MUIRHEAD`S MYSTERIES: THREE ODDITIES-MYSTERY INDIAN BEAR,ODD HAWAII FISH,WOLVES IN HONG KONG

Friends, here is a selection of cryptids from English language Hong Kong newspapers, which I found whilst looking for mysteries in Hong Kong.Well, I found one Hong Kong item out of three! When I say these are cryptids, that is not strictly true. I don`t know whether or not the fish and the bear are new to science,but on the off chance they were or are I include them anyway. Wolves were reported from Hong Kong during the construction of the Kowloon-Canton Railway (1905-1910) but Jon believes these were dholes. I have e-mailed a University in Hawaii and the Bishop Museum about the fish.

Here we go….A STRANGE ANIMAL

This from The Hong Kong Telegraph July 1902.

The Kulu [now in N. India-R] correspondent of the Lahore paper writes thus of a mysterious wild beast that is haunting the neighbourhood:- “The, as yet unidentified animal in the south-west part of the valley, keeps on breaking open cowsheds and killing cattle, and a party of Rohilla sepoys have been sent from Mundi with orders to shoot it. Its latest iniquity was to drag the carcass of a bullock all around the precincts of temple, and eat it on the very temple steps. The natives declare that when attacked by dogs, it gets rid of its assailants in a very ingenious manner by pelting them with pieces of beef and while the dogs,which are generally half starved, are enjoying this most unexpected and extremely welcome supper, it makes good its escape. Wood cutters state that, on more than one occasion, they have come across an entirely new kind of beast in the jungles- a very large bear,head, body and hindquarters black, chest,forelegs and belly brown, like a red bear. If this is true, it looks like a cross between the black and brown bears, a hybrid I have never heard of before. Another woodman`s story that he saw this half caste attacked simultaeneously by two black bear`s, both of which it killed by knocking them over the “khud”! (1)

A QUEER FISH Circular Silver Body and Red Snout.

From The China Mail May 1922

A fish of a species hitherto unknown to science, caught by a Japanese fisherman 13 miles off shore at a depth of 1,200 ft is on exhibition at Honolulu and is exciting great interest.

The specimen weighs 150lb and is flat and almost circular. Silver predominates in the colouring of its body, with its fins and snout of scarlet, and the dorsal,about 18 inches long, spotted with white. The head is mottled with dark grey and black, and the eyes are round and about 4 inches in diameter.

DR C.H. Edmondson, ichthyologist at the University of Hawaii says that the specimen is not classified in any available scientific work. The fish will be presented to the Bishop Museum in Honolulu (2)

WILD DOG STALKS EUROPEAN WALKER IN TYTAM VALLEY. * Wolf-Like Creature May Breed Pack With Mate

The Hong Kong Telegraph February 1938

An alarming experience is reported by a resident of the Colony who went for a walk in the Tytam Valley yesterday evening, which suggested that an Alsatian dog has run wild on the island and is by way of becoming what is known as a “killer”. In fact, it is possible that there are two of these animals, perhaps male and female, and if this is so, and they breed, the prospects are disturbing……” I had a very clear view of the animal: it appeared to be a wolf in every respect, but as I know there are not supposed to be wolves on the island I decided it was an Alsatian. Its slinking manner, unkempt coat and the fact that it had not even a collarshowed that it was a stray, probably run wild. This wild trait was almost immediately afterwards proved in an alarming manner.”Hardly had the brute vanished from sight than I heard a rustling coming from among the thick undergrowth on the bank on my left hand side…….Recently villagers in Aberdeen and Little Hong Kong [ in the `30s these were small fishing communities on the south side of Hong Kong island not far from Tytam-R] complained that pigs had been killed by some large animal there.

“Is a pair, and potential pack, of wild Alsatians, in every way as dangerous as wolves, hunting the Tytam-Deep Water Bay-Little Hong Kong area? If so, the animals should be destroyed as soon as possible. Incidentally, there has been a noticeable dearth of wild barking-deer in that vicinity these past few months, compared with previously, and the explanation seems obvious!” (3)

1 The Hong Kong Telegraph July 30th 1902.
2 The China Mail May 24th 1922
3 The Hong Kong Telegraph February 3rd 1938.


TURNING JAPANESE

THE VAPORS

( I am not a racist, I`m fond of the Japanese, after all they found the above mentioned fish in 1922 and a plesiosaurus, oops, sorry chums, a basking shark in 1977…!)

I`ve got your picture of me and you
You wrote “ I love you” I wrote “me too”
I sit there staring and there`s nothing else to do
Oh it`s in the color
Your hair is brown
Your eyes are hazel
And soft as clouds
I often kiss you when there`s no one else around

I`ve got your picture, I`ve got your picture,
I`d like a million of you all `round myself
I want a doctor, to take a picture,
So I can look at you from inside as well,
You`ve got me turning up and turning down
I`m turning in I`m turning round

I`m turning Japanese
I think I`m turning Japanese
I really think so…etc,

OLL LEWIS: Yesterday's News Today

http://cryptozoologynews.blogspot.com/

On this day in 1912 Alan Turing, the inventor of the computer was born.
And now, the news:

Basking sharks off Falmouth
Hellhound stalking Cannock Chase?
Pictured: shy badgers eat cornflakes at a hotel

It’s as old as the internet but there can only be one response to a story involving badgers:

http://www.weebls-stuff.com/songs/badgers/

CFZ AUSTRALIA YAY!

Those shameless publicity seekers Rebecca Lang and Mike Williams have just launched their book, Australian Big Cats: An Unnatural History of Panthers.

Mike wore his CFZ colours on the day!

Here they are pictured with witness and ace photographer Shane Foreman (left) at the launch, which was held at the Hawkesbury Regional Museum.

Incidentally, the Museum is presently host to an excellent exhibition, Hawkesbury Myth and Legend, featuring some of the duo's contributions.

You can buy the book at www.australianbigcats.com.au

Mike and Rebecca will also be speaking at this year's UK Weird Weekend 2010!

Read more about the line-up here: www.weirdweekend.org

Posted By CFZ Australia to Centre for Fortean Zoology Australia at 6/21/2010 04:09:00 AM

RETURN OF THE NIGHT PARROT

There is some very exciting news over on the CFZ Australia blog. One of my personal favourite cryptids has resurfaced:

"NATIMUK birdwatcher Clive Curson has spotted Australia's rarest bird - a night parrot. The night parrot, Pezoporus occidentalis, is such a rare and secretive bird that bird experts thought it might be extinct. News of the sighting has sparked a rush to the remote outback site by keen birdwatchers throughout Australia. Mr Curson's sighting of a live specimen is the third sighting of the bird in almost a century. The other two sightings were of dead night parrots....

Read More

GLEN VAUDREY: Introducing the Coje Ya Menia

As a result of once again traveling the globe by dart I landed in Angola. To be honest I’m not all that familiar with any of the cryptids that are to be found lurking there. The Coje Ya Menia is certainly one of them, this ‘water lion’ is said to live in the upper Cuango and Cuanza rivers as well as their smaller tributaries.

But what is known about the Coje Ya Menia? As seems usual not as much as you would like and just enough to gain your interest. This mystery animal has been stated as being both nocturnal and amphibious. As for size it has been described as being smaller than a hippopotamus, how much smaller who knows, your guess is as good as mine on that one. Possessing either tusks or large canine teeth this mystery creature is probably one that you wouldn’t want to meet on a dark night, which is of course when you would be more likely to see one. You don’t believe me on that? Well how about the following.

It was back in 1930 that a Portuguese truck driver (Angola was a Portuguese colony until 1975) heard that a Coje Ya Menia had been responsible for killing a hippopotamus on the banks of the Cuango the night before. No doubt waiting until it was light (and very wise that would be considering the nature of the beast) the driver went to look for the carcass. So it was that accompanied by a handful of trackers he went searching. After several hours of following the trails of a hippopotamus and that of a smaller animal they came across the remains of the hippo, and it wasn’t a find for anyone suffering a hangover for they found that the great beast had been ripped to shreds.
So what could the Coje Ya Menia actually be? Well the suspects range from an unknown lizard to an aquatic saber-toothed cat. Whether it is either of those or something completely different remains to be discovered.

LINDSAY SELBY: The Augusta Sea Serpent

On August 11th, 1888, a monster attacked the schooner Augusta off the south east coast of Newfoundland. Six dories were sent out from the schooner and one of them was chased back to the Augusta by a huge, monstrous creature that emerged from the water and chased the dory to the schooner, only to the submerge again. The monster undulated through the water at great speeds, not unlike an eel or snake, and was close to 100 feet long. Its head, which raised above the water for 15 to 20 feet, was huge and lizard-like with immense eyes. Its body was brown with stripes, about 20 feet thick with a huge fin. The creature reappeared later as the dories went out to get their trawls and chased another of the six dories. It attempted to wrap itself into coils around the boat but lost its speed, only to later catch up and smash at the dory with its deadly tail. The schooner captain shot at the beast as it sank into the sea. The Augusta returned to St. John's where the story appeared in local papers. Some believe that the creature was a giant squid, similar to ones seen in various places around the world but the experienced fishermen of Newfoundland know it was a sea serpent, and is still out there, hidden deep in the waters, waiting...

-----told to St. John's newspapers by Thomas Grant, owner of the Augusta---

I am not at all well at the moment but posted a sea serpent report to keep you amused. Maybe some one would like to hazard a guess at what it might have been, if it is a misidentified creature, and post a comment.

AN ALTRUISTIC TORTOISE?

This is one of the most controversial videos to have surfaced in a long time. Is it for real? Or are the tortoises somehow trained to perform this as a party piece? What do you folk think?