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Nain Rouge of Michigan, a fierce red goblin that has been spotted before every major city disaster in Detroit Belgian zoologist Bernard Heuvelmans used sightings to create nine categories of sea monster, from the ‘merhorse’ (top left) to the ‘father-of-all-turtles’ and snake-like yellow belly (right top and bottom). Illustration by Tyler Stone. For what it’s worth, Dr. Charles Goldman, an expert on inland aquatic systems, believes that sightings of lake monsters like Nessie, Tessie, and Ogopogo are actually mirages caused by temperature changes in the deep, cold lakes. Another possible explanation is the very big fish, like sturgeons, that live in those bodies of water. 13. Mokele-mbembe
Bigfoot. Nessie. Yeti. Sea monsters. All terms mostly avoided by biologists, and all deemed synonymous with pseudoscience, pop culture and wishful thinking more than biology. Throughout history anecdotes and stories have described large animals, often considered monstrous or frightening, that don’t conform to species recognised by science. Distinct from but linked to this apparent cultural role of cryptozoology is our ability to perform as witnesses and ‘data recallers’. It’s no secret that people generally perform very badly when it comes to describing and recalling observations, especially those made fleetingly or when under stress. And sceptics of cryptozoology often point to the field’s over-emphasis of the value of eyewitness data as one of its primary flaws ( Loxton & Prothero 2013). How we perform as witnesses and recallers and why we fail or succeed when we do is another fascinating subject – and I say that it’s linked to the cultural role of cryptozoology because a case can be made that our preconceptions and biases are linked to cultural and societal archetypes, memes and concepts. Standard reading on cryptozoologicalscepticism: Loxton& Prothero (2013). The term ‘cryptozoology’ has in fact been undergoing a transformation of meaning. The ‘traditional version’ of cryptozoology at least focuses on creatures alleged to be ‘normal’ animals, even if they are terrifying, anachronistic, phylogenetically novel and scientifically unrecognised. However, social media groups, TV shows, YouTube videos, podcasts and books using the term cryptozoology today can be decidedly non-zoological. Bigfoot looms large, for sure, but among the current superstars of cryptozoology are Chupacabra, an alien-like vampirous creature; and Dogman, a seven-foot North American werewolf with a canine head on a human torso. This ‘cultural’ view of cryptozoology is not in keeping with the ‘flesh and blood’ or ‘pelts and paws’ view preferred by advocates of the field, and for that reason it’s seen as a highly sceptical position, if not a cynical one. Ultimately it might mean that we should abandon the term cryptozoology altogether, since there may be little to no ‘zoology’ at the bottom of it. I’ve seen many of these places personally. If you tell me there’s a hodag statue in Wisconsin, I want to see it with my own eyes, same as if you told me there was an actual hodag in Wisconsin. In South Dakota, I took selfies with the world’s largest chainsaw bigfoot sculpture. In Vermont, I hiked an icy mountaintop to find Wampahoofus Trail. In Ohio, I climbed an ancient mound shaped like an underwater panther. I have been to many cryptid museums and gift shops, and I have a shelf full of souvenirs to prove it. I sometimes joke that when I say I’m hunting cryptids, what I mean is that I’m driving to a town to drink a craft beer named after one. But I did also venture into their territories. After dark, I entered the old cement bunkers in the West Virginia forest that are the lair of the Mothman. I boated from New York to Vermont across Lake Champlain looking for sinuous humps in the water. I walked through an Arizona canyon that skinwalkers are known to haunt—but only after I drove to town to see if they had any craft beers named after them.Essential reading for anyone with an interest in unexplained mysteries, folklore, mythology, and the supernatural. An inherently fascinating, impressively informative, truly exceptional, and unreservedly recommended addition to community and academic library Cryptid collections.” —Midwest Book Review
The Daedalusencounter of 1848 remains one of the most pivotal and influential of sea monster reports. Was it actually a misidentified rorqual, as argued by Galbreath (2015)? This is more compelling when you look at Lieutenant Edgar A. Drummond's sketch. Physical evidence that might support the existence of these creatures has never been obtained, yet the creatures are ubiquitous in the relevant cultures, even travelling with the peoples concerned when they move to new lands. What I think these examples show is that cryptids are ‘cultural archetypes’ embedded in the way people imagine the world. So familiar is their place within this view of the world that they’re expected in the appropriate locations. Thoughtful and well-researched…a worthy addition to any cryptid enthusiast’s library.”— AIPT Comics Of course, not everyone believes this story is true, not the least because it didn’t come to light for decades. In the world of cryptids, nothing is simple. 11. and 12. Tahoe Tessie and OgopogoAcross the Pacific is the Yeti, a creature native to Asia that first appeared in folk tales told by the Sherpa people. The yeti and the abominable snowman are actually one and the same: The name Abominable Snowman came from a translation error that appeared in a newspaper in 1921. There are plenty of Apemen and other hairy humanoid cryptids beyond Yeti and Sasquatch. Among the apemen from around the world is the Alamasty, which apparently shares some characteristics of Neanderthals and roams Central Asia, and the Amomongo, an apeman that hails from the Philippines and apparently likes to disembowel goats with its long fingernails. 6. Am Fear Liath Mòr
Cryptozoology is the study of mysterious creatures that fall between the realm of real and imaginary on the scientific spectrum. Cryptid Creatures: A Field Guide offers a closer look at fifty of these amazing creatures, examining the best possible evidence for each, including scientific papers, magazine and newspaper articles, and credible eyewitness accounts. If, however, cryptozoology – even if it is considered part of the PUFT – is more about culture, we’re still looking at something worthy of study. Animals are involved, but the field is more about how people imagine animals that aren’t real: animals that exist as cultural archetypes, not flesh-and-blood species awaiting discovery. Maybe cryptozoology is dead. But long live cryptozoology. I love folklore, so naturally, I also love cryptids, since they're basically the scary story versions of modern folklore. Which is precisely what I enjoyed about The United States of Cryptids.”—BoingBoing Also known as “The Big Gray Man,” this creature is said to inhabit the summit of Ben Macdui, the second-highest mountain in Scotland. Supposedly you can hear its disembodied footsteps in the gravel on the mountain, and when the fog thins, you’ll see a hairy humanoid three times taller than a man. 7. and 8. Yowies and Habagon Spears’s ashy blue drawings have the impromptu feel of field sketches, while facts and alleged eyewitness accounts lend further credence to this fun handbook. Halls also provides a heartening message to readers: for any cryptid proven nonexistent, there are plenty of other weird and wonderful species to compensate.”— Publishers WeeklyPatricia Thang is an educator located in Los Angeles. Though a native Angeleno through and through, her heart also belongs to Tokyo, where much of her family is from. Besides books, she is an enthusiastic devourer of many things, including podcasts, television, and J-pop. She realizes there’s not enough time in the world to consume all of that content, but she’s trying anyway. Other endeavors to which she has dedicated herself include cuddling her dogs until they’re annoyed and taste-testing every vegan ice cream she can find.