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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Friday, August 10, 2018

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 are publishing a regular round-up of the stories as they come in. 

The worldwide mystery cat phenomenon (or group of phenomena, if we are to be more accurate) is not JUST about cryptozoology. At its most basic level it is about the relationship between our species and various species of larger cat. That is why sometimes you will read stories here that appear to have nothing to do with cryptozoology but have everything to do with human/big cat interaction. As committed Forteans, we believe that until we understand the nature of these interactions, we have no hope of understanding the truth that we are seeking.


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.




BIGFOOT NEWS IN BRIEF





Some viewers believe this is evidence for the existence of Bigfoot. “That is chilling! My cat was even looking concerned,” one person said. Another ...

I know you're curious about Bigfoot erotica. Everybody should be. Before you type it in the WattPad search bar, however, let me give you a bit of ...

After working on the weekends for three months, a local man has completed a large Bigfoot sculpture. Brad Lewis used wire filled with leaves and ...

THE GONZO BLOG DOO-DAH MAN IS

The Gonzo Daily: Friday/Saturday
 
YER EDITOR SEZ:
 
It will not, I am sure, come as any surprise to anyone reading this that Corinna’s health issues are—by far—the most important things on my horizon at the moment. She is up and about, pain free, and we are waiting for an appointment for her to go into hospital for another test which will—God willing—give us a definitive diagnosis so that we know what to do next.
 
Many thanks, once again, for everyone who has sent their love and good wishes. To be at the receiving end of such an outpouring of positive energy is truly a wonderful thing.
 
Do I sound like an old hippy here? Tough.
 
Richard Freeman sent me some interesting news from The Daily Telegraph:
 
“The Lynx UK Trust has applied to Natural England for permission to release six Eurasian lynx into Kielder Forest and a licensing decision is expected shortly. But the rewilding group said that consent for the project was now a ‘near certainty’ after the owners of 20 adjoining plots in the forest agreed the animals could be let loose on their land.
If the release is successful it could lead to the widespread reintroduction of the cats into the Scottish Highlands and other parts of Britain.”
 
This is, indeed, excellent news. However if—as many experts including H G Hurrell and Bernard Heuvelmans believed—there is still a relict population, or populations, of indigenous lynx here in the UK, then that population’s genetic makeup will be lost forever as the remnants of the indigenous population mix with the newcomers.
 
But, one cannot make an omelette without breaking eggs, and that theoretical risk would seem to be a small price to pay, if the rewilding of the United Kingdom is to go ahead.
 
ALL TODAY'S GONZO NEWS WOT'S FIT TO PRINT:
 
THE GONZO TRACK OF THE DAY
COMING THIS WEEKEND
A VINTAGE SLICE OF YES STUFF
NICO NEWS
RICK WAKEMAN AND THE MIRACULOUS MOGGY
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 #297
THE REMEMBER WILKO ISSUE
 
In this strange and rather poignant issue, Richard Stellar discovers the incomparable Shir Ordo, Jon talks about Roger Daltrey and Wilko Johnson, Corinna has been in hospital, Alan revisits the The Grunwick dispute and strike action and associated street art, Phil goes to see Roger Waters, John goes to see Canned Heat, Graham looks at what we know about the forthcoming Hawkwind album, and Jon writes about Evelyn Waugh. REDEFINING ECLECTIC eh?
 
#Hail Eris!
 
And there are radio shows from Strange Fruit, Mack Maloney, AND Friday Night Progressive, AND there are columns from all sorts of folk including Kev Rowlands, Neil Nixon, C J Stone, but the irrepressible Corinna, Mr Biffo and Roy Weard 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:
 
Roger Daltrey, Nick Cave, Wilko Johnson, Shir Ordo, paul McCartney, Led Zeppelin, Morrissey, Yoko Ono, David Bowie, Billy Gibbons, Z Z Top, Patrick Williams, Lucy Ferry, June Jacobs, Elbert Howard, Rick Wakeman, Michael Bruce, Natural Gas, Roger Waters, Canned Heat, UPF, Universe Infinity, Unruly Child, Vantomime, Vespero, Zero for Conduct, Abjection Ritual, Aborted Fetus, C J Stone, Hawkwind, Evelyn Waugh, The George Garabedian Players and the Awful Trumpet of Harry Arms.
 
And the last few issues are:
 
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 58 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: Friday/Saturday

ON THIS DAY IN -   1792 - King Louis XVI was taken into custody by mobs during the French Revolution. He was executed the following January after being put on trial for treason. 
And now some more recent news from the CFZ Newsdesk


  • Host plants tell insects when to grow longer wings...
  • Genetic study of silkworm helps unravel its long h...
  • This curious animal grew larger over time -- but i...


  • Giant panda population research shows new challeng...

  • 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)