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Post by dertodesking on Feb 26, 2011 13:49:49 GMT -8
Hi All,
Anyone else on here have an interest in "cryptozoology"?
To quote Wikipedia, "Cryptozoology (from Greek êñõðôüò, kryptos, "hidden" + zoology; literally, "study of hidden animals") refers to the search for animals whose existence has not been proven. This includes looking for living examples of animals that are considered extinct, such as dinosaurs; animals whose existence lacks physical support but which appear in myths, legends, or are reported, such as Bigfoot and Chupacabra;[1] and wild animals dramatically outside their normal geographic ranges, such as phantom cats or "ABCs" (an initialism commonly used by cryptozoologists that stands for Alien Big Cats).
I guess the best known examples of cryptids would be "Bigfoot" of North America, the Yeti of the Himalayas and the "Loch Ness Monster" (a plesiosaur?).
Does anyone belive any of these "creatures" exists?
Simon
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Post by nomihoudai on Feb 26, 2011 14:01:13 GMT -8
I believe in the almighty moth man ( google him up  ) |
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Post by dertodesking on Feb 26, 2011 14:05:11 GMT -8
I believe in the almighty moth man ( google him up ) Hi Claude, LOL - mothman!!! I know the stories but do you REALLY believe?  Simon |
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Post by saturniidave on Feb 26, 2011 14:12:44 GMT -8
Yes, personally I do believe there are things out there we do not know about. I am not saying there are Plesiosaurs in Loch Ness, or Loch Morar for that matter, but I am certain there are forms of life or species we have not discovered yet. It seems to me there is too much evidence, albeit circumstantial in a lot of cases, for these things NOT to exist. New species are being discovered all the time, and not just invertebrates either, in places thought to have been thoroughly investigated.
Those things are out there, we just don't know what they are yet. Remember it was not too long ago that things like the Giant Squid and Coelocanth were the stuff of of legend and folklore!
Dave
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Post by dertodesking on Feb 26, 2011 14:18:46 GMT -8
Remember it was not too long ago that things like the Giant Squid and Coelocanth were the stuff of of legend and folklore! Dave ...and the Giant Panda (only "discovered" by Western scientists in 1927), mountain gorilla and okapi... Dave - what do you think the chances are of "Alien Big Cats" (pumas, panthers, leopards etc) living in the Kent countryside? I know someone who SWEARS that he saw a large black big cat on the marshes on Sheppey... Simon |
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Post by saturniidave on Feb 26, 2011 15:45:19 GMT -8
And I know someone who saw a big cat too. He is no naturalist but he drew what he saw, a perfect picture of a Puma!
I have no doubt whatsoever that big cats are on the loose in Britain, I have seen a lot of evidence including kills that have been 'treed'. I am also aware that the 'Authorities' will not entertain such a possibility because if they admitted it there would be a lot of panic and outcry. They are fully aware of the animals released after the Dangerous Wildlife act came into being, there is even documented evidence of it happening and not only then!
Dave
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Post by nomihoudai on Feb 26, 2011 15:47:33 GMT -8
Don't forget about the dragons !
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Post by wingedwishes on Feb 26, 2011 16:00:14 GMT -8
I'd like to see the Tasman Wolf be found.
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Post by saturniidave on Feb 26, 2011 16:36:45 GMT -8
Nomihoudai, It is thought that the Dragon myths came from the first Europeans to see a large Monitor Lizard with a reddish tongue flicking in and out. It does not take a lot of imagination to realise people in those days were as prone to exaggeration as we are, take into account the 'Chinese Whisper' factor and over time a 6 foot lizard becomes a huge monster and a tongue flicking in and out becomes flames!
The Chinese Dragons are another story!
Wingedwishes, I have heard that even as we speak there are plans going ahead to clone Thylacines using Tasmanian Devils as surrogate mothers.
I am with you though, that would be nice to see, along with Dodos and Quaggas!.
Dave
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Post by saturniidave on Feb 26, 2011 16:44:18 GMT -8
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Post by panzerman on Feb 28, 2011 21:06:12 GMT -8
I saw a documentry about Sir Edmund Hillary, he claimed he saw a Yeti, while on his expedition to the Himalayas. The people of Fiji, worship a giant shark God, that resembles a giant shark that scientist think is extinct now. There are native stories that prehistoric reptiles lurk in the massive swamp territory in the Congo. Recently in Arkansas, USA, scientists found that the Ivory Billed Woodpecker is still around, thought to be extinct. So, there are a lot of what ifs....
John
PS: I would not be surprised, if someone one day, takes a photo of the Marsupial Tiger.
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Post by Chris Grinter on Feb 28, 2011 21:43:35 GMT -8
Recently in Arkansas, USA, scientists found that the Ivory Billed Woodpecker is still around, thought to be extinct. So, there are a lot of what ifs.... The Ivory Billed was NOT found, they thought they were onto it, but thousands of hours of searching turned up nothing. Just a bunch of rumors. And come on guys, really? Cryptozoology? I admit there are surprising things found every year, but they do not add a single ounce of credibility to there actually being mythical creatures. Above someone said there is too much "evidence" to ignore. This is the same line we get from UFO hunters - show me evidence that has actually held up to scrutiny, just ONCE. Is it out there? no. As an entomologist I'm always amazed that guys like us can go out in the field and track some of the smallest and rarest animals on earth. Yet somehow - a population of giant apes is living in the north woods that have gone undetected? Trust me, I know a lot of primatologists. These guy wake up at 3 am and get crap thrown on them by monkeys and step on snakes all day chasing them down. Yet not a single strand of hair or pile of poo or dead bigfoot. Same goes for every other mythical beast. And regarding the big cats in the UK. I can't exclude the possibility that someone has released a pet or one has escaped, last year an adult mountain lion was shot in the streets of Chicago! But I think a lot of the sightings are mistaken identity. A house cat from the wrong perspective can look very strange. That even happens here in CA where we actually DO have lions. |
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Post by saturniidave on Mar 1, 2011 5:15:37 GMT -8
Chris, I did say there is too much evidence to ignore but I never mentioned 'mythical' creatures. I said they are out there but we do not know what they are, there are very probably perfectly logical explanations for them. There are large mammals and reptiles still being discovered in places that were thought to be thoroughly explored. As to the British 'Big cats', check out the link I put in above.
Regarding such things as Bigfoot, I will just say that if something wants to remain unseen it will do, no matter how big it is. The jungle Elephants of the Congo were a myth for decades until someone eventually found them.
How many times have you heard stories of wildlife photographers spending months looking for a creature they KNOW exists, they know where it lives but they don't see it. These creatures are supposed to be fairly intelligent so they would have no problem eluding humans, especially if their hearing and sense of smell were superior to ours, they would hear or smell us coming a mile away.
John, regarding the Congo reptiles, the tribe in question owned up a couple of years ago to it being a hoax to bring tourism to their part of the country. They just picked the picture out of the book at random apparently.
Dave
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Post by wollastoni on Mar 1, 2011 5:25:43 GMT -8
Come on guys...
Of course discoveries like coelacanthe and so on can still happen in very remoted part of the Earth (Abyss, Oceans, primeforests)... but we will never discover a new mammal as big as a cat in the UK !!!?
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vwman
Full Member
Posts: 72
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Post by vwman on Mar 1, 2011 7:21:54 GMT -8
I sometimes think that female entomologists are mythical
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