONZO CONTRIBUTORS:
 
Our webTV show:
 
And if you fancy supporting it on Patreon:
 
And by the way chaps and chappesses, a trip to the Jon Downes megastore may seem to be in order:
 
AND THE LATEST ISSUE OF THE GONZO MAGAZINE:
 
Gonzo Weekly #303-4
THE BOOTS BOOTS BOOTS BOOTS MARCHING UP AND DOWN AGAIN ISSUE
 
In another fantastically fab issue, Alan goes to  Kozfest, John goes to see Devon Allman, Graham discusses the departure of Mr Dibs from Hawkwind, Jon and Graham try to buy opioids with comedy results, Jon talks about Paul McCartney, and a kid's fantasy writer froim yesteryear, the Raz Band wow LA, and Doug goes to see Yes feat. ARW.
 
#Hail Eris!
 
And there are radio shows from Strange Fruit, Mack Maloney, AND Friday Night Progressive, AND there is a columns from Kev Rowlands, but all sorts of folk including Neil Nixon, C J Stone, AND Roy Weard and the irrepressible Corinna AND Mr Biffo are on hiatus.  There is also a collection of more news, reviews, views, interviews and red kangaroos who've lost their shoes (OK, nothing to do with the largest extant macropods who are in a quandry with regards their footwear, 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!!!
 
This issue features:
 
kaolin and morphine, Paul McCartney, John Lennon, Amy Winehouse, Ozzy Osbourne, Bart, Alan Parsons, Elton John, Lenny Kravitz, The RAZ Band, Richard Freeman, Strange Fruit, Friday Night Progressive, Mack Maloney's Mystery Hour, Anna Karabessini, Malcolm James McCormick "Mac Miller", Wilson Moreira, Liz Fraser, Burton Leon Reynolds Jr., Elisa Serna, Conway Victor Savage, Randy Weston, Michael "Mike" A. Kennedy, Rene Garcia, Donald McGuire, Richard Bateman, Helen Shepherd, Fenella Fielding, OBE, Johnny Strike, Man, Binky Womack, Rick Wakeman, Essra Mohawk, Mick Farren and Andy Colquhoun, Doug Harr, Cruise to the Edge, ARW, Yes, Alan Dearling, Kozfest, The Dials, Thom the World Poet, John Brodie-Good, The Devon Allman Project, Allman Brothers Band,  Duane Betts, Kev Rowland, Widow's Peak, Witch Casket, Superstition, Robert Reed, Tom Newman, Les Penning, Diane Marino, Diane Moser, Jan Edwards, Hawkwind, Mr Dibs, Jon Downes, Coldharbour Diaries, The Wild Colonial Boy, Martin Springett, Edward Eager
 
And the last few issues are:
 
Issue 303-4 (kOZFEST)
Issue 301-2 (Ringo Starr)
Issue 299-300 (Aretha Franklin)
Issue 298 (Alan in Hungary)
Issue 297 (Shir Ordo)
Issue 295-6 (Robert Berry)
Issue 294 (Bow Wow Wow)
Issue 293 (Stonehenge)
Issue 292 (Rolling Stones)
Issue 291 (Alien Weaponry)
Issue 290 (Frank Zappa)
Issue 289 (Misty in Roots)
Issue 288 (Paula Frazer)
Issue 287 (Boss Goodman)
Issue 286 (Monty Python)
Issue 285 (ELP)
Issue 284 (Straqngelove)
Issue 283 (Record Store Day)
Issue 282 (Neil Finn and Fleetwood Mac)
Issue 281 (Carl Palmer)
Issue 280 (Steve Andrews)
 
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:
 
SPECIAL NOTICE: If you, too, want to unleash the power of your inner rock journalist, and want to join a rapidly growing band of likewise minded weirdos please email me at jon@eclipse.co.uk The more the merrier really.
 
 
* 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.co.uk
 
* 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 59 who - together with a Jack Russell called Archie, an infantile orange cat named after a song by Frank Zappa, and two half grown kittens, one totally coincidentally named after one of the Manson Family, purely because she squeaks, puts it all together from a converted potato shed in a tumbledown cottage deep in rural Devon which he shares with various fish. 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 Archie and the Cats?

NEWS FROM NOWHERE: Monday/Tuesday

ON THIS DAY IN -  1394 - In France, Charles VI published an ordinance that expelled all Jews from France.
And now some more recent news from the CFZ Newsdesk

  • Diverse salmon populations enable 'resource surfin...
  • Monkey studies reveal possible origin of human spe...
  • How ethical is the elephant ‘sanctuary' you're vis...

  • Warmer seas will not lure great white sharks to UK...

  • AND TO WHISTLE WHILE YOU WORK... (Music that may have some relevance to items also on this page, or may just reflect my mood on the day)