Inside this book you will discover the fascinating world of cryptozoology! Derived from the ancient Greek to mean the “study of hidden animals”, this psuedoscience, led by researchers known as cryptozoologists, investigates the unfathomable fauna (and flora) that lurk in lore, and strives to find proof of the existence of these enigmatic creatures known as cryptids. Delve deep into the superstition and the science to find out if these bizarre beasts are fact or fiction. Investigate the legend of the Mothman, uncover the origins of the Jersey Devil, learn the difference between Bigfoot and Sasquatch, discover how many mythical monsters have been revealed to be real and join the ongoing search for the truth…
WELCOME
THE WONDERFUL WORLD OF THE MONSTER HUNTERS • If a creature’s existence is unsubstantiated or in dispute, the cryptozoologist is at hand to uncover the truth and reveal the hidden beast
CRYPTID CLASSIFICATIONS • Use this handy table to find out what your favourite elusive animals are classified as
THE INTERNATIONAL CRYPTOZOOLOGY MUSEUM • Where else could you rub shoulders with Bigfoot, Yowie and a Feejee Mermaid?
MONSTER MUSEUMS AROUND THE GLOBE • Why not try one of these monstrous museums?
BEASTS BEYOND BELIEF • Could our ancestors have really encountered the legendary creatures of mythology, or are they just fantastical fabrications?
THE HUNT FOR STRANGE BEASTS • New genetic testing techniques are disproving many claims about mythical beasts. But they are also providing some intriguing discoveries…
5 MOST WANTED CRYPTIDS
DISCOVERED! • The DNA database that helps research
UNEXPLORED REGIONS AROUND THE WORLD • Where are we most likely to make new discoveries of animals?
ARE CRYPTIDS JUST A MEME? • These strange beasts may just be ideas handed through generations
MONSTER MYTHS BUSTED • Folklore tells us that terrifying creatures such as Bigfoot and the Loch Ness Monster lurk on the outskirts of civilisation. But can science explain the harrowing historic encounters humans have had with them?
ATTACK OF THE KRAKEN
THE ILLUSIVE OGOPOGO
A WAVE FROM THE DEEP • A phenomenon called thermal stratification could be to blame
THE LOCH NESS MONSTER
NESSIE SIGHTINGS • Much of the ‘evidence’ of this aquatic monster has been debunked
WHERE WEREWOLVES CAME FROM
GOAT-SUCKER CHUPACABRA
VAMPIRIC ORIGINS
PORPHYRIA HYSTERIA • The symptoms of this disease have inspired ancient myths and pop-culture crazes
THE UNDEAD AMONG US
AUSTRALIA’S BUSH MONSTER
THE ABOMINABLE SNOWMAN
AAAHH!!! REAL MONSTERS • 5 mythical creatures proven real (more on page 30!)
HALF MAN, HALF MOTH
THE LEGEND OF BIGFOOT
NO SUCH THING AS MONSTERS? • They may have started out as cryptids, but many creatures are now acknowledged by the zoological world. Who says there’s no such thing as monsters?
THE ATTI OR THE AFRICAN UNICORN
RECENTLY DISCOVERED BEASTS
THE BEAST OF INDONESIA
THE FOX-MAN HYBRID
A HOAX CHIMERA
NGAGI, ENGE-ENA, OR THE VIRUNGA MOUNTAIN OGRE
KRAKEN
MBULU
THE MIGHTY HOGZILLA
SEA SERPENT OR DOOMSDAY FISH
THE WATER-OWL
THE MAGICAL CAT SITH
GOLDEN TURTLE GOD
THE WORLD OF HOAXES • For every convincing cryptid, there are countless convincing fakes, taking the world one mummified mermaid at a time.
THE CARDIFF GIANT • This stone giant gained infamy as ‘America’s Greatest Hoax’
THE MINNESOTA ICEMAN • The ‘missing link’ between humans and Neanderthals?
HODAG
BIGFOOT HOAXES
THETIS LAKE MONSTER • This Canadian cryptid terrified teenagers...