CRYPTOZOOLOGY ONLINE: Still on the Track: 01/25/13

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...

Friday, January 25, 2013

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 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.

SIGHTINGS USA: How to handle a Florida Panther

SIGHTINGS USA: Black cat in Florida

FORTEAN BIRD NEWS FROM THE WATCHER OF THE SKIES (CFZ)

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. So, 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.

DALE DRINNON: Frontiers of Anthropology/Benny's Blogs/Cedar and Willow

New at Frontiers of Anthropology:

http://frontiers-of-anthropology.blogspot.com/2013/01/guest-blogger-jayasree-asians-indians.html

http://frontiers-of-anthropology.blogspot.com/2013/01/realignment-of-piri-reis-map.html

New on Cedar and Willow:

http://cedar-and-willow.blogspot.com/2013/01/spiderladythe-spiders-lady.html

New on Benny's blog for Thelma Todd:

http://benny-drinnon.blogspot.com/2013/01/unaccustomed-as-we-are.html

(About a Laurel and Hardy short which also featured Thelma and Mae Bush)

Best Wishes, Dale D.

CRYPTOLINK: Toronto Urban Legends: The Great Serpent of Lake Ontario

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, usually posted up without any comment whatsoever from me.

Every lake should have a monster, and Lake Ontario is no exception.

BY PATRICK METZGER

The truth behind the tales people tell about Toronto.

A sea serpent, spotted off the coast of Massachusetts in 1639. Image courtesy of the Wikimedia Commons.

Toronto summers can be hot and sticky, and it’s a pet peeve for residents that local beaches are sometimes off-limits to swimmers due to high levels of pollution. But what if it’s not just water quality that keeps us from frolicking in the waves? What if the powers-that-be don’t want us to know that the waters of Lake Ontario harbour something far more sinister than e coli—say, a gigantic monster with razor-sharp teeth and a taste for human flesh?

We can’t prove that this is what’s happening [Editor's Note: This is not what's happening.], but we do know that there’s been a long history of creature sightings in the waters off our shores.

KARL SHUKER - UFITI, THE 'GHOST' CHIMPANZEE OF NKATA BAY

For his 300th ShukerNature blog post, Karl Shuker revisits the curious case of Ufiti - the 'ghost' chimpanzee of Nkata Bay.

Read on...

I'M YER GONZO BLOG DOO-DAH MAN

I'm actually up bright and early and relatively sane today. The internet is a little sluggish, but at least it seems to be working (to a certain extent at least). Graham has gone to Manchester to see Hawkwind, and Richard is here for a few days to cover for him. Last night we sat up watching monster movies with Mother, who - much to our delight - enjoyed them massively. This morning I received an enormous pile of DVDs and CDs from the lovely Anne-Marie at Gonzo, and I shall be working through them over the next week or so. Corinna's two rescued rats have settled in much to the chagrin of Prudence, and the orange cat is doing well in Staffordshire. Business as usual.

Stephen Stills has a new box set (I wonder if I can blag a copy?)
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2013/01/stephen-stills-box-set-news.html

Davey's on the road again, and whats more - he's taken Graham with him. Watch out Manchester, the Gonzo Daily boys are in town
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2013/01/graham-and-davey-c-under-sonic-attack.html

An interesting cover version of a Michael Des Barres song
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2013/01/interesting-cover-version-of-michael.html

An amazing glimpse into the past for Hawkwind and Bowie fans
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2013/01/link-atomic-sunrise-rare-glimpse-of.html

Today's Gonzo Track of the Day is from the one-and-only Martin Stephenson
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2013/01/gonzo-track-of-day-martin-stephenson.html

Another of our daily visits to the incomparable Thom the World Poet
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2013/01/thom-world-poet-daily-poem_8667.html

* 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: http://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 53 who - together with his orange cat puts it all together from a converted potato shed in a tumbledown cottage deep in rural Devon which he shares with various fish and batrachians. He is ably assisted by his lovely wife Corinna, his bulldog/boxer Prudence, his mother-in-law, and a motley collection of social malcontents. Plus.. did we mention the orange cat?

OLL LEWIS: Yesterday's News Today

Yesterday’s News Today

http://cryptozoologynews.blogspot.com/

Tonight is Burns Night where the work of the poet Robert Burns is celebrated in a ceremonial supper. During the supper a haggis (which despite the disgusting sounding ingredients is surprisingly tasty) is brought forth serenaded by bag pipes and Burns' poem “Address to a Haggis” is recited while it is cut before a toast is proposed to it.

And now the news:

Rare marsupials found fat and happy in new home

INCREDIBLY HUMANLIKE NEW SPECIES OF BLOND MONKEY D...

Yoga Goes to the Dogs with 'Doga'

They Hunt, They Kill, They Cheat: Single-Celled Al...

Mackerel taken off 'to eat' list

Vegetarian cave bear 'starved to death' during Ice...

Removing Doubt Over Croc Snout Clout

Savanna Study Highlights African Fuelwood Crisis

For those that don't believe me when tell of British ceremonies like this I present evidence:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hhj23hNr6vo