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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Wednesday, February 12, 2014

CRYPTOLINK: No Loch Ness Monster sightings for first time since 1925

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 (sometimes for the wrong reasons), usually posted up without any comment whatsoever from me. 
For the first time in almost 90 years no "confirmed sightings" have been made of the Loch Ness Monster, a veteran Nessie spotter has said.
Gary Campbell, who keeps a register of sightings, said no-one had come forward in 18 months to say they had seen the monster.
Bookmaker William Hill also said the three entries to its annual Nessie spotting contest could be explained.
They were images of a wave, a duck and a picture not even taken on Loch Ness.
Mr Campbell said it was the first time since 1925 that there had been no confirmed reports of the monster.
He said: "It's very upsetting news and we don't know where she's gone.
"The number of sightings has been reducing since the turn of the century but this is the first time in almost 90 years that Nessie wasn't seen at all."

Read on...

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. 





TODAY'S 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. 

  • UK SIGHTING: UPDATE: Coastguard warning after big ...
  • US SIGHTING: Cicero Man Surprised by Bobcat Photo ...
  • UK SIGHTINGS: Reader's letter: Takes right place a...
  • UK SIGHTINGS: Mysterious 'big cat' spotted at Hors...

  • US SIGHTINGS: Ohio "big cat" video - Kentucky Hunt...
  • THE GONZO BLOG DOO-DAH MAN HOPS AGAIN

    The Gonzo Daily - Tuesday
     
    My nephew Dave B-P came round last night. As many of you may know he is an electrician and a very good one, specialising in theatre tech, so he was the perfect (only) choice to come and install my new mixing desk. I was a little nervous, because - after all - it was relatively cheap, relatively old and I bought it unseen on eBay. I had already been shocked by the fact that it was about three times the size that I had imagined. Were there any other shocks in store for me? Shocks, yes. Nasty ones, no. I was amazed how good it sounded. I know that this sounds stupid, but I bought it for convenience sake, so that I could record several people winging at once; it NEVER occurred to me that, because the desk has pretty sophisticated wiring of its own that it would make the overall sound considerably better. My guitar sounds gorgeous through it, and even my voice sounds less corncrakey than usual.
     
    Those who have been waiting for various video things from me, will hopefully find that their wait is nearly over. I finished episode 77 of OTT last night, and as I type I am also transferring  the Jefferson Starship footage from a few weeks ago to m,y computer. Hopefully I will start editing later today. All this activity would suggest that The Deviants footage from November won't be far behind. It will be very nice to get my backlog out of the way so that I can sleep at night with a relatively clear conscience.
     
    ‘In actual fact, I stopped it’: Carl Palmer admits he didn’t want Emerson Lake and Palmer reunion
    http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2014/02/in-actual-fact-i-stopped-it-carl-palmer.html
     
    What’s in Store: Norcal Modern Gallery opens with Grace Slick exhibit
    http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2014/02/whats-in-store-norcal-modern-gallery.html
     
     
    THE GONZO TRACK OF THE DAY: Jon Anderson recounts his first meeting with Vangelis and sings "I'll find my way Home".
    http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2014/02/the-gonzo-track-of-day-jon-anderson.html
     
    FOR THOSE OF YOU INTERESTED IN SUCH THINGS: Episode 77 of my webTV show
    http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2014/02/for-those-of-you-interested-in-such.html
     
     
     

    You will, I hope, be pleased to hear that Issue 64 of the Gonzo Weekly is OUT. This issue features Liz Lenten's scrapbook of the tour they did with Jefferson Starship, an exclusive interview with Bridget Wishart about Spirits Burning, Hawkwind and all sorts of other things, new music from Steve Ignorant's Slice of Life, new music from Mike Davis and Lizzy Rowe, the new Small Faces compilation album, the Small School in Hartland, the legendary Roy Weard on why we make music, Clepsydra tour dates and more news, reviews, views, interviews and brindled gnus (OK, no specialised African antelopes 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 COMPLETELY FREE!!!
     
     
    To make sure that you don't miss your copy of future issues make an old hippy a happy chappy and subscribe
    http://eepurl.com/r-VTD

    PS: If you are already a subscriber but think that you haven't been receiving your copies please check your spam filters. For some reason known only to the Gods of the internet, some e-mail programmes automatically count the magazine as 'spam' probably because it comes from a mass mailer. Either that or they are just jealous of our peerless content
     
    PPS: I am already working on Issue 65, which will feature an EXCLUSIVE Pink Fairies interview, an exclusive interview with prog album artist Sandor Kwiatkowski,the return of the mighty Six Foot Three, and lotsa other good stuff which I've not done yet..
     
    *  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.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 54 who - together with his orange cat (who is currently on sick leave in Staffordshire) and two very small kittens (one of whom is also orange) puts it all together from a converted potato shed in a tumbledown cottage deep in rural Devon which he shares with various fish, and sometimes a small Indian frog. 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 the orange cat?
    __________________________________
    Jonathan Downes,
    Director: Centre for Fortean Zoology
    Director: CFZ Publishing Group
    Editor: Animals & Men
    Editor: Still on the track
    Editor: Gonzo Daily (Music and More)
    Editor: Gonzo Weekly magazine
    Presenter: On the Track (Of Unknown Animals)
     
    The Centre for Fortean Zoology,
    Myrtle Cottage,
    Woolfardisworthy,
    Bideford, North Devon
    EX39 5QR

    Telephone 01237 431413
    Fax+44 (0)7006-074-925
    eMail jon@eclipse.co.uk

    www.cfz.org.uk
    http://www.youtube.com/user/cfztv
    www.weirdweekend.org
    www.gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com
    www.forteanzoology.blogspot.com/

    CRYPTOZOOLOGY ONLINE: On The Track (Of Unknown Animals) Episode 77

    The latest episode of our monthly webTV show from the CFZ and CFZtv, bringing you news on our activities within cryptozoology and natural history as well as the latest cryptozoological, and monster hunting news from around the world. I can't believe that we have done this every month for over six years now - 77 episodes. Golly!

    This episode brings you:

    CFZ in Winter
    New faces
    Caecilians in captivity
    The cryptozoological significance of Caecilians
    breeding the Chubby frog
    2014 weather and its significance for butterflies
    Out of place butterflies
    Is the large tortoiseshell extinct?
    The kittens go outside
    Out of place birds
    New and Rediscovered: New beaked whale
    New and Rediscovered: New river dolphin
    New and Rediscovered: New earless toad

    Millions Of Unknown Crab like Creatures Washed Ashore

    OLL LEWIS: Yesterday's News Today

    Yesterday’s News Today
    http://cryptozoologynews.blogspot.com/

    On this day in 1980 the actress Christina Ricci was born. Ricci is most well known for her film roles in Mermaids, The Addams Family and Casper: The Friendly Ghost when she was classed as a child star, and in Sleepy Hollow, Black Snake Moan and Afterlife as an adult.
    And now the news:

  • Bottom trawling: how to empty the seas in just 150...
  • Study finds crocodile tree-climbing and -basking b...
  • Monkeys that eat omega-3 rich diet show more devel...
  • New maps reveal locations of species at risk as cl...
  • Whales Gobble Up Endangered European Eels
  • 'Mother Lode' of Amazingly Preserved Fossils Disco...
  • Animal trafficking: Wildlife trade crisis talks he...

  • Scientists in Brazil Mark and Release 15,000 Baby ...

  • The trailer for The Addams Family:
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v5Umz8UWTqk