Chupacabras & War At UnCon08
Posted by: Loren Coleman on November 4th, 2008
Last weekend, the Fortean Times UnCon happened in London. There were not too many even vaguely cryptozoological talks there. But one talk, more than any other, is an indicator of a struggle going on, at least in the UK, to determine the future of cryptozoological thought between opposing factions.
Sometimes talking about Chupacabras is more than just talking about Chupacabras. There’s a war on the horizon, and here are three bloggers’ insights into different parts of what was revealed in London.
Cryptozoologist Jon Downes from the Centre for Fortean Zoology [CFZ] talked about the Chupacabra, a supposed creature that drains the blood of goats in Puerto Rico. In between stomping around shouting, “I f^cking hate Powerpoint! What the f^ck’s wrong with this crappy microphone?” he described his travels to Puerto Rico, where he discovered that Puerto Rico has species of goat that are about the size of a chihuahua, and that the reported killings mostly coincided with a population explosion of the local mongoose, which could easily bring down a chihuahua-sized goat.
Conclusion: There’s no chupacabra, just mongoose (mongeese?) munching on fun-sized goats.Philip Dore
Meanwhile, Beasts of London blogger Neil Arnold, author of Monster! The A-Z of Zooform Phenomena, overviewed the same presentation.
So, after an 18-month gap, the Fortean Times Unconvention is back. Saturday 1st and Sunday 2nd November was the date, the venue being the University of Westminster at Regent Street…the verdict ? AWFUL! Is it me or are a majority of ‘forteans’ just sad anoraks who walk around in their black hats, long cloaks and smelling of b.o. ? Is it me or are a majority of the speakers the same every year, part of the FT clique who, despite large ego’s and big heads, waffle on like robots bereft of any kind of humanity or character…[boring presentation comments left out]….So, it was an escape to the traders area where I discovered there was more life at a church fete as a literal handful of tables exhibited a small selection of dreary books, except for the only effort being made by the Centre For Fortean Zoology guys who, complete with wrinkly mermaid displayed their books and made the day for me. Thank goodness for Jonathan Downes and the gang, who saved the day with the talk on the re-evaluation of the Chupacabra.Neil Arnold
In conclusion, I turn to Tim Matthews to give further insights into how an insider in the CFZ views themselves at the UnCon and their changing political objectives via the CFZ. The CFZ’s evolving view of their centerpiece role is revealed best by one of their own.
Although early, and with lectures in full swing in two rooms, the numbers in this “barometer” area for Uncon never exceeded 100….So here we are at Uncon08 and even the organisers seem rather bored. Same sorts of people each year, doing their talk, and then we all go to sleep again for another 11 months before we ask ourselves whether we want to do it all again next time. Or so it is said….When Jon delivered his talk late yesterday afternoon you could see them visibly horrified, mouths open, wanting it to all end! An element of panic had set in and by the time Jon finished he had clearly convinced a large number of the UNCON-vinced that it was time for a change. Four of us; Myself, Fleur, David and Matt had already given out 500 copies of the “Prepare for War” Polemic as shown above. This leaflet reached parts that no other Fortean publication had ever reached before making some feel wayyyy out of their comfort zone. Deliberate provocation? Let Gail-Nina decide.
…For me, it was all summed up by the gulf between the myth of the Chupacbra “goatsucking alien entity” of UFO/Paranormal lore and publication and the conclusions reached by our own CFZ researches; that, in fact, the so-called “goatsucking aliens” were indeed Mongooses and Porcupines (with an arguable assist from ants!) in Puerto Rico. From the truly ridiculous to the truly radical (getting to the root) in less than ten years.
Times have changed: It is now about what you have to offer – in real time in the real world. Stand with us, or get out of our way!
Here’s to the future CFZ style….In the wake of Bernard Heuvelmans indeed!Tim Matthews
About Loren Coleman
Loren Coleman is one of the world’s leading cryptozoologists, some say “the” leading living cryptozoologist. Certainly, he is acknowledged as the current living American researcher and writer who has most popularized cryptozoology in the late 20th and early 21st centuries.
Starting his fieldwork and investigations in 1960, after traveling and trekking extensively in pursuit of cryptozoological mysteries, Coleman began writing to share his experiences in 1969. An honorary member of Ivan T. Sanderson’s Society for the Investigation of the Unexplained in the 1970s, Coleman has been bestowed with similar honorary memberships of the North Idaho College Cryptozoology Club in 1983, and in subsequent years, that of the British Columbia Scientific Cryptozoology Club, CryptoSafari International, and other international organizations. He was also a Life Member and Benefactor of the International Society of Cryptozoology (now-defunct).
Loren Coleman’s daily blog, as a member of the Cryptomundo Team, served as an ongoing avenue of communication for the ever-growing body of cryptozoo news from 2005 through 2013. He returned as an infrequent contributor beginning Halloween week of 2015.
Coleman is the founder in 2003, and current director of the International Cryptozoology Museum in Portland, Maine.
It was the reason I never even contempated buying a ticket this year, as I said on the BCIB list, wake up FT.
But a ticket to hear Jonathan speak is worth it alone, even though we may not all agree with him all the time.
Interest in cryptozoology in the UK at the moment is on the increase.
A goat the size of a chihuahua? Now THAT is a cryptid I want to see a picture of. Seriously, did he document this? There seems no rational reason to breed a miniature goat.
I agree with MattBille, I would like to see a photo of this tiny goat, too.
I agree. I’m going to have to see one of these micro-goats with my own eyes before I believe it. I have never heard of such an animal. Goats are meat- and milk-producing livestock. The bigger they are, the better, just like cattle. While someone may try to breed such tiny goats for novelty purposes, the idea that Puerto Rico’s goats would be exclusively so small is ludicrous.
You can see pictures and details on the Nigerian Dwarf Goats here.
I suspect those may be the goats of which the authors are discussing, as I have seen them in the yards of friends’ homes in Puerto Rico myself, as well as, the Small Asian (Indian) Mongoose in the El Yunque National Forest.
I don’t know. I somehow doubt this dwarf Nigerian goat is the main breed of caprine cattle in Puerto Rico, who focus heavily on milk in their agricultural sector. I’ve tried to read some about it, and I think the two main breeds of goats that are used in Puerto Rico are Saanen and Toggenberg; I could be wrong though.
If we’re talkign Nigerian dwarf goats, there’s some exaggeration going on: 20″ high and 75 lbs is definitely not a chihuahua.