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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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Monday, December 20, 2010

GRAHAM AND JON'S SNOWY ADVENTURE SUPERCEDED BY PRU

After my adventures on saturday, and considering that it snowed again yesterday morning I was anticipating a thrilling tale of snowy derring-do as Graham and I drove to Barnstaple yesterday to finish the Christmas shopping. But we were pre-empted by the road gritters, and it was a very dull and staid trip. HOWEVER SCROLL DOWN...


You will remember that I wrote the other day that Prudence didn't like the snow. Well, she has changed her mind, and while we were gone, she and Corinna had a great time in the garden...













It appears that this particular bulldog likes the snow

ROBERT SCHNECK: Kawasaki Kyosen's Animals

Kawasaki Kyosen (1877-1942) was a Japanese artist whose watercolors can be seen at the Ningyo-Do Bunko database. Many show monkeys, octopuses, foxes (some presumably fox spirits), horses, tigers and other animals as they were portrayed in folk art and toys.

The work is not stunning but charming and, since I don't know a word of Japanese, somewhat mysterious. Put aside an hour to visit the site.

http://ningyodo.library.pref.osaka.jp/index.html












Polish horse paints with its mouth

Another remarkably peculiar story...

Karl Shuker announces new project

Aaah the Shuker of the night. What sweet music he makes

LINDSAY SELBY: Tony Harmsworth's new Loch Ness book

I bought Tony’s new book through his website : http://www.loch-ness.org/

Loch Ness, Nessie and Me arrived within a couple of days of my ordering it, signed by the author ,with a sticker saying limited edition 10 of a 100 and a nice postcard of the tour sites around Loch Ness (makes a useful bookmark) .It will make a nice present for anyone who is interested in the Loch Ness Story.

It contains some history of the Loch and a nice tour of the Loch ,so if you have never been or are planning a visit ,you will find this interesting. I enjoyed it and I have been there loads of times.

The book is written in an easy style and different aspects of it are interspersed so you will get a bit about Tony’s life around the Loch and then a chapter on the Nessie. I have to admit my personal preference would have been to have 3 separate sections. The history and tour and then either Tony’s story and the monster hunting stories and analysis ,rather than go from one topic to another, but that is just me.

The front cover claims “The Truth Revealed” but apart from Tony’s story of his life around the Loch , there was nothing new I hadn’t read before. There is the analysis of Tim Dinsdale’s film saying it is a boat(Apparently you can do this yourself by taking photos of the film being shown on a TV programme. However I do wonder if showing the film , an old cine film, on a modern TV network ,wouldn’t distort it in some way? Wouldn’t it have to be altered to show on the TV? I don’t know and will leave you to think about that when you read the book. )Robert Rines photos are analysed ,but no new revelations, the usual tree stump and folded polythene argument. The only qualm I have with this ,as all evidence should be open to scrutiny and analysis, is that neither men are around to defend their work and therefore cannot explain how they came to their conclusions and argue back .So this makes the analysis one sided and I think everyone should read different points of view and make their own minds up and not be swayed by just one view point. There is also , of course, Tony’s encounters with Frank Searle, who if nothing else was a real character and whatever you may think after reading Tony’s book, it still makes me smile every time I hear his name. The locals had a soft spot for him so he must have had some good characteristics, but I just saw him as some sort of showman with a bad temper.It is amazing how fast people could run when they suggested to Frank his photos weren’t genuine. lol

Tony says he believes there is something in the Loch but more likely to be a big fish, which is fair enough, I think most people would agree it is not some remnant prehistoric beast.

I enjoyed the book ,read it in one afternoon ,and if nothing else I have learned from Tony, always get things in writing. There are lots of black and white illustrations , some that you may not have seen before and yes it is a worthwhile read but keep an open mind.

BABY ELEPHANT RESCUE

Extraordinary footage of female elephants cooperating to rescue a baby elephant that is drowning in a waterhole..

OLL LEWIS: Yesterday's News Today

http://cryptozoologynews.blogspot.com/

On this day in 1968 Apollo 8 was launched from the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida, USA. The crew of Frank Borman, James Lovell and William Anders became the first people to escape Earth’s gravitational field.
Now for the news:

Don’t feed garden birds with turkey and goose fat ...
Elephant calf reunited with mother after ditch res...
Huge African tortoise found in Arizona Desert
Barn owls starving to death in the freeze
Fabric Softener Sheets Repel Gnats: Scientists Pro...
TO ALL BLANDING'S TURTLE ENTHUSIASTS
Dunes Sagebrush Lizard Proposed for Endangered Lis...
Orphaned Congo Clawless Otter is an ambassador for...

Cute otter pup video:
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xfbhly_otter-pups-swimming-lesson_animalsYesterday's News Today
http://cryptozoologynews.blogspot.com/

On this day in 1968 Apollo 8 was launched from the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida, USA. The crew of Frank Borman, James Lovell and William Anders became the first people to escape Earth’s gravitational field.
Now for the news:

Don’t feed garden birds with turkey and goose fat ...
Elephant calf reunited with mother after ditch res...
Huge African tortoise found in Arizona Desert
Barn owls starving to death in the freeze
Fabric Softener Sheets Repel Gnats: Scientists Pro...
TO ALL BLANDING'S TURTLE ENTHUSIASTS
Dunes Sagebrush Lizard Proposed for Endangered Lis...
Orphaned Congo Clawless Otter is an ambassador for...

Cute otter pup video:
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xfbhly_otter-pups-swimming-lesson_animals

TERATOLOGY: Karl Shuker looks at multi-headed snakes