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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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Wednesday, February 24, 2010

BOBCATS UNDER THREAT

I received this in my mail yesterday:

Have you heard of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES)? It's an international treaty that 175 countries around the world have signed on to in an effort to protect threatened and endangered species. All of those countries are meeting next month to discuss whether or not they should increase or remove protections for certain animals and plants.

The United States has submitted a proposal for the upcoming CITES meeting that would remove international protection for bobcats, one of only two iconic American wild cat species. Removing CITES protection for these animals would not only decrease regulatory control of the trade in their fur, but it would also leave other similar spotted wild cats more vulnerable to illegal international trade.

I just signed a petition urging the U.S. delegation to withdraw this harmful proposal. Will you please help bobcats and other spotted wildcats, too? It will only take a minute!

To take action on this issue, click on the link below:
https://secure.humanesociety.org/site/Advocacy?s_oo=hwGlCJxs8ym-Mrjor605fQ..&id=4375

DOGS DOGS EVERYWHERE

With only a week to go before we embark for Texas my thoughts are becoming increasingly of dogs. And strange doggie stories are surfacing all the time.

I came across this story (the cutting on the left is only the first of three) on the forteana email list. It is a facsimile of an article from the San Jose Evening News (17 September1890) about dozens of sick dogs that supposedly crawled under a house to die.

I have noticed before that when one is on a particular train of investigation all sorts of allied (but completely irrelevant) stories and facts come up to confuse, titillate and distract you.

Even my favourite webcomic is about dog spirits.


http://www.chicagoreader.com/TheBlog/archives/2010/02/23/whence-come-these-dogs

LINDSAY SELBY: The Searle Photographs

Frank Searle allegedly took many photos of Nessie. I realised that not many people will have seen them as his first book was taken out of circulation because of allegations of plagiarism, and unless you are old enough to have visited his tent, you would not have had chance to view them.

I have a copy of the book in paperback. Nessie seven years in search of the monster by Frank Searle, 1976, pub. by Coronet books, London. Some of his photos (I counted 20 last time I visited him) are reproduced in the book and I have scanned them in for you to see. Frank died in 2005 in obscurity but for his time on the loch he was a bit of a star and TV crews came to see him and tourists flocked. I will not go into the stories here about him,(will save that for my book, perhaps), but sufficient to say he could be quite aggressive if you accused him of faking the photos.
He could be charming whilst you agreed with him but it was best not to disagree with him within earshot.
In saying that, I have a soft spot for Frank as he was a character and somehow seemed to fit in with what was going on at the loch at the time.
So here are some of the photos. See what you think.

MUIRHEAD`S MYSTERIES:WISCONSIN RIVER MONSTER AND CAT-RABBIT HYBRID

Hi folks!

Today I am looking at two cryptids: one river monster and an alleged hybrid between a cat and a rabbit. The water monster is from 1904 in Wisconsin and the Californian “rabbit-cat” example from 1907 at a show in a place called Chutes Park (in or near Los Angeles?) is the first case I have ever read about. I am not familiar with the literature on the subject of “rabbit-cats.”

New Wisconsin Fish Story

A strange creature resembling a long-haired dog with six webbed feet and fins like a fish was caught in the river near La Crosse, Wis,the other day by Millard (?) a clam fish man. The animal was equiped with the tail of a fish and had a head shaped much like a walrus. The species is unknown to local scientists. Nothing like it has ever been seen before.(1)

Note – La Crosse is an inland town by a river about 200 miles west of Lake Michigan

Freak Graces Show.

A pair of rabbit cats bred by Frank T. Cantara are another freak exhibit of the show. These strange creatures have the haunches of a rabbit and the short stubby tail of that animal, but their bodies and heads are those of a cat. At places on their bodies the cat hair gives place to rabbit fur. These strange quadrupeds hop about like a rabbit and eat grass. Mr Cantara produced them by crossing a male rabbit and a female cat. The original litter contained seven little ones, but Jack and Tootsie are the only ones left.

An accident to one of the exhibitors who was viewing the sights at the Chutes was the occasion for the creating of another class of cats yesterday. While a young man, who desires his name to be kept quiet, was leaning over the railing watching the sea lion disporting in the icy water he noticed some animals swinging around in the pool. Crawling over the rail to get a closer view he fell into the pond. He then observed that the creatures he had seen were also a variety of cats, called cat-fish.
(2)

1. The Richmond Climax June 8th 1904
2. Los Angeles Herald January 18th 1907 p.9

Devo – Beautiful World

It`s a Beautiful World We Live In
A Sweet Romatic Place
Beautiful People Everywhere
The Way They Show They Care
Makes Me Want To Say

It`s A Beautiful World (x3)
For You (x3)

It`s A Wonderful Time To Be Here,
It`s Nice To Be Alive,
Wonderful People Everywhere,
The Way They Comb Their Hair
Makes Me Want To Say,

It`s A Wonderful Place (x3)
For You (x3)……

Aquarium Gazette Website

The official TAG website was launched today at http://www.theaquariumgazette.co.uk/ The website gives full details of what TAG is all about, review of the current issue, article listings for previous issues and ordering information etc.

Although a bold statement: I believe that TAG is the only aquarium magazine that encourages the interest in aquatic cryptozoology. With this in mind we have already published a number of excellent articles by Jon, Richard (subject of the Naga) and Dr Shuker (Buru) and keep our readers informed of all the latest CFZ news through our 'Community Zone' feature.

Regards

David Marshall, (Editor)

WALLABIES IN DEVON

Sent by Richard Muirhead.

OLL LEWIS: Yesterday's News Today

http://cryptozoologynews.blogspot.com/

John Burgess Wilson, better known as Anthony Burgess, was born on this day in 1917. His most famous work was A Clockwork Orange, which most people are familiar with from the KubricK film. As you might be able to guess, as Kubric had a habit of turning great books into merely OK films (see 2001 and The Shining) The book was much, much better.

And now, the news:

Elephant 'secret language' clues
Sniffer dog Treo to be honoured with PDSA Dickin Medal
Where Did Insects Come From? New Study Establishes Relationships Among All Arthropods
South Pacific countries face threats from alien invasive species
HerpDigest Volume # 10 Issue #9 2/23/09 Bibliographies Major Herp Publications
So fat, I can't reach my nuts

That’s just nuts (apologies for the exceptionally poor quality of today’s pun; normal quality service will be resumed at some point in the future, possibly).