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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Sunday, September 23, 2012

CRYPTOLINK: 'Sasquatch Watch' researcher keeps on looking for rock-throwing beast

BILLINGS - Pete Wilson is a patient man, and patience is a useful virtue for a bigfoot researcher. After years of working in the field and investigating reported bigfoot encounters by others, Wilson has been rewarded with seeing a few likely footprints and hearing what he thinks was the howl of a sasquatch. Also, he said, "we've had rocks thrown at us, which is a common trait among bigfoot."
But he has learned enough to give him hope that he'll actually see a sasquatch in his lifetime. "I'm pretty convinced they're real, but I've got to get that sighting," he said. "I've got to prove it to myself." Wilson, who moved to Billings from Virginia in June, is hoping other Montanans will help him in his quest. He has founded Sasquatch Watch of Montana and has created a website so people can report sightings or otherwise get involved in the search.

CFZ NEW ZEALAND: Distortions of Time

When views have existed for many years, it can be extremely arduous changing them. New Zealand is a classic example, it was always thought that we were free from snakes, crocodiles and even apart from three species of bats, mammals as a whole. A way different picture is certainly now being painted of New Zealand in its early years. Yes most certainly birds abounded but as it would appear, so did a large species of Python, crocodiles and a small species of rodent perhaps the first of many to be found. Read on...

FORTEAN LINK: A Fortean History of Somerset

I was very pleased to be given the opportunity to write a volume on Somerset for the Bloody British History series from The History Press. This is my kind of history – all the good bits and none of the boring bits. As well as the eponymous “bloody” history (prehistoric cannibals, Viking invaders, Catholic-massacring Puritans and Victorian murderers) there is no shortage of more offbeat items to interest a Fortean audience:
  • Joseph of Arimathea is reputed to have brought the Holy Grail to Glastonbury in 63 AD.
  • Cadbury Castle may have been the inspiration for the legend of King Arthur’s Camelot – it was certainly the stronghold of a powerful warrior chief around the time Arthur is presumed to have lived.
  • When the Saxons invaded Somerset in the 7th century, they found that the locals believed Saint Patrick was buried at Glastonbury... this may not have been true (see Saint Patrick of Glastonbury?) but it did wonders for the pilgrimage trade.

KARL SHUKER: The Dodo that was a No No

http://www.karlshuker.blogspot.co.uk/2012/09/the-stuffed-dodo-that-was-no-no.html

I WISH PEOPLE WOULD STOP CALLING THESE CREATURES CHUPACABRAS

Chupacabra sighting in Somerset?!?

"my daughter and i saw this odd looking animal yesterday on the campus of southwestern high school!! looks to be a chupacabra!! "


The picture is too blurry to tell whether there are the diagnostic 'pouches' on its haunches, which mark it as being something other than a mangy coyote...

And here is another one, and this time look at its haunches:


http://www.weatherbynation.com/image/tid/26657?startId=55525

WATCHER OF THE SKIES: Today's Fortean Bird News




After about six months of regular postings on the main bloggo, Corinna has taken the plunge and started a 'Watcher of the Skies' blog of her own as part of the CFZ Bloggo Network.



HAUNTED SKIES: Times (The) 7.5.68


TODAY'S BIG CAT ROUND UP

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 should have a go at publishing a regular round-up of the stories as they come in. In September 2012, Emma Osborne decided that the Mystery Cat Study Group really deserved a blog of its own within the CFZ Blog Network.

DALE DRINNON: Genetic traces of unknown humanoid/Cedar & Willow/Benny's blog


I actually posted this yesterday, but messed it up on the notifications. JD

New at Frontiers of Anthropology:

OK, big Soap Opera Superheroes Tie In at Cedar and Willow:



And my blog touches on a character in Benny's current blog:

I'M YER GONZO BLOG DOO-DAH MAN





It's sunday morning goodness me
I was still typing at half past three
and I didn't get to sleep till five
its a wonder that I'm still alive
There's something wrong, I really think
My body clock is out of synch
But its sunday and again its time
to do the Gonzo thing in rhyme
 
For some reason when I awoke
I was thinking hard about this bloke
one of my favourites, you'll liken him too
here's a Kevin Coyne song just for you
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.co.uk/2012/09/im-editor-and-i-will-be-self-indulgent.html
 
Here's another treat for you
An exclusive Michael Des Barres review
and pictures taken with a zoom
on friday night at the Viper Room
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.co.uk/2012/09/michael-des-barres-at-viper-room-on.html
 
Now once again (wouldn't you know it)
we visit Thomas the World Poet
the more I read, the more I've found
his politics are really sound...
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.co.uk/2012/09/thom-world-poet-daily-poem_23.html
 
I've found Johnny Foreigners are rum coves
because they don't heard sheep in droves
across the city (for goodness sakes man)
the guy doing it is our Rick Wakeman
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/09/rick-wakeman-drives-sheep-across-london.html
 
And now a really cool review
of a gig in 1972
Ideal for us muso bores
with Hawkwind, Sandy, and The Doors
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.co.uk/2012/09/link-doors-sandy-denny-hawkwind.html
 
And now with our banners unfurled
here's Cathy, the Jefferson Starship girl
a really groovy rock and roll chick
who's now taken over from Grace Slick
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/09/jefferson-starship-cathy-richardson.html
 
That's just about it for this humble freak
the poems will be back next week
 
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 Editor is an old hippy of 53 who - together with his orange cat - puts it all together from a converted potato shed in a tumbledown cottage deep in rural Devon. He is ably assisted by his lovely wife Corinna, his bulldog/boxer Prudence, and a motley collection of social malcontents. Plus.. did we mention the orange cat?

OLL LEWIS: Yesterday's News Today

Nothing from Oll which is unusual. But here are the links...


  • Hero pig dives into water to save goat from drowni...
  • Shark 'Rescues' Man Lost At Sea For 15 Weeks
  • 'Haunted Highway': Searching For Hellhounds In Nev...
  • Grandfather Saves Dog From Alligator's Jaws
  • Crayfish invade Hampstead Heath
  • Brain Candy: Chemical Turns Rats into M&M Eating M...
  • Lemurs identify callers from nose grunts
  • Decorative spider webs attract dinner
  • Holsworthy fishery fined for keeping illegal fish ...
  • Chile's Pacific paradise endangered by goats, cats...
  • Giant nature reserve to be built with earth dug up...
  • Adolescent Male Chimps in Large Community Strive t...
  • Genome-Invading Retroviruses Have a Nasty Surprise...
  • Shrinking Snow Threatens Seal Lairs in Arctic
  • Mysterious 'Crazy Ants' Identified