Cryptozoology

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Cryptozoology is a pseudoscience involving the search for animals whose existence is not evidenced. Cryptozoologists refer to these creatures as cryptids, a term coined by John Wall in 1983.[1] This includes living examples of animals that are otherwise considered extinct, such as non-avian dinosaurs and animals whose existence lacks physical evidence but which appear in folklore, such as Bigfoot and the chupacabra;[2] and wild animals dramatically outside their normal geographic ranges, such as phantom cats (also known as Alien Big Cats).

Cryptozoology is not a recognized branch of zoology nor a discipline of science.[2] It is an example of pseudoscience because it relies heavily upon anecdotal evidence, stories, and alleged sightings.[3][4][5] While cryptozoology takes a pseudoscientific approach to creatures and beings from the folklore record, the scientific study of folklore is folkloristics.

History[edit]

The coining of the word cryptozoology (from Greek κρυπτός, kryptos, "hidden" + zoology; literally, "study of hidden animals") is often attributed to Belgian-French zoologist Bernard Heuvelmans, though Heuvelmans attributes coinage of the term to the late Scottish explorer and adventurer Ivan T. Sanderson.[6] Heuvelmans On the Track of Unknown Animals (1955) traces the scholarly origins of the discipline to Anthonie Cornelis Oudemans and his 1892 study, The Great Sea Serpent.[7] Heuvelmans argued that cryptozoology should be undertaken with scientific rigor, but with an open-minded, interdisciplinary approach. He also stressed that attention should be given to folklore sources regarding such creatures, arguing that while often layered in unlikely and fantastic elements, folktales can have grains of truth and important information regarding undiscovered organisms. Phantom cats (an example of living animals supposedly found outside their normal ranges) are a common subject of cryptozoological interest,[8] largely due to the relative likelihood of existence in comparison to more fantastical cryptids lacking nearly any conclusive evidence of existence, such as Mothman.[9][10]

Another notable book on the subject is Willy Ley's Exotic Zoology (1959). Ley, best known for his writings on rocketry and related topics, was also trained in paleontology, and wrote a number of books about animals. Ley's collection Exotic Zoology is of some interest to cryptozoology, as he discusses the Yeti and sea serpents, as well as relict dinosaurs. The book entertains the possibility that some legendary creatures (like the sirrush, the unicorn, or the cyclops) might be based on actual animals, through misinterpretation of the animals and/or their remains. Also notable is the work of British zoologist and cryptozoologist Karl Shuker, who has published 12 books and countless articles on numerous cryptozoological subjects since the mid-1980s. Loren Coleman, a modern popularizer of cryptozoology, has chronicled the history and personalities of cryptozoology in his books.[11]

Criticism[edit]

Cryptozoology has been criticised because of its reliance on anecdotal information[12] and because cryptozoologists do not follow the scientific method,[13][14] devoting a substantial portion of their efforts to investigations of animals that most scientists believe are unlikely to have existed.[15]

In a 2011 forward for The American Biology Teacher, then National Association of Biology Teachers president Dan Ward uses cryptozoology as an example of "technological pseudoscience" that may confuse students about the scientific method. Ward says that "Cryptozoology … is not valid science or even science at all. It is monster hunting."[16]

In a 1992 issue of Folklore, folklorist Véronique Campion-Vincent says:

Unexplained appearances of mystery animals are reported all over the world today. Beliefs in the existence of fabulous and supernatural animals are ubiquitous and timeless. In the continents discovered by Europe indigenous beliefs and tales have strongly influenced the perceptions of the conquered confronted by a new natural environment. In parallel with the growing importance of the scientific approach, these traditional mythical tales have been endowed with sometimes highly artificial precision and have given birth to contemporary legends solidly entrenched in their territories. The belief self-perpetuates today through multiple observations enhanced by the media and encouraged (largely with the aim of gain for touristic promotion) by the local population, often genuinely convinced of the reality of this profitable phenomenon."[17]

Campion-Vincent says that "four currents can be distinguished in the study of mysterious animal appearances": "Forteans" ("compiler[s] of anomalies" such as via publications like the Fortean Times), "occultists" (which she describes as related to "Forteans"), "folklorists", and "cryptozoologists". Regarding cryptozoologists, Campion-Vincent says that "this movement seems to deserve the appellation of parascience, like parapsychology: the same corpus is reviewed; many scientists participate, but for those who have an official status of university professor or researcher, the participation is a private hobby".[17]

According to Mike Dash, few scientists doubt there are thousands of unknown animals, particularly invertebrates, awaiting discovery; however, cryptozoologists are largely uninterested in researching and cataloging newly discovered species of ants or beetles, instead focusing their efforts towards "more elusive" creatures that have often defied decades of work aimed at confirming their existence.[15] The majority of mainstream criticism of cryptozoology is thus directed towards the search for megafaunal cryptids such as Bigfoot, the Yeti, and the Loch Ness Monster, which appear often in popular culture, but for which there is little or no scientific support. Some scientists argue that megafaunal cryptids are unlikely to exist undetected in great enough numbers to maintain a breeding population[18] and are unlikely to be able to survive in their reported habitats owing to issues of climate and food supply.[19]

Another criticism is that actual discoveries of new species have rarely, if ever, been predicted by cryptozoologists. Critics note that while other researchers have stumbled upon real animals, cryptozoologists have focused on finding legendary creatures with no success.[20]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Coleman, Loren and Clark, Jerome.Cryptozoology A to Z: The Encyclopedia of Loch Monsters, Sasquatch, Chupacabras, and Other Authentic Mysteries of Nature. New York: Fireside/Simon & Schuster, 1999
  2. ^ a b Simpson, George G. (1984). "Mammals and Cryptozoology". Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society (American Philosophical Society.) 128 (1): 1–19. JSTOR 986487. 
  3. ^ Carroll, Robert T. (1994–2009). "The Skeptic's Dictionary". Retrieved 26 August 2010. 
  4. ^ Shermer, Michael; Linse, Pat (2002). The Skeptic Encyclopedia of Pseudoscience. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 1-57607-653-9. 
  5. ^ H. James Birx (6 January 2009). Encyclopedia of time: science, philosophy, theology, & culture. SAGE. pp. 251–. ISBN 978-1-4129-4164-8. Retrieved 2 September 2011. 
  6. ^ Heuvelmans, Bernard (1968). In the Wake of the Sea-Serpents. New York: Hill and Wang. ISBN 0-8090-5814-6. 
  7. ^ Bernard Heuvelmans (1965). On The Track Of Unknown Animals. New York: Hill and Wang. ISBN 0-7103-0498-6. 
  8. ^ Cryptozoology/Big Cats at DMOZ
  9. ^ "Big Cat evidence gets stronger, as society calls for government study". British Big Cats Society. Retrieved 2010-02-09. 
  10. ^ Brad Fear (2008). A Macabre Myth of a Moth-Man. ISBN 1-4389-0264-6. 
  11. ^ Loren Coleman (2002). Tom Slick: True Life Encounters in Cryptozoology. Fresno, California: Craven Street Books/Linden Press. ISBN 0-941936-74-0. 
  12. ^ Shermer, Michael (2003). "Show Me the Body". Scientific American (288(5)): 27. 
  13. ^ Coleman, Loren; Huyghe, Patrick (April 1999). "Afterword". The Field Guide to Bigfoot, Yeti, and Other Mystery Primates Worldwide. Trumbore, Harry. New York, New York: Avon Books. p. 207. ISBN 0-380-80263-5. 
  14. ^ Coleman, Loren; Huyghe, Patrick; Trumbore, Harry; Rollins, Mark Lee (2003). The Field Guide to Lake Monsters, Sea Serpents, and Other Mystery Denizens of the Deep. New York, New York: Penguin Group. p. 358. ISBN 1-58542-252-5. 
  15. ^ a b Dash, Mike (2000). Borderlands: The Ultimate Exploration of the Unknown. Overlook Press. ISBN 0-440-23656-8. 
  16. ^ Ward, Daniel. 2011. “From the President”. The American Biology Teacher 73.8 (2011): 440–440.
  17. ^ a b Campion-Vincent, Véronique. 1992. “Appearances of Beasts and Mystery-cats in France”. Folklore 103.2 (1992): 160–183.
  18. ^ "Bigfoot hunting". Retrieved December 2010. 
  19. ^ Sjögren, Bengt (1980). Berömda vidunder (in Swedish). Settern. ISBN 91-7586-023-6. 
  20. ^ Bailey, Dave (August 8, 2007). "Cryptozoology: Science or pseudoscience?". Association for Science and Reason. Retrieved November 14, 2012. 

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