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Cryptozoology is the study of rumored or mythological animals that are presumed to exist, but for which conclusive proof does not yet exist; or are generally considered extinct, but occasionally reported. Those who study or search for such animals are called cryptozoologists.Invention of the term is usually attributed to zoologist Bernard Heuvelmans. The hypothetical creatures involved are referred to by some as " cryptids", though this neologism has not entered into mainstream usage and is often considered to be slang by scientists, many cryptozoologists among them.
Some cryptozoologists align themselves with a more scientifically rigorous field like zoology, while others tend toward an anthropological slant or even a fortean perspective. The fringes of cryptozoology are often considered pseudoscience by mainstream biologists.
1 Mainstream Reaction
While many cryptozoologists strive for legitimacy and many are respected scientists in other fields, cryptozoology has never been fully embraced by the scientific community. A cryptozoologist may propose that an interest in such a phenomenon doesn't entail belief, but a detractor will reply that accepting unsubstantiated sightings is itself a belief. Cryptozoologists tend to be responsible for disproving their own objects of study. For example, some cryptozoologists have collected statistical data and studied witness accounts that challenge the validity of many Bigfoot sightings.
Scientists have demonstrated that some creatures of mythology, legend or local folklore were rooted in real animals or phenomena. Thus, cryptozoologists hold that people should be open to the possibility that many more such animals exist.
In the early days of western exploration of the world, many native tales of unknown animals were initially dismissed as mythology or superstition by western scientists, but consequently proven to have a real basis in biological fact. Cryptozoologists often point out that natives often know a great deal more about their immediate environment (and the animals that inhabit it) than western investigators, and therefore suggest that, even today, thus far unproven tales and traditions regarding unknown undescribed animals in native folklore should not be summarily dismissed in the same way.
There are several animals cited as examples for continuing cryptozoological efforts:
- The coelacanth, a primitive fishAtlantic herring, Clupea harengus one of the most abundant species in the world Photo A fish is a poikilothermic (cold-blooded) water-dwelling vertebrate with gills. There are over 27,000 species of fish, making them the most diverse group of vertebrates., a " living fossilLiving fossil is a term used for any living species which closely resembles a species otherwise only known from fossils, i. as if the fossil had "come to life". This can be a species known from fossils before living representatives were discovered (the mo" believed to have been extinct for 65 million years, was caught in a fishing net in 1938Events January -June January 3 The March of Dimes is established by Franklin Delano Roosevelt. January 11 Frances Moulton is the first woman to become president of a US national bank. January 20 Wedding of king Farouk I of Egypt and Farida Zulficar in Cai off the coast of AfricaAfrica is the world's second-largest continent in both area and population, after Asia. 30,244,050 km2 (11,677,240 mi2) including the islands, it covers 20. 3% of the total land area on Earth, and with over 800 million human inhabitants it accounts for ar.
- Of an even older lineage than the coelacanth are the GraptoliteGraptolites (Graptolita) are colonial animals known chiefly from the Upper Cambrian through the Mississippian ( Lower Carboniferous). Possibly hemichordates. A possible graptolite, Chaunograptus is known from the Middle Cambrian. One surviving genus Cephas. Living representatives were first found in 1882Events February 2 The Knights of Columbus are formed in New Haven, Connecticut February 7 In Mississippi City the last heavyweight boxing championship bareknuckle fight takes place. March 2 Robert Maclean fails to assassinate Queen Victoria at Windsor Mar, although the group had previously been presumed to have been extinct for 300 million years. Cryptozoologists point these out to demonstrate that there are many unexplored regions of the world left, and that remote exotic locations or specialized ecosystems relatively untouched by man may contain unexpected life.
- Similarly cited is the 1976 discovery of the previously unknown megamouth shark, discovered off OahuO‘ahu is the third largest of the Hawaiian Islands and most populous island in the state of Hawai‘i. Total land area is 608 mile˛ (1,575 km˛). The city of Honolulu—largest city, state capital, and main deepwater marine port for the State of Hawai‘i—is loc, Hawaii, when it tried to eat a ship's anchor. Some have cautioned against applying the "megamouth analogy" too broadly to hypothetical creatures, noting that while "the megamouth does show that the oceans have a lot of secrets left to reveal ... The megamouth is not a useful analogy to support the existence of marine cryptids" in general. [1]
- Also cited is the 2003 discovery of the remains of Homo floresiensis, a descendent of Homo erectus which took the anthropological community completely by suprise. The fact that myths of a strikingly similar creature, called Ebu Gogo by the local people, have persisted until as late as the 19th Century has given the field of study new credibility from the rest of the scientific community.
Cryptozoological supporters have noted that many unfamiliar animals, when first reported, were considered hoaxes, delusions or misidentifications. The platypus, giant squid (and it should be noticed that the colossal squid has now been discovered), mountain gorilla, and komodo dragon are a few such creatures. Supporters note that unyielding skepticism may in fact inhibit discovery of unknown animals. Others have suggested a rigid World view disallows many academics from accepting evidence contrary to their preconceptions.
Along similar lines, the emblem of the Society for Cryptozoology is the okapi, a forest-dwelling relative of the giraffe that was unknown to Western scientists prior to 1901.
