Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page.

,_ FORSYTH COUNTY NEWS — Thurtday, June 15,2000 PAGE 10A fWEAMt freezone.com • AOL Keyword: FREEZONE A rare giant squid netted off the coast of Tasmania In 1997 measured approximately 49.5 foot from head to tentacle tip. • The Incanyamba, reportedly a serpentine creature, Is found in Zulu legend. NATURE * j M ’frT I'A \ k ryli BBrLJWwk. / k’KPTVrs z*4. t KJ C *- / FIV /mT’MwX Sl£JLb't£L. 1 I'JrM. \v y J ■■ ■^^sew3r a l 1 faX ■■-/«* J Tl. ! J I'LD I I 'IT"*" ’ ys®7 < -44few«e-*r.«i CFr . / V s' J \ IvwV K' J n \X >/ A„i«, k, jf -■ fiHdV * •* i.il «BSc!rjK>^W*irlL^>^// ■ ■ ’ ■• >GCL.* " Hm ' w Cryptozoologists are always on the lookout for unknown creatures by Kelly Milner Halls Strange animals are lurking. Mysterious crea tures, too rare to be “officially” named, swim through murky waters, hunt in rain-drenched forests and hike across rocky mountain trails. Now and then, we catch a glimpse of them. But like falling stars, they vanish almost as soon as they’re seen. How do we know these crafty beasts exist at all? “We don’t,” says Ben Roesch, editor of “The Cryptozoology Review.” But dozens of cryptozool ogists around the world are devoted to gathering the facts. What is cryptozoology, exactly? It is not a sci ence, according to Roesch. In science, facts can be verified and duplicated - proven and disproven. “I like to think of it as natural history rather than sci ence,” he says. “It is the study of strange, unidentified species,” says Rick Spears, an exhibit designer at Rock Eagle Museum of Natural History in Eatonton, Georgia. Spears recently created a special display on the subject for his museum. Teachers! Get guides for using Free Zone pages in your classroom at freezone.com/parents_teachers “Creature from the Black Lagoon” was a 1954 horror film about the fictional discovery of a prehistoric creature called “Gill-Man.” • The Animals had a hit with the song “House of the Rising Sun” In the 19505. I II “supimal,” which means “super ammal. It would be the sweetest animal in the wor . would be suitable for a pet. Also, t " be some mixed breeds-some would be hke dogs or cats . Jurtl n N., Bg® I°, Detroit, Michigan X*lf you could create* ( your own animal, what would It be like? I X w W : T r— .- I „■■■->.. ■■■■ Serving the North Georgia Poultry Industry jdfefci IWwy and helping the environment by recycling poultry J|lf by-products into useful feed ingredients, I - ‘ ' ' - ! --- ' -■ ,1,! i r, '"' ■■■■ " f ' ll """ ll To prepare for the exhibit, Spears used his com puter. “I did an Internet search for ‘cryptozoolo gy,’ and the first site listed was for a creature called the Altamaha-Ha.” Spears had discovered the legend of Georgia’s own “Loch Ness Monster” - called “Alty” for short. Others say Alty is a big fish called a sturgeon. Some people say it’s a figment of a few ripe imagina tions. “1 really haven’t a clue what, if anything, the Altamaha-Ha might be,” says E. Randall Floyd, author of “Great Southern Mysteries” and a weekly, syndicated newspaper column on puzzling topics. . “But in my opinion, there have been enough sight ings over the years to suggest that something out of the ordinary is out there.” Not all “cryptids” (crypto-creatures) are as elu sive or far-fetched as “Alty” or the “Loch Ness Monster,” according to Roesch. “Peter Hocking, a naturalist working in Peru, has done some interest ing research on reports of mysterious big cats there,” Roesch says. “And the evidence of big cats in the United Kingdom is pretty convincing.” And let’s not forget the coelacanth. Zoologists thought the mighty fish was extinct until fishermen “ h " f an animal ,hat lo ° ks «a«ly like a S ah± o'° ’ d ° 8 ’ a W «l * idee a human. Or maybe a fish that looks like a cow sounds like a sheep and glows in the dark. - Brandie, age 11, Canada If I can create my own dog, but he won t have l u , ht an d wake us up. He every day, and he won t bark ah n , f 1 won’t follow cats, an wo f I care o f himself, leave him alone in the ous ’. , jL»|j have green eyes Without breaking m^ S /’ S^un d his eye. and white fur with a htt k ago 13, Lebanon My animal ofmidniX black with a X humans. It My animal would be as white heart shape on . (ike a r J w3d as a stallion Jt would He to X My a^ al come whenever flowers and small trees, and ever I wanted it to be. ~ Andrea, age 10, Nickerson, Nebraska For more KW Opinion questions anti answers, cfcecfc us out at freezono.com Rita, fe* My cat scratches ths screen door all day, every day. a bottle of water, but It doesn't help! What should I do? - Koga, ago 9 is your pet s annoying mdk waangonng its rewwortsnip wwn ywr ?«wiy r Got help from Rita, Free Zone’s resident pet expert, at fre«rane.oom/advice netted one off the coast of Africa in the 19505. “Cryptozoologists made predictions that popula tions of coelacanths might still exist,” Roesch says. “So the recent discovery of an Indonesian popula tion of coelacanths is pretty impressive.” Could the same be said for cryptid all-star “Bigfoot”? “I’m not convinced that Bigfoot exists,” Roesch says, “though some evidence is compelling. If it is a real animal, 1 think it would have to be some species of unknown giant primate. A popular candidate is Gigantopithecus.” Spears believes there are undiscovered species on this earth. “At least 1 hope there are,” he says. “Remember, the earth still has vast areas of unex plored country. And who knows what may be lurking in the depths of the oceans!” But maybe what’s “real” isn’t the best part of cryptozoology. “I’d like to think some of these things are real,” Floyd says. “But in away, I hope we never find out the truth. I like to fantasize about this creature the same way I do about Atlantis and other great mysteries of the world. Without mysteries, life would not be nearly as exciting or wondrous.” [wMsOOOOI o come up w the pMara mooshus. f I ’Wk l '*' i ' Ik snd efoa u»i :uonensnm ■Pis uin>|Pau » srfluiM uingpms e sniwqqots srHpnj g snzzouuas sn>»ds ’T :smsuy • “Animal Farm,” the 1946 novel by George Orwell, Is a satire of the Russian Revolution. Koga, Try putting atuminum Ml ovar the ucraan goor aM at tha foot of the door. Cats don't teethe foe/or noun* of ML TMa la a Munrior fJIVuiITtWWJVa C9MH Ww® WIW awwea ■ sFF Ww* Good luokl -fttta BIG FOOT: Coming to a town near you According to the Bigfoot Research Organization, the two-legged, manlike creature has been a lot more visible than you think. Sharp-eyed citizens have submitted eyewitness reports from all but five of the 50 United States. Folks in Alabama, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii and Rhode Island must have been sleeping. In Canada, the creature has been reported in Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Ontario, Prince Edward Island and Saskatchewan. People in Australia, China, Malaysia, Russia and the Himalayan regions also have turned in eye witness reports. For more information on cryptozoology, write to: International Society of Cryptozoology P.O. Box 43070 Tucson, AZ 85733 Endangered species What can you do to help Leant about endangered animals at freezone.coffi/i>rainZanimals “Mutual of Omaha'* Wild Kingdom” was a popular TV show for more than 30 years. • extinct, ad).: no longer In existence; lost or especially having died out leaving no living representatives