Strange Synchronicities

In the last week or two I have been experiencing a wide-range of very weird events of a synchronistic nature.

One that isn't connected with Cryptozoology - but that may still be of interest to you - can be found over at Regan Lee's Vintage UFO blog, and deals with an odd event relative to a new book I'm working on (titled Contactees) and Regan's own research in the Contactee field.

Here's the link to the story at Regan's blog.

And, yesterday, right here, I wrote the following: "Something odd just occurred that I'll update you on tomorrow. Basically, it was just the latest in a series of very weird synchronicities that have been going on..."

Well, that odd occurrence went like this: if you check yesterday's posts here, you'll see one that I wrote on a couple of Neil Arnold's somewhat unusual experiences with crows.

Well, quite literally only about 3 minutes after posting the story, I heard a tremendous screeching noise coming from our back-garden. I opened the door and could see that stood on one of the branches of the big tree at the foot of the garden were three huge crows!

Not only that: they were directing all their screeches at a lone squirrel that was hanging onto the tree-trunk, a couple of feet from them.

The squirrel evidently thought that getting out of the area was a good thing, as he then climbed further up the tree, and made his careful way onto an electric cable that runs the width of our garden at a height of about 20 feet.

As I watched, the crows took to the air, and circled him, while making an unholy racket. But then, quite out of the blue, a smaller bird that was slightly larger than a sparrow, literally dive-bombed the squirrel and knocked him flying off the cable. Lucky for him, we have a large row of bushes at the end of the garden and he managed to fall into them. The last I saw of him, he jumped out of the bushes, raced for the fence, clambered over it, and vanished into the neighbor's yard.

Okay, it could just have been a coincidence; but to have experienced this only minutes after writing about Neil's odd encounters with crows, created a weird atmosphere in the garden.

And there have been other odd synchronicities too - on top of this one and the one at Regan's blog - and which I'll relate next week.

Any ideas what all this means?

Not A Cryptid, But...

Okay, it's not Bigfoot, it's not Nessie, and it's most certainly not a Chupacabra; but I couldn't resist getting a photo today of a regular, daily visitor to our little fish-pond, who kind of looks like a psychedelic Mothman...

Something Weird...

Something odd just occurred that I'll update you on tomorrow. Basically, it was just the latest in a series of very weird synchronicities that have been going on...

Bird Oddities

Neil Arnold tells of a couple of strange encounters of the bird kind...

The Wampus Cat & More

A couple more cool stories from today's Anomalist:

"Legends of the Wampus Cat McDowell News. From the latest edition of "Mike Conley's Tales of the Weird" comes the legendary supernatural cat of the Southern Appalachian Mountains. While Cherokee Indian legends describe a creature the sight of which could drive people insane, modern claims to sightings describe a catlike creature with glowing eyes that walks upright on two legs. Is there any truth to the Wampus Cat legends? Meanwhile, a report from People's Daily highlights some anomalous creatures from the People's Republic in Top Five Lake Monsters in China. With photos. Elsewhere, there are interesting images in the Phantoms & Monsters report Has Ogopogo Been Spotted on Google Earth?

Bigfoot in Texas - A Gig

From today's Anomalist:

"Tyler Welcomes 'Bigfoot' Conference Sept. 26 Tyler Morning Telegraph. The Texas Bigfoot Research Conservatory (TBRC), based in Plano, TX, will hold its annual Texas Bigfoot Conference in Tyler, TX, this year. Why Tyler? Perhaps it has something to do with the four Bigfoot sighting reports in Smith County that date back to 1963."

I'm not speaking at the event; but I will be attending as I'm reviewing the gig for Fortean Times magazine. The TBRC events are always good ones, with cool line-ups and interesting lectures. Let me know if you're coming along!

Acceleration Radio & Creatures

I'll be on Acceleration Radio with Bruce Collins tonight, where I'll be talking about my book There's Something in the Woods, as well as a host of other crypto-issues. The show runs from 5PM to 7PM Pacific Time.

Here's the link.

2009 Paranormal Symposium

On the weekend of September 11-13, I'll be speaking at the Paranormal Symposium at Angel Fire, New Mexico - on the subject of my investigations of such beasts as the Chupacabra; werewolves; lake-monsters; Bigfoot in Britain; out-of-place animals; and much more.

Here's the link to the conference, where you can find more information on the location, the full speaker line-up, and much more.

Last night four of the speakers - me, good mate Greg Bishop, Dennis Balthaser and Chuck Wade - did a round-table interview on Royce Holleman's Paranormal Palace Radio. After a few technical problems, we got a good debate going on a variety of topics of a Fortean nature.

Royce has already archived the show, which can be found here. After a minute or two of technical issues that kept cutting our phones off, the interview begins fine.

If you can make it to Angel Fire, you're guaranteed a good time, with a wide range of speakers and a cool location!

The Bigfoot Mystery Show

Just in from Darin Richardson:

"...On The Bigfoot Mystery we will be talking to Tom Yamarone, the organizer for Yakima's Bigfoot Round Up. Tom will be discussing his research and other Bigfoot-related subjects.

"Please join us!

"When: Wednesday, 7-29-09, 7:30 PM Pacific/9:30 Central

"Where: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/the_bigfoot_mystery/2009/07/30/The-Bigfoot-Mystery-Guest-Tom-Yamarone

"The call in number is 646-716-7496. It is a 90 minute show.

"Please remember: no bashing. That is not what this show is about. If you are unable to listen in live, please catch it later in the archives. Hope to see you all there.Darin, aka Thunderhawk."

What Do You Think?

A British big-cat on film?

Terror from the Skies!

Good friend and author of the book Big Bird!, Ken Gerhard, will be featured heavily on tonight's episode of the History Channel's Monster Quest series at 8pm CST.

Ken came to visit the weekend before last and told me of some of the background to the episode, and it sounds like it will be a very good one, and full of tales of unidentified flying winged-things.

Don't miss it!

Neil's Calendar

Neil Arnold is a busy guy right now. If you're in Britain and can get along to some of his crypto-gigs, here's his current schedule:

Tuesday 28th July 2009: 1:30 pm: Strood Gardening Club, Swain Vestry of St. Nicholas Church, High Street, Strood.

Wednesday 5th August 2009: 8:00 pm: Chalk W.I., Chalk Parish Hall, Chalk, Gravesend.

Wednesday 12th August 2009: 11:00 am: Frindsbury WI, Frindsbury Church Hall, Church Green.

August 14th - 16th: WEIRD WEEKEND, Woolfardisworthy Community Centre, North Devon.

Untamed Dimensions

On Saturday night, I took part in a cool 2-hour discussion on Untamed Dimensions radio on the subject of Bigfoot - much of which focused upon the weirder, high-strangeness aspect of the phenomenon.

The show is available to download as an MP3 right here. Hope you enjoy!

The Weird Weekend

Quick update: I'll be speaking at the annual Weird Weekend in jolly old England on the weekend of August 14-14. Plus, I'll be hanging out with the likes of Jon Downes, Richard Freeman, Neil Arnold and more - so a cool time should be had by all.

Check it out if you get the chance!

Thoughts on the Gable Film

The Blogsquatcher offers some thought-provoking views on the Gable Film...

As he says: "...there is textual evidence that this might be a set up. I'm not saying this has to be the case, but I suspect we are witnessing fiction here."

Stay tuned...

Regan Lee delves into the weird tale of the "Eel Siren of Maine."

Anomalies...

Yep: more good stuff from The Anomalist:

Bigfoot, Big Man and Walking Sam Cryptomundo. Loren Coleman shares some puzzling testimony from a recent tribal council meeting in the Lakota (Sioux) Nation of South Dakota. The testimony came from an elderly woman during a meeting with federal officials. The reference to "Walking Sam" and suicides among the youth of the Lakota community is new, but the presence of a large, hairy entity among the First Nations has a long timeline Coleman shares here. With maps and other images. Elsewhere on the Bigfoot front, there's a report that dates back to the fall of 2008 in Mike Conley's Tales of the Weird: Man Describes Possible Bigfoot Encounter in McDowell.

New Creatures in an Age of Extinction New York Times. A visit to the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History reveals the surprising claim that "(W)e are smack-dab in the middle of the age of discovery for mammals." With around 400 new species of mammals added to the mammalian list since last totaled in 2005, perhaps the claim is correct. But what of the numerous "mass extinctions for which we humans are largely to blame"? With images. Meanwhile, at Phantoms & Monsters a lake creature sets the stage for some high strangeness in 'Windermere Monster' Wake Pummels Swimmer. And there's more on this story, in a fashion, in New CFZ Expedition Takes Place Without Our Knowledge.

Mysterious Beasts Torment Villagers New Era
Reports from villages in the Ongwediva district of Namibia are saying some mysterious beasts are decimating domestic livestock in the region. Some villagers are reporting the creatures have wiped out their livestock. While some reports say the unidentified predators are sucking the blood of the livestock, others are describing complete devourings. Has the chupacabras shown up in Africa's Namibia, or are villagers dealing, as many suspect, with witchcraft?

Death-Worm Updates

The Mongolian Death-Worm has been in the news again lately - and here's the latest from The Anomalist:

David Farrier to Embark on Hunt for Mongolian Death Worm 3 News. An Auckland, New Zealand, journalist plans to trek to the southern Gobi Desert of Mongolia and use explosives to force the legendary Mongolian Death Worm to the surface. David Farrier will take camerman Christie Douglas along to document the mission. Will Farrier be able to ferret out this legendary cryptid? With image.

Cannock Chase Cat Sightings Increase

The so-called "Cannock Chase Panther" - as it has been dubbed - is apparently still being seen, and still on the loose. Yep, there's been yet more sightings!

From The Anomalist...

From The Anomalist:


Was Coelacanth Really "Discovered" in 1938? Cryptomundo. A guest blogger, Jerome F. Hamlin, questions whether the famed discovery of the supposedly extinct coelacanth in 1938 can really be considered a discovery, since native fisherman had long known of its existence. With images. Elsewhere at Cryptomundo, Loren Coleman details some upcoming events, and some special savings for his readers, in Crypto-Talks: Dates, Locations, Discounts; reports on happenings at Dinosaur National Monument in Ancient Mammal Tracks Discovered; remembers Ed Patrick in Early Famed Bigfooter Dies and announces the John Keel Garden Party & Viking Burial Plans.

The Truth Behind the Mongolian Death Worm Environmental Graffiti. Karl Fabricius catches up with Richard Freeman, leader of the 2005 Centre for Fortean Zoology expedition to the Gobi Desert in search of the legendary Mongolian Death Worm. Freeman explains the motivation for the expedition, the Death Worm reports the team gathered and the team's speculation on exactly what kind of creature the Death Worm is suspected to be. With multiple images. Elsewhere, Cryptomundo has programming notes for tonight through Sunday in MonsterQuest Reminders: Thursday - Sunday. Featured programs are "The Last Dinosaur," "the Real Cujo," "Giant Squid Ambush," "Giant Squid Found?" and "Death of Loch Ness." Also at Cryptomundo today, a report of an out-of-place serpent in Bermudan waters comes to light in Sea Snake Sighting in Paradise.

Worms of Death!

A cool article on the CFZ's expedition to Mongolia in 2005, in search of the "Death Worm"...

The Anomalist - Today

As The Anomalist tells us today...

Dragons - All Between the Ears? TPOD. In maverick science news of the day: Comparative mythologist Rens Van der Sluijs takes a look at the dragon legends of yore. But Van der Sluijs sees another possibility for the ancients' pervasive tales of winged serpents. Where does Van der Sluijs find the images ancient man translated into legends of fiery flying serpents?

Champ: What Was in the Olsen Video? Ghostsamongus. Following the May release of footage shot on Lake Champlain by Eric Olsen, former Burlington, VT, resident Stephanie Hope, who grew up in that city, traveled to the site of the filming. Here she presents images of her own showing the perspective and distances between where Olsen was standing and some familiar lake objects. Does Hope's imagery add anything to the attempt to explain what Eric Olsen captured on film the morning of May 31, 2009? Meanwhile, at Cryptomundo, Loren Coleman presents an exclusive interview with the executive producer of a popular television show, following up on readers' questions, as seen in Exclusive MonsterQuest Interview: Doug Hajicek; and more evidence is brought forth concerning a July 10 Pennsylvania incident in Fayette Bigfoot: Investigative Photos.

Pig Born with the Face of a Monkey The London Paper. While a bill has been introduced in the Congress of the United States to prevent the combination of human and animal fetuses, there may be some such legislation needed in China, as you'll probably realize after reading this report. With photo and slide show of other "freaks of nature."

The New Gable Film

As some of you may know, on a number of occasions at this blog I have referred to the "Gable Film" - an allegedly old piece of footage showing some sort of strange animal launching a violent attack on the person with the camera.

Well, now there is a new piece of footage to see that appears to be connected to the original one, and which can be viewed over at Cryptomundo. Real? A hoax? Who knows?

In addition, Linda Godfrey has written a good, new piece on the whole controversy which can be found right here.

Tonight on the Radio

I'll be on the Bigfoot Quest radio show tonight - at 9PM Eastern. Here's all the info from the guys:

Hello Everyone:

Please join your hosts Bob Coyne and Mike Killen as we welcome Nick Redfern to the show. Nick is a British born journalist and author currently living in Dallas, Texas. He began his career as a journalist in 1982 and has since written numerous articles and a number of books. He specializes in writing about the paranormal and the unexplained including ghosts, UFO's and of course Bigfoot. Nick has also appeared on more than 60 TV shows to promote his research and books. If you can, please join us in our live show chat. It's always a lot of fun and we love to interact live with our listeners.

Where: www.blogtalkradio.com/Bigfoot_Quest

When: Tuesday, July 21, 2009

Time: 9:00 P.M. Eastern

Duration: 90 minutes

Bob Coyne
Mike Killen

Flying "Things": A Review

As I mentioned a couple of days ago, good friend - and fellow creature-seeker - Ken Gerhard was planning on coming up from San Antonio to lecture yesterday for the Dallas-Fort Worth Mutual UFO Network (MUFON) group, on the subject of weird flying entities, including Mothman, the Flatwoods Monster, the spate of "Flying Humanoids" that have been reported from Mexico over the last few years, and much more.

As Ken had to work Saturday, it was close to the witching-hour when he arrived at our house; but that didn't stop me, Dana and Ken hanging out and generally having a good time, as we sat around talking about music, current projects, and - of course - those pesky winged-things!

It was around 2.00 a.m. that we finally turned in for the night, and before any of us knew it, Sunday morning had arrived, and the 30-minute drive to the venue was beckoning. And, I'm pleased to say that Ken had an excellent turn-out of somewhere between 45 and 50 people. So, you may ask: what of the lecture? Well, Ken began by talking about his background, and revealed that when he was a child his mother worked as a travel-agent. As a result, she had the opportunity to travel regularly and widely - and took the young Ken along, too - to such locations as the Amazon Jungle, Australia, and Loch Ness; to name just a few cool places.

Of course, and not surprisingly, it didn't take long before Ken was well on the road towards becoming a cryptozoologist.

And, with that said, it was onto the subject of the lecture: unknown flying entities; some of which seem definitively cryptozoological in nature, and others that appear to straddle the fields of cryptozoology and ufology.

The clearly-captivated audience listened attentively as Ken discussed his investigations of (A) giant bird-like entities in South Texas (as well as Pterosaurs reported from the same area); (B) Cama Zotz - a bat-deity from the Mayan culture; (C) huge winged monsters seen in the Sierra Madre Mountains of Mexico; and (D) the Lechuza - a witch that was said to have the ability to transform itself into what resembled a giant, white owl.

Ken also dug deep into the famous - and highly-intriguing - 1950s stories of the Houston Batman; the 1960s events at Point Pleasant, West Virginia, as chronicled in the pages of the late John Keel's The Mothman Prophecies; as well as the creepy tale of a "flying witch attack" from Mexico in 2004 - a case that you may know about; since it was all across the Net at the time of its occurrence.

In addition, Ken referred to a thought-provoking report of a winged, Chupacabra-type entity seen in Texas a couple of years ago, and revealed to the audience the details of a couple of new TV shows he's currently working on: one on the mysterious flying entities of Mexico; and the other on werewolves. From what Ken has told me, both productions sound like essential viewing.

Perhaps weirdest of all - and truly Fortean in nature - were those "flying entity" reports that involved very human-looking creatures that seemed to have mechanical wings strapped to their bodies, along with what were possibly "jet-packs" or "control-panels." Secret military experiments? Maybe. However, the fact that, in one such report at least, the entity had a "demonic face" seems to leave this matter open to a more-than-liberal degree of interpretation.

Ken also dug into another interesting facet of the puzzle: the correlations between sightings of huge winged creatures and animal/cattle-mutilations. Although the data was brief, it suggested that further follow-up on such matters may prove to be eye-opening.

Then, after a length Q&A session, it was time to relocate to a local Mexican restaurant for food and liquid refreshment, where the debate continued at a fine and steady pace.

But things were not quite over: after returning to our house that evening, Ken was faced with a five-hour-drive back to San Antonio. That's dedication for you!

So, all in all, it was a great afternoon, and one filled with thought-provoking tale after thought-provoking tale of a wide variety of monsters of the skies.

And as Ken noted, as we certainly don't have all the answers yet as to what these entities may be, his research and on-site investigations are set to continue.

And be sure to check out Ken's book on the matter: Big Bird!, published by the CFZ.

Wolves & Werewolves

My latest Lair of the Beasts column at Mania.com delves into a weird spate of "wolf/werewolf" sightings that occurred in the vicinity of Britain's Cannock Chase woods in the summer of 2006. Me and Dana were over there at the time - for about 5 months - and it was a weird and surreal time/investigation, to say the least!

From Today's Anomalist

There are some interesting and strange stories over at The Anomalist today:

Orang Ikan Cryptomundo. In this guest post, Brent Swancer shares an interesting merbeing case reported by Japanese soldiers from the Kei Islands of Indonesia in 1943. The strange creatures seen "were said to have limbs and a face somewhat similar to a human, but a mouth like a carp. These creatures were described as being around 150 cm tall, and having pink skin, as well as prominent spines on their heads. Unlike classical mermaids, these merbeings did not have fish tails, but rather two arms and two legs." Elsewhere, an update on the Michigan Dogman' Recently Sighted in Upper Peninsula. Anyone missing a hyena? Also, a Mystery Carcass Found on New Zealand Beach. What do you think it is?

Texas Monsters and More

Good mate Ken Gerhard (author of the book, Big Bird!; and all-round cryptozoological researcher and investigator) is coming up to stay with me and Dana this weekend, as he'll be speaking at the regular Sunday meeting of the Dallas-Fort Worth Mutual UFO Network group.

Ken will be speaking about a range of crypto-topics, including his research into the so-called "Texas Chupacabras" - those, weird hairless whatsits. You know the ones I mean! And, no doubt, he'll be getting into his research into Mothman-like entities, too.

For more data, check out http://www.mufondfw.org/

I'll be doing a review of Ken's talk here next week. If you can make it, come along!

Monsters on Underworld

This morning I was interviewed by Lia Ramses, the host of Australia's Underworld Show, about my research in the field of cryptozoology. The interview will be aired on Sunday night (Australia-time), and more details can be found here and here.

In the 1-hour interview, we covered a lot of ground, such as that relating to my beliefs concerning a link between certain cryptids and the paranormal; Britain's most-famous Bigfoot-like entity, the Man-Monkey of Shropshire; the Loch Ness Monster and Aleister Crowley; my quest for the truth about Puerto Rico's Chupacabra; how I got involved in the investigation of Fortean phenomena, and much more.

Check it if you get chance!

Today's Anomalies

There's some good stuff over at The Anomalist right now and here it is!

Bigfoot and Annual Rainfall in the US Blogsquatcher. The MonsterQuest episode was not the first time it was noticed how well the bigfoot sighting distribution correlates with the annual rainfall amounts. John Green had mentioned it years ago. The argument is made here that "the correlation between sightings and rainfall distribution would be another fact that argued against most sightings being hoaxes." And the black bear distribution does not seem to explain bigfoot sightings either. On Cryptomundo, a preview of upcoming MonsterQuest episodes in Sky Terrors, Tigers, Killer Chimps and Cujo and Mystery Photo, Killer Crocs & Cats + Circus Trains.


Gaiko Groans: Grodno Gorilla Gone Cryptomundo. The mystery ape was last seen in marshy woodlands bordering Latvia, eating corn in farm fields in the Lidsky district. Police now think it was a monkey that got loose from a circus and probably died in the winter snows. But, says Loren Coleman on the hominologie list, "Clearly a family group is being seen, and the police official's explanation that it is nothing more than an 'escaped circus monkey' only goes to make a monkey out of him!" Also on Cryptomundo, a Big Snakes Update and thoughts about how this summer’s rising interest by the media in serpents can be traced back to one fatal incident. And an Andrewsarchus Addenda.

Paw Prints of the Big Cat Kind

Just the other day my dad mailed me an article that he had read in a recent issue of a local magazine (called The Pioneer) that is published in the English town of Walsall (where he lives), and which makes for very interesting reading.

Titled The Beast of Barr Beacon (an area of Walsall), it deals with the account of a security guard who came across a series of large paw-prints on a local golf-course - which he proceeded to follow.

It seems that the trail looped around in a huge circle that was around a mile in circumference. Imagine the surprise of the guard - and probably his concern, too - when, as he got back to the beginning of the trail, he found fresh paw-prints that seemed to indicate the beast was now following him!

Not surprisingly, he exited the area quickly - but later learned from a colleague at work that several reports had been made of a large, black cat in the area.

I'll keep you posted if more data on this case comes along.

Monsters on the Parafactor

Last night I was interviewed by the guys at the Parafactor show - and a cool time was had by all. We covered a lot of areas, including the issue of flesh-and-blood vs. the paranormal when it comes to crypto-creatures; my thoughts on what the Loch Ness Monster might be; the nature of werewolves; my various expeditions to Puerto Rico in search of Chupacabras; and much more.

If you want to listen to the show, here's the link.

The Michigan Dogman

From The Anomalist:

"The Michigan Dogman: Video, Analysis & Personal Account Phantoms & Monsters. A comment from researcher Linda Godfrey about a new video of an unknown upright canid in Michigan that she says is 'the best and most frightening I've seen so far.' Also included is a separate, yet indirectly supporting, witness account of strange encounters in the night of an unknown biped."

I've had several conversations with Linda about the film, and there's no doubt that it's footage worthy of deep investigation - whatever the ultimate outcome may be.

UFOs & Crypto

Over at Mania.com you can find my latest Lair of the Beasts article - on a strange, decades-old story from the historic village of Avebury, England which combines cryptozoology and ufology in a distinctly weird way...

(This photo was taken by me on a 2006 trip to Avebury try and resolve certain aspects of the affair.)

A British Man-Beast

Over at the main Centre for Fortean Zoology blog, Neil Arnold has a new post titled Black Dogs and Hairy Men - the latter part of which focuses on a British Bigfoot-style report from Neil's home-county of Kent.

Here's what Neil has to say:"Wouldham is a small village in Kent which sits right next to Blue Bell Hill, which for me remains the countries weirdest village.

"In my book I noted several bizarre tales concerning witnesses who’d seen red-eyed man-beasts and very recently a lady, who now resides in Norfolk, contacted me to say that when she was a child growing up in the ‘60s at Wouldham, her grandmother used to tell her intriguing tales.

"One of these was said to date back to the 1920s and her grandmother, who passed away, made notes of this. The lady said that her grandmother used to tell her about the ‘hairy man’ of Wouldham. A humanoid often seen in local woods by children, and certainly adults were made aware of this being.

"It was completely covered in hair and the story had become embedded in her psyche and was triggered again when she purchased my MYSTERY ANIMALS OF THE BRITISH ISLES: KENT and saw, at the front, an image of a hairy humanoid standing at Blue Bell Hill’s Kit’s Coty House, an ancient structure on the landscape.

"It’s clear to me that we aren’t dealing with tales of escaped monkey’s, but indeed something very much embedded in the fabric of the place, as some kind of folkloric creature which has existed for possibly centuries. It seems as well that the more I write about the creature, the more it stirs up. Around 1997/’98 there was a report in the local newspaper of a gorilla-type creature seen at Blue Bell Hill, and I recall scoffing at the report and believed it was simply down to media drama.

"Now, it seems that there is, and always has been, a strange humanoid prowling the dark lanes and thickets of a place that I’ve been obsessed with since I was a kid and my dad used to take me there and terrify me with tales of the phantom hitchhiker..."

Weird!

From today's Anomalist - a very strange one!

Look Out, Look Out, There's a Dinosaur About...in Albuquerque! ShukerNature. Dr. Karl Shuker, going through his correspondence, finds a letter from a respected colleague that reveals the story of a New Mexico school bus driver and an alleged sighting of a Diplodocus near Albuquerque. Are giant dinosaurs still roaming parts of America?

When The End Is Near...

CFZ stalwart Oll Lewis delves into the sad world of animal extinction...

As he says: "Whenever a species becomes extinct it is a truly lamentable occurrence. I often wonder, late at night when I’m having problems getting to sleep, if the last survivors of a species are aware of their plight; did the last woolly mammoth endlessly trudge the icy tundra looking for others cheerfully thinking that he might find a mate the next day or did he ever truly accept there would be no more of his kind. Perhaps I’m anthropomorphosising a bit much but if a last survivor of a species was aware of his plight it would be truly tragic."

Another Black Dog

Hot on the heels (or maybe the paws...?) of yesterday's ghostly British black-dog story is yet another from the files of the CFZ...

ROCK MONSTERS!

Neil "Metal God" Arnold delves into the world of cryptozoology and bands that have touched upon the subject in their head-banging anthems. I am reliably informed that all Neil's amps go up to 11...

A Paranormal Dog

Max Blake on the return of the Gurt Dog of Somerset, England...

Tribal Bigfoot

I haven't seen this new book yet - Tribal Bigfoot, by David Pauldes, but it's published by Hancock House, who have put out some excellent titles in the past on the Bigfoot controversy. Here's the Amazon link, in case you want to buy a copy.

Tuesday's Anomalies

From today's Anomalist:

Lindsay Selby Writes: Bigfoot Supposedly Found Cryptozoology Online. There's a followup report on the story Photo: Trail Camera 5/26/09 - Sierra National Forest. Have claimants answered all objections to the classification of this recent trailcam shot as a Bigfoot image? Elsewhere, Cryptomundo has followup reports on the passing of high strangeness investigator and author John Keel in C2C: Keel Tribute and Keel Ends Life Rather Alone.

John Keel RIP

I'm sure many of you will have either read or heard the sad news that Fortean legend John Keel has passed away.

This is, of course, very tragic news: Keel was without doubt one of the most influential, thought-provoking and controversial characters within Forteana. Indeed, such was his influence, importance, history and legend, it's almost impossible to do the man justice in terms of an obituary.

The Mothman Prophecies, UFOs: Operation Trojan Horse, Jadoo and more are all titles that should be on the book-shelves of all Keel disciples - as well as on the shelves of those who may now just be discovering his work for the very first time.

Agree with his views or disagree with them, no-one can doubt that without Keel the world of Forteana would not be what it is today. Thanks in part to his skills as a writer who could capture and captivate his audience, he made the world of the unexplained one that was exciting, enthralling, disturbing, unsettling, adventurous, and much more, too.

Indeed, it was largely due to Keel's written output that many of my views on the notion that at least some of the cryptozoological beasts of our world have less (or more!) than mere flesh-and-blood origins were originally formulated.

Tonight, I will be raising my glass to Keel - not with sadness, but with admiration for (and in memory of) one of the most original thinkers within this odd and bizarre world we inhabit - and I hope you'll be doing likewise.

Chase Cats

There has been yet another sighting of a big-cat near Britain's Cannock Chase woods, and here it is.