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...

Search This Blog

WATCH OUR WEEKLY WEBtv SHOW

SUPPORT OTT ON PATREON

SUPPORT OTT ON PATREON
Click on this logo to find out more about helping CFZtv and getting some smashing rewards...

SIGN UP FOR OUR MONTHLY NEWSLETTER



Unlike some of our competitors we are not going to try and blackmail you into donating by saying that we won't continue if you don't. That would just be vulgar, but our lives, and those of the animals which we look after, would be a damn sight easier if we receive more donations to our fighting fund. Donate via Paypal today...




Wednesday, June 17, 2009

COLIN HIGGINS WRITES...

Hi Jon,

Hope things are good your end. It's pouring here after a very dry spell but the forecast for next week is excellent so, at the risk of sounding like someone even more elderly than I am, the gardens need the rain!

Also noted in a blog last week a profusion of tadpoles this year. I can confirm a similar picture hereabouts. I was about to give Matilda Whiskers Gertrude Treacle the garden excavator (Lord, my wife's juvenile anthropomorphism is catching) aka the dog a dunking in the mill pond after her hideous habit of devouring or rolling in other dogs' crap, when I paused as the water looked a bit odd.

The shallows were solid with well developed tadpoles, more than I can remember in 45 years staring into water. This week I've noticed a lot of activity on the surface from young frogs. Also interesting was a predator chasing fry and frogs. As the pond contains no pike I can only assume it was a large perch or perhaps (less likely) another species turned frog and fish-eater; bream for example are known for predatory ways beyond a certain size. The obvious thing to do would be cast a small frog shaped lure (which bizarrely I have!) to discover who the culprit is but a lack of time precludes such experimentation.

Back to the point: Charles Paxton raises an issue I've often pondered, namely how much referencing to include in blog posts. Although I do include links sometimes I feel complete citation would kill the flavour of the posts. I can assure you my two penn'orth are thoroughly researched, even to the point of scouring the loft books for sometimes incidental details that are probably only of interest to me!
If a reader does want to take issue with a point or just wondered where the original conclusion/observation came from they can do it through the comments column or have my email to pursue the issue further. The worry is references might be as long as the article itself which would be a shame. All IMHO as ever,

Blessings,

Colin

No comments: