A Mammoth Hoax

I've uploaded the latest article to BioFortean Review, reprinting a newspaper hoax from 1873 about living mammoths being seen in Siberia.

Crypto Animation

Apparently, a feature length animated film is in the works focusing on cryptozoology.

Loch Ness Film Online

An alleged 1936 Loch Ness monster filmed sighting is now available online, as part of a film collection by the National Library of Scotland. Pertinent clip is at 8.42 minutes. (News source.)

Nightbeasts

There's a whole slew of low-budget Bigfoot-related (mostly horror) flicks coming out. One, Nightbeasts, stars Zach Galligan of Gremlins fame. Trailer can be seen at this site. Plot looks like it might be a bit light and the brief glimpses of costume apes aren't particularly noteworthy, but the cinematography (as the site notes) looks far better than seen in most sasquatch flicks.

I really do think it's possible to put together a Bigfoot film with good suspense, an interesting plot, and depth of characters, (not to mention the chance to include some gorgeous backwoods scenery), but for some reason, most of these pics are in it for the cheap thrills.

Bookies Not Too Smart

Bookies have paid the Natural History Museum in London an annual fee (£22,000 so far in total) since 1987 for the museum to "provide positive identification" if the Loch Ness Monster or Yeti should be discovered. In such a case, the museum would also have the rights to exhibit the animals' remains. (News source.)

Of course, as it is unlikely the bookies themselves will secure the evidence, and I doubt that they are going to pay out any money to the discoverers themselves (if they don't actually place a bet), nor is there any reason for said discoverers to allow the bookmakers or museum to have anything to do with any remains, looks to me like the bookmakers have paid out a great deal of money for nothing. Seriously, if someone actually discovers a yeti or lake monster (with full remains) there are far better ways to make it available to the scientific community while retaining remunerative financial benefits. (One way would be to provide the specimen on permanent loan to an institution while retaining commercial rights to reproduction of skeletal remains...)

Weta Workshops Yeti

A tv ad for NZ's Land Search and Rescue includes a yeti, with combination of guy-in-a-suit and animatronics tech. (News source.)

Deathworm Doc Coming

David Farrier's expedition to Mongolia has returned, and he's working on the documentary. (News source.)

Indy Cryptofic Film

Don't know much in the way of details, but some info on Serpent Lake, here.

MonsterQuest: The Last Dinosaur

Daniel M. just pointed out to me that the MQ episode of Bill Gibbons' latest tour of Cameroonian Mokele-mbembe spots is now online. (Temporarily, so watch it soon.) I'm currently finishing up Bill's book on the subject, and hope to have it available soon (just waiting on images).

Sasquatch Fun

More Sasquatch shenanigans by Jack Link's Beef Jerky.

Crypto TV

I'll admit I'm not a big fan of cryptozoology-oriented television. The so-called expeditions and investigations are mostly baloney -- from the moronic "believers" vs "skeptics" framework to background research that consists of a few Google searches and no historical depth... I'll pass, thanks. (Oh, but hey, Wife Swap is still looking for a Bigfoot hunting family, and is willing to shell out $1000 in finder's fees...)

I did, however, enjoy episodes of River Monsters, on Animal Planet. The host, Jeremy Wade, is a professional who actually knows what he's talking about. They had a good mix of freshwater species in their various episodes, you can watch a few here. They are gearing up for a second series, and curiously enough, they're thinking about including a significant cryptozoological "giant fish" lake. Of course, time and expense constraints mean that a full investigation may not be possible, but it would be interesting to see what they could find.

I do think that the web offers an open opportunity for cryptozoological media production that goes beyond the same old material. It's going to require skills beyond some flashy video editing, or the tired "it might have been Bigfoot" documentaries, but the potential audience is out there.

For the Netflix Queu

Asylum has released a 90-minute video in the cryptofiction genre (sort of): Mega Shark vs Giant Octopus. The title says it all... Trailer here. (via Kevin Stewart)

Mangiacopra on Cryptid Hunt

Gary is interviewed by Jordan here.

Possum Not So Extinct

Recent media reports of the extinction of the lemuroid ringtail possum were "confused," the species is still around. (News source.)

Cheeta Cheater?

Was "Cheeta" a fictional persona foisted on a number of hapless chimpanzees? Details...

Big Cat Fake

A UK newspaper published a fake big cat sighting photo, created from a Youtube video the hoaxers found online. (News source.)

Name a Species Auctions

Purdue has a bat for naming-rights auction, and will have some turtles up soon, also. (News source.)

Another Fuzzy Video

A black "panther" video was taken in Wisconsin -- it's just a dark-colored housecat. Doesn't look anything like a cougar or any melanistic exotic feline. (News source.)

NOVA Program on H. Floresiensis

PBS is airing a show on the "hobbit" on November 11. Details.

Michael Crichton

Michael Crichton, whose literary repertoire included a few cryptofiction-ish novels, has died of cancer. (News source.)

SciFi Yeti Movie

SciFi Channel will be airing a yeti movie on Saturday, Nov. 8. Some info here.

More on Cyprus Creature

The "crocodile" rumored to have spotted in the waters below the Kouris Dam has transformed (in the media) to some kind of lake monster or big serpent. (News source.)

Hobbit on CBC Documentary

The CBC program The Nature of Things has aired an episode on Homo floresiensis.

Oceana Contest

Blog Monkey Project

There's an effort to raise money for Dr. Marc van Roosmalen, with the intent of describing a recently discovered woolly monkey as the "blog monkey." Details here.

Software for Sea Serpents

Some details on the software used to capture the Swedish "sea serpent" images here.

Swedes Film "Sea Monster"

A film crew has supposedly filmed "Sweden’s legendary Great Lake Sea Monster (Storsjöodjuret), which is said to lurk in the waters of the Storsjön outside Östersund in northern Sweden." (News source with blurry image.) It sounds as if this is one of MonsterQuest's episodes -- "The effort to find the monster has generated a great deal of interest, with the American television network NBC planning to document the hunt." NBC owns part of the History Channel, which of course shows MQ.

BBC Series Shows Fish Discovery

The BBC series Pacific Abyss shows the discovery of several new species of damselfish. (News source.)

"The most spectacular recovery was of the bright blue damselfish found 120m down off Palau. This was described recently in the scientific literature by team-member Dr Richard Pyle, from the Bishop Museum, Honolulu, Hawaii.
"The fish has been named Chromis abyssus in honour of the TV series.
"The story is a more complicated one, however, because Dr Pyle first saw this fish more than a decade ago. Other researchers, too, had sightings, including one from a small submersible and another from a Remotely Oerated Vehicle (ROV).
"It was during the BBC filming, though, that nine specimens were finally captured, allowing for an official scientific submission this year."

Loch Ness

I don't normally post on the various television pseudo-documentaries on cryptids, but here's one on Loch Ness that might be interesting.

Nessie Video?

Two vacationers to Loch Ness caught what they think might be Nessie on video. (News source.)

Cougar Death Sparks Arson?

The killing of the Chicago cougar may have sparked someone's anger, leading to arson near the mayor's home. (News source.)

Swiss Steal Nessie

A Swiss tourism brochure has added a pic of Nessie to Lake Lucerne. The UK is not amused. (News source.)

Lake Pepin

The Lake City (MN) Tourism Board is offering a $50,000 reward for "undisputable photographic and scientific evidence" of their local lake monster, from Lake Pepin. Of course, they don't want DNA evidence, as they don't want to "hurt" the creature, whatever it is. Just what we need, more stupid publicity ploys exploiting cryptozoology for tourism dollars. (News source.)

Woodpecker

There's an independent documentary-style movie out, Woodpecker, on the ivorybill.

Palau Documentary

National Geographic Channel will be airing "Mystery Skulls of Palau" on Monday, March 17. For some debate on whether Palau officials were given notice about the study, and the preservation of the PLoS embargo, see here.

Attenborough's Ten Rules

David Attenborough offers ten rules for wildlife presenter hopefuls.

Journey Remake

A new adaptation of Jules Verne's Journey to the Center of the Earth will be shown on ION television on Sunday, January 27. Starring Ricky Schroder and Peter Fonda, it's two hours long and features a mysterious underground passage in Alaska leading to a lost world, "complete with prehistoric creatures, primitive tribes and amazing discoveries."

Beyond Loch Ness

Yep, it's another SciFi Saturday night flick, this one on the Loch Ness Monster. (Emphasis on Monster, of course.) Airs Saturday, January 5, 2008. Website. Only a brief plot note is mentioned, so hard to say if it'll be better than average. (And, apparently, "beyond" means the hunt is now on Lake Superior.)

End of an Era

David Attenborough has filmed his last wildlife series, Life in Cold Blood, about reptiles and amphibians. (News source.)

Sherpa Suggests Bear

Ang Tshering Sherpa, president of the Nepal Mountaineering Association, suggests that the publicized "yeti" prints discovered by Destination Truth may be bear tracks. (News source.)

"Similar" to Yeti Tracks

The television show Destination Truth is reporting that they've found tracks "similar" to those of ABSMs. Which, of course, doesn't mean anything: they may have already identified them as something else, but you just won't find out until the episode airs. (News source.)

More From Loch Ness

A television personality (the paper says "cult tv presenter," but I don't know how accurate that is) is taking advantage of the recent Nessie publicity. From the news:

"A cult American TV presenter arrived at Loch Ness this week pledging to woo a whole new generation of Nessie hunters.
"For glamorous former model Sonia Uribe is making a documentary on the mystery which will target younger audiences around the world." ...
"And US TV personality Sonia Uribe believes she can also introduce thousands of youngsters to the legend of Nessie in an hour-long programme and ensure the enduring mystery of the loch continues." ...
"'I firmly believe Nessie exists and I don't want the mystery to die out. So this is why my documentary, whilst appealing to every generation, will particularly appeal to the young.'
"To achieve that Sonia is going scuba diving in the loch, camping out over night on its shores, and flying over the loch in a bid to capture further evidence of the existence of the monster of the loch."

Doesn't want the mystery to die out? Same old, same old...

Expensive Image

The photograph of an alleged yet footprint taken on a 1951 expedition was sold at Christie's yesterday, for £3,500. (News source.)

Snake Isn't Boa

A snake scare near Chicago turned out to be caused by a native fox snake, not an exotic constrictor. (News source.)

Rumors and Big Cats

Stories and rumors in Southern Illinois have government helicopters dropping cougars into woodlands to take the deer population down. What's the farm-country counterpart to an urban legend; a rural myth? (News source.)

Some People Like a Good Story

From a news column on tale-tellers (who do appear in the odd investigation):

"Junior Jones could tell a good story.
"As a college student, I worked at a Min-A-Mart where Junior was a regular. He'd stand around drinking coffee. I didn't charge him because I didn't want him to leave.
"Co-workers would get annoyed and go fill the beer cooler.
"I'd listen to Junior tell tales.
"Later, I learned that Junior was the one who created a minor media frenzy a few years earlier when he reported seeing Bigfoot in the woods near Dansville.
"He got the cops involved and the newspapers wrote about him and TV crews interviewed him.
"Soon, others piped up to say that, indeed, they'd seen it too.
"What a character."

Catlike Beasts

A couple recent media items:

Westford, CT, police have issued a warning to the public following a "credible" sighting of a mountain lion-like feline. (News source.)

A "mystery beast" is prowling around Camden, New York. Claw marks on trees have been noted. (News source.)

Mississippi "Kangaroo"

A kangaroo-like marsupial (let's be honest, most likely someone's pet wallaby) has been reported along U.S. 90 near Bay St. Louis, MS. I'd print more details, but it looks like most of the news article was lifted from a Wikipedia article on kangaroos.

Snake Decapitates Kittens (or not)

Among a recent outbreak of exotic species running loose, there is a report from Bucks County, PA, about big snakes (pythons or boas). One quote from the news article bears mention:

"Bristol Township officers caught a nine-and-half foot snake Wednesday, but another it [sic] believed to be on the loose after the remains of several kittens were discovered." ...
"Two kittens, ironically named Miracle and Lucky, escaped their deaths after their owner discovered the bodies of four others in their litter.
"'They decapitated it, [sic] it was disgusting,' said the cat's owner Lisa Remer."

OK, here's the difference between how a snake eats its prey, and how a small predator (say a rat, a weasel, a canine, etc.) eats. A snake swallows its prey whole... They don't bite chunks off of kittens.