Monday 29 October 2007

PUTTING THE RECORD STRAIGHT

It has come to our attention that there is some confusion about one of the creatures with which the 2007 CFZ Guyana Expedition is concerned. One of the basic tenets of cryptozoology is that the testimony of eyewitnesses and natives of areas where cryptids have been reported is at least as important as the theories of theoretical zoologists from more developed countries.

We are perfectly aware that current cryptozoological thought has the didi and the mapinguary as two different creatures. As Loren Coleman posted on his blog today (29th October):

"….the Didi of Guyana is described (pp. 72-73) in more conventional terms, as a five feet tall bipedal proto-pygmy of the rainforests, covered in short black hair that makes “hooing” sounds. Meanwhile, the more massive, taller Mapinguary of Brazil’s Amazon jungles is said to be a red-haired, sloping, bipedal, smelly, long-armed, apelike creature that vocalizes in roars and booms (pp. 74-75).

The Mapinguary has generally been associated with the reports of pulling tongues from cattle in Brazil, not Guyana. It is the Mapinguary of Brazil, not the Didi of Guyana, that Dr. David Oren theorizes is a medium-sized extinct giant ground sloth, although most cryptozoologists still consider the majority of Mapinguary sightings are of an unknown primate. There is hope that before the local people are interviewed, the CFZ sorts out the confusion between these cryptid hominoids in their own mind. I would also be interested in learning the source of their description of “scythe-like claws” for the Didi or the Mapinguary."

We do not rush into our expeditions `blind`. This expedition has been in the planning stages for nearly eighteen months and we have been in contact with a number of people in Guyana.

Our native guide originally mentioned the didi or dia-dai as he spelt it, over a year ago. Originally the expedition was just going to focus on the giant anaconda but we thought that we might as well try to gather as much information on as many cryptids as we could. Our guide described the didi as ‘bigfoot-like’ but also mentioned that it had huge claws.

Apes do not have claws.

As we said in the press release this creature is nebulous; some reports suggesting a primate others some kind of clawed animal. He also said it was supposed to kidnap children. This sounds folkloric to me. The didi might be a ground sloth, an upright walking ape, a spectacled bear, or just a bogyman, that’s what we want to find out.

We are taking reconstructions of both ground sloths and hominids to show any witnesses as well as photos of the spectacled bear.

In the past, something we have come across is that localized names for creatures can encompass several different animals. `Didi` might be as loose a term as `bunyip`. Hopefully this expedition will help to cast some light on this but we need to listen to what local people are saying rather than just hypothesizing from a distance, and the native people in Guyana are saying that the didi has claws.

We have also been told of the `tongue-ripping` folklore. Whether this is a case of someone having heard of the events further south on the continent and transposing them to Guyana, or whether this is something which has actually happened in the `target area` of our expedition remains to be seen.

This is a major expedition, and we hope that when we return we will have ground- breaking new evidence to present.

2 comments:

Loren Coleman said...

Needless to say, exchange of information and ideas is always a good idea, and it should be noted I fully support the goals and objectives of the CFZ.

Theories are one thing, but straightforward recordign and reading of the data based upon decades of interviewing eyewitnesses and locals is another thing. I was merely attempting to point out 100 years of discussions on the differences between Didi and Mapinguary reports, as evidenced in the literature, old chaps.

Suggestion said...

To the expedition members:

I'm sure you are all aware of the prevalence of Malaria in the interior of Guyana.

There is a sure cure that has been used successfuly precisely in Guyana, and also on many thousands of people in several countries of Africa, that totally eliminates the parasite from the body in a very few hours, and is exceedingly inexpensive.

When used properly, it has 100% effectivity with no side effects. It does not simply control the parasite, it kills it. (Along with other pathogens).

The mineral is sodium chlorite (with a "t", as in NaClO2), combined with Citric Acid, and all is explained here.

www.miraclemineral.org

This easily portable mineral cure could possibly make the difference between success and a foreshortened expedition should any of you fall sick with Malaria or some other pathogen.

I hope this suggestion is useful to you, and I wish you the best of luck with your goals.