Pop Goes the Cryptid in April 2026

April has been a banner month for cryptids in the news. The Bigfoot emoji finally appeared and the Bigfoot faithful are still hopping mad over the Capturing Bigfoot documentary, which is still awaiting streaming release. A busy March exploded with even more headlines in April. It looks like 2026 will be the Year of the Cryptid. But not in the way that cryptozoologists would like. The focus has hardly been about finding a mystery animal (and no new evidence was found). The cryptid buzz is about making money and providing entertainment. This might be the breakout year of the Pop Cryptid.

More:

• Pop Goes the Cryptid Explained
• Pop Cryptid Spectator

Here are the big cryptid news stories from April.

West Virginia cryptid police badge

West Virginia remains the leading state to capitalize on their cryptid cred via the commercialization of Mothman, the Flatwoods Monster (also called Braxxie or Braxton County monster), Bigfoot, the Grafton Monster, and the Vegetable Man. Add to that the Not Deer which is a supernatural creature propelled by growing popularity of Spooky Appalachia tales.

The Granville Police Department released cryptid-inspired police patches that sold out in 24 hours. “The community response to the cryptid one has been crazy,” Granville Police Chief Craig Corkrean told 12 News. “Everyone’s kind of gone nuts over them.”

Oklahoma Dogman attack

A woman in a remote area of Oklahoma was attacked by an animal in the early morning hours of March 29. Originally thought to be a dog attack, by the time the story spread in the local news media, the dog scenario had clouded a bit and the attack was from an “unidentified animal”. The news was reported on April 3 which led to rampant speculation that the animal was not a dog but a dogman, or one of many other creative cryptid guesses. Even after the DNA revealed that it was a dog attack, some people insist that’s a dogman cover-up even though there is no remotely reasonable evidence that such a creature exists. Full story here.

Bigfoot redux in Ontario

In early April, there was a flurry of Bigfoot sightings over a few days in Chatham-Kent, Ontario. The sightings were strikingly similar to those the month before in Ohio. The Ohio flap propagated so much on social media that it made local news and then international news even though there was nothing more a sprinkling of non-credible eyewitness stories. The rumors got everyone in town arguing about whether the tales were legit.

Ohio state cryptid proposed

In a bipartisan effort, State Reps. Tristan Rader and Jean Schmidt introduced legislation in Ohio, House Bill (HB) 821, to designate the Loveland Frog as Ohio’s official state cryptid. Blowing past the Grassman and Minerva Monster, both of the Bigfoot variety, the Loveland Frogman has two town festivals, a horror film with sequel, and is a favorite for the pop cryptid crowd. Naming a state cryptid is a blatant tourism ploy, indicating that more than ever, locales will use their monster legends as a basis for family fun and visitor dollars.

Old Greeny festival, Cayuga Lake, NY

A new festival appears in Ithaca, NY. The weeklong arts explosion celebrates “Old Greeny,” a long-rumored cryptid said to lurk in Cayuga Lake. The serpent-like creature became popular in 1929 – exactly the same time as Nessie. That is, when every lake wanted their own legend to draw in more visitors.

Check out all cryptid town festivals here.

Contemporary Legend special journal issue

A special cryptid and monster themed issue of Contemporary Legend, Vol. 4 (2026): Monsters, Creatures, and Cryptids was release in April. All the entries are available for download including Pop Goes the Cryptid: The Evolution of Cryptozoology from Scientific to Social Download PDF. In the intro essay, Dr. David Puglia introduces the issue:

Legendary monsters are alive and well in the modern world. They are not relics of the ancient past, nor do they belong solely in the domain of fiction, fantasy, and entertainment. They endure through community, emerge through new media, attach to local landscapes, and adapt to contemporary anxieties, a persistence fully in keeping with folkloristics’ long emphasis on tradition as process and performance.

Additionally, you can hear me discuss cryptids and adjacent topics on the April 19, 2026 episode of the AP Strange Podcast: Considering Cryptids with Sharon Hill.

Bigfoot The Musical

New York City Center Stage presented Bigfoot the Musical in April.

https://youtu.be/ZafsCmfkO2U?si=p0xGloKgzzFEFl-f

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There have been new Bigfoot sightings, on-screen and off-Broadway : NPR

Validation of the #PopCryptid model. However, the academic quoted about Bigfoot and Trump is a few steps behind the times.

https://www.npr.org/2026/04/22/nx-s1-5785170/bigfoot-sighting

I’m happy to announce my contribution to a special cryptid and monster themed issue of Contemporary Legend, Vol. 4 (2026): Monsters, Creatures, and Cryptids. I’m so excited to get this article out into the public sphere:

Pop Goes the Cryptid: The Evolution of Cryptozoology from Scientific to Social Download PDF.

All the other wonderful inclusions are also available for download at the main journal site.

Additionally, you can hear me discuss cryptids and adjacent topics on the April 19, 2026 episode of the AP Strange Podcast: Considering Cryptids with Sharon Hill.

2026 is proving to be a giant year for cryptids!

There is NO DOUBT that cryptids are mainstream. They are equated with mystery, monsters, places, and fun. They are utilized for tourism and commerce as related merchandising has exploded. Thanks to sympathetic and empathetic views of “the other” (who does not conform to natural or social norms), we have created a new social space for cryptids to flourish. With cosplay options, you can even BECOME the cryptid.

This week I found a few items of note in the Pop Goes the Cryptid model. It’s a continuation of the Pop Cryptid Spectator series that I did last year.

The Cryptid Cup

Two NHL teams vie for the unofficial “Cryptid Cup” each time they play. The New Jersey Devils and the Seattle Kraken are both named after popular cryptids. Inside the Rink called the December 2024 matchup between the NJ Devils and Seattle Kraken the first edition “Cryptid Cup”. But that was wrong, it existed at least in 2023 when the fictional cup was devised by the teams’ social media promoters. Since then, the cup has been passed between the teams depending on who wins. Each year, when the teams face each other (twice a year), the “Cryptid Cup” comes up. This framing tends to enhance the legends attached to the names of each team, as if they need that.

Many sports teams are names after cryptid legends. The NJ Devils are one of the oldest to have adopted their local cryptid.

I have a hang up with the Kraken, though. First, the lore does not easily condense into the idea of a giant cephalopod. It’s much more complex than that. It’s unfortunate that the legend has been oversimplified to the point of losing most of its charm, but that’s typical with commodification and marketing. Second, they have a crappy logo. They could do so much better! Then again, neither team has capitalized on the ability to create an awesome logo. And their poor mascots! The promotional departments for these teams need to earn their pay and churn out some better monster merch.

What happens when some other NHL team nabs a cryptid name? We almost had the Utah Yeti! It’s just a matter of time.

The Abominable Ball

Beginning with town festivals, cryptids are used as themes for many town events now. Now, here is a copyable concept – the cryptid ball. Dress up like your favorite cryptid and dance ’til you’re dead. The Abominable Ball Cryptid Dance is coming up in Harrisonburg, Virginia.

The event features East Coast synth musicians and some themed drinks, Yeti or Not and a Mothman Mocktail. One of the organizers said, “I love the idea of yetis, abominable snowmen. I think cryptids were a fun one, especially being here in the Appalachian Mountains.” And he noted he was going to dress up in a home-made Wendigo costume.

Yikes, that’s a bit too much egregious cultural appropriation. It’s not cool to pretend to be a cannibalistic supernatural monster that represents starvation and death in another culture that you are totally unfamiliar with. That’s always a problem with creatures from native lore that have been commodified. Also, the idea that cryptids are special to Appalachia is also messed up. Birthed from the manufactured “Spooky Appalachia” modern creepypasta trend (the promoted concept that the forests of the mountainous eastern US are enchanted, haunted, and dangerous), it’s unfortunate that the new lore is weak and contrived. Oh well, that is also part of the Pop Cryptid model – when things get popular, they just aren’t the same quality as the original; they are designed to be marketable and consumable.

The bottom line is that cryptids as a concept is untethered from the mid 20th century idea of cryptids as a zoological phenomenon. They are 100% cultural – like all monsters.

Cavetown Cryptid

Here is a new video by the band Cavetown embracing cryptid queerness – a very modern take on cryptids.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZW-99zcGMu8

Send Pop Cryptid tips via emails to popcryptid(at)proton(dot)me.

The crazy mixed-up meaning of Mothman

From its origins in 1966, Mothman has been viewed as a cryptid, an alien, a spirit, an angel, a demon and more. Originally thought of as a single entity, sightings basically ceased a year later, after the Silver Bridge collapse. The subsequent book by John Keel in 1975 boosted Mothman’s popularity again and expanded the tale in wild new directions. Since then, the Mothman legend continued to evolve in popular culture and lore.

I came across this video – a comedy sketch featuring Mothman as “the most confusing cryptid”. Why is Mothman confusing? Because it’s a mishmash of decades of stories that blended larger narratives about monsters, aliens and general paranormality. What began as a scary encounter with what was initially described as a really large bird, it lives on 60 years later as one of the most iconic Pop Cryptids.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UqBMrvZ0-o0

In the video, “Daniel” transports Mothman in through his phone line and asks him, “What’s your deal?” because it’s all very confusing to him. Mothman lore portrays the creature as a mysterious red-eyed winged humanoid that chases people and eats dogs, a spooky man-moth that appears from another dimension as an omen of disaster. In modern popular culture, Mothman is also depicted more like a fantasy character, or a dark and menacing figure, or a sexy mystery guy. It’s no wonder we can’t decide if it’s threatening or not. Mothman is many things to many people.

I’ve been interested in the various faces and roles of Mothman for a while. This video showed that other people are noticing the same thing – how very confusing and flexible the concept of Mothman is.

What is a mothman?

Mothman has been depicted across its history in several distinctive ways. As noted, witnesses initially reported a frightening hybrid entity with birdlike features, possibly a mutant associated with pollution from an ammunitions dump. The inappropriate comic book name given by a journalist early on nudged and shaped its popular and media images over the next six decades. The two people who originally formed Mothman into the iconic figure it is today were Fortean writers Gray Barker, and John Keel. The latter wrote The Mothman Prophecies that was turned into a movie 27 years later. The high quality movie not only added to the lore but charged up the legend for another go-round, even bigger than before. Both authors’ writings built up the key articles of strangeness surrounding the legend that remain today, including UFOs, Indrid Cold, the connection to bridges, and foreshadowing of events. By the late 1970s, Mothman was a representation of “high strangeness” – a series of seemingly related, inexplicable happenings. The malleable entity, or ambiguous cryptid, featured in subsequent paranormal-themed media, video games, internet legends, and, importantly, a town festival. All of these added more twists to the Mothman biography.

Much of the lore mentioned in the video coalesced later and built up slowly. For example, the locals did not associate the creature with the Silver Bridge tragedy at first. They were also experiencing a UFO flap at that time. Keel was instrumental in eventually linking up all the points into that weird narrative when the sum became greater than the parts. People remembered seeing the Mothman near the bridge the night of the disaster, and the Mothman became inextricably attached to that tragic narrative. Later, Mothman was loosely connected to other tragedies, but the evidence for Mothman appearances in Chicago/Lake Michigan, Russia and other places associated with catastrophes is very poor and is likely entirely imagined, based on its modern reputation as a harbinger of doom.

Is Mothman a cryptid?

Whether Mothman qualifies as a cryptid or not is an evergreen argument on cryptid forums. The debate is never resolved. Many followers of old school cryptozoology reject Mothman as a cryptid because the entity is tightly tied to the paranormal and high strangeness aspects of its history, which disqualifies it from serious discussion as a possible undiscovered animal that can be scientifically classified. Yet, modern cryptid fans love Mothman, even to the point of fetishizing him/her/them/it. (I am completely bamboozled in using a pronoun here.)

The current fandom considers “cryptids” to be “any creature that some claim is real but has no supporting scientific evidence of existence.” In that aspect, Mothman clearly is a cryptid. I could argue that the original sighting of the creature in November 1966 in Point Pleasant, West Virginia (next year is its 60th anniversary) could have been considered an unknown animal – a very large and unusual bird. In fact, it was originally described as “The Bird”, a “bird-like” creature, or a “man-sized bird” in the original eyewitness accounts. It was also said to be light colored (flesh or gray), not black, which is a modern standard. However, musings on its origin very quickly got wrapped into UFO discussions and various other anomalous and esoteric concepts that Keel promoted.

Like it or not, Mothman is a cryptid because word definitions and culture changes to fit our needs. Unlike the dispute about Pluto being a planet, there is no official council that has the authority to rule on cryptid matters. The popular majority rules. Apparently, the world needed a spooky flying humanoid legend with a distinctive name.

Part of the study of mysterious creatures must include consideration of the social aspects, the folklore, the spread of sightings, and the evolution of the stories. Cryptozoology is based on stories about the unknown, which makes it inevitably prone to inclusion of strangeness. This brings me to Mothman’s place as a Pop Cryptid.

Mothman as Pop Cryptid

No one now cares if Mothman was initially a weird or out-of-place bird encounter. I have not seen any modern researchers pursuing the idea of catching or confirming an animal that would fit that description. Its origin as a bird-man-hybrid is almost entirely lost. (Instead, it’s firmly linked to moths, which were in no way part of its origin story.)

Mothman’s cultural cachet is its different meanings embraced by a diverse fandom of multiple ages and interests. Mothman is depicted as scary, sinister, sexy, secretive, supernatural, cute, cuddly, and queer. Its ambiguity allows communities to embrace the monster for their own needs.

It’s become one of the world’s most notable cryptids due, in no small part, to the fact that it was promoted as the spirit of Point Pleasant. The descendants of those who lived through the first flap and the tragedy of the bridge collapse, decided to honor the monstrous symbol by making it the town mascot. Shockingly, this paid off in spades, bringing visitors to the town from all over the world. More come each year, and it shows no signs of slowing.

Mothman is mainstream. Mothman themed merch is ubiquitous. Point Pleasant’s museum and festival was the template for other towns to adopt their own local cryptid, no matter how flimsy and fantastical its origin story was. The answer to what Mothman represented in 1966 hardly matters at all in comparison to what people use it to represent 2025.

Unifying?

Is Mothman a unifying cryptid (as concluded in the video)? Yes and no. As a cryptid, it remains divisive because of its esoteric connections and roles as a harbinger of doom, a magical entity, and an ultraterrestrial. You will still find those who reject it as worthy of any study because it’s just so outrageous. It is now viewed way more as a globe-hopping bad omen and fantasy creature than as a zoological organism. But it’s too popular to ignore. It has brought together a new younger audience who see it as fun and socially useful. That’s culturally important. That the Mothman has been able to pull so many wide-ranging audiences together under one large wingspan is remarkable. Many fans are clearly able to hold the complex lore in their head (or pick the version they like best) and even evolve new aspects all the time. That’s how story telling works.

My biggest disappointment related to Mothman is that there is no historical biography written about it. I desperately want a qualified history writer to pull all these crazy pieces together so we can see and experience the Mothman phenomenon in a thoughtful way. Yet no one has done this. It would be quite a daunting task to accomplish, collecting everything to be considered about the man, the moth, the legend.

I suspect that the Mothman fan club would have less interest than I do in having the complex threads untangled and in the open for inspection. They seem to appreciate the mysterious, ambiguous, playful, menacing, multifaceted Mothman in all his messiness.

#cryptid #cryptids #Cryptozoology #highStrangeness #IsMothmanACryptid #legend #Mothman #popCryptid

https://sharonahill.com/?p=10475

Mothman Festival organizers say it was the biggest crowd yet

Organizers of the Mothman Festival in Point Pleasant, West Virginia stated that thanks to a combination of nice weather and cryptid popularity, the 2025 event this past weekend drew the biggest crowd ever. One news site reported that the average attendance is 10-15 thousand people. If this was the biggest crowd (for the entire weekend), then that must be over 15K. Just note that there are no tickets sold, so the crowd is estimated. And, event organizers have a habit of exaggerating their counts for publicity. But there is no doubt that the Mothman Festival is the top cryptid town festival that served as the model for a dozen others. Expanding to a long weekend, the event is known worldwide and draws people from international destinations to hit West Virginia just to be at the Festival.

When it began back in 2002, the Mothman Festival was only one of a few town festivals that existed to celebrate a local monster. Other longer-running festivals include Bigfoot Daze in Willow Creek, California which is decades old (since the 1960s!!!), but I’m not sure if it was continuous. The success of the Mothman Festival, which draws a plethora of paying customers to a small town with few other means to attract dollars, has acted as a template for other small town festivals such as Albatwitch Day and Squonkapalooza in Pennsylvania, the Van Meter Visitor Festival in Iowa, and the Ol’ Green Eyes Festival in Georgia. Popular cryptids promoted as the mascot of a small town is a winning formula.

Why are cryptid festivals drawing big crowd?

Many factors come together to explain the growing popularity of these cryptid festivals. Here are the big ones:

• The internet has made cryptids incredibly popular. It’s a unique draw for all ages and genders.
• People crave a sense of enchantment or mystery in the world, or they enjoy the paranormal themes and spooky tones of these events.
• Free family events are desirable – people want to get out and have some weekend fun.
• Small-town sentiment is high because it feels anti-corporate, home-grown, and wholesome. Customers like spending money to support local businesses. They want small towns to thrive.

I expect these festivals will continue to expand to other towns and grow in attraction for a few more years. Paranormal topics consistently wax and wane in interest over decades. Right now, cryptids are money-makers. As the population (that is paying attention right now) ages out, the festivals may diminish. The saving grace for these particular events, however, is that they provide the town with long-term value. There will always be those interested in visiting places with an enduring legend – if that legend is skillfully marketed.

#CryptidTownFestivals #Mothman #MothmanFestival #popCryptid #popCulture #smallTownMonsters #WestVirginia

https://sharonahill.com/?p=10381

Pop Cryptid Spectator 20

Hi and welcome to the 20th, and last, edition of PCS. In nine months, this idea has run its course because, frankly, I can’t keep up. Everything is Pop Cryptid. I’ve certainly proven my point – the term “cryptid” now means “any weird and hidden creature”. In popular culture, it is rarely referred to in the context of a scientific effort to discover new species. I mean, when the President is referred to in this context, it’s game over.

That’s not to say that I won’t be writing about such topics in the future. I’ll certainly post more and on Modern Cryptozoology. But this PCS project is tapped; I’m moving on. Before I do, there are a few more things to $ay. So here goes.

In this final edition:

• Nessie, Jr. Another cute cryptid movie
• Faking Bigfoot
• Champ at the Museum
• Mothman says, “You Matter”
• Cryptids overexposed

Nessie, Jr – Another cute cryptid movie

There’s a new movie on the way that will influence how small children think about lakes and the Loch Ness Monster. It’s called Nessie, Jr. and it appears to be another cutified cryptid depiction in the same family-friendly vein as several other past movies – Harry and the Hendersons, Smallfoot, Abominable, Pete’s Dragon, The Water Horse, Baby: Secret of a Lost Legend, etc. It’s fine. I don’t have a problem with it. It’s just so… meh.

But speaking of fiction…

Faking Bigfoot

I wrote a piece on the performance art dude who displayed a fake Bigfoot at the NY state fair as real. It really didn’t go over well with serious Bigfooters, who said this guy was “ruining” Bigfoot research. Nah, the ‘footers do that part on their own – with their awful TV shows, in-fighting, and efforts to gain attention for terrible evidence. Bigfoot hoaxes have been around since the very beginning. In fact, cryptid tales are chock-full of hoaxes to the point where you are hard-pressed to sift through the chaff to find any wheat. Yet, the hoaxes themselves are quite interesting and very much a pop cryptid phenomenon. It’s not about finding the creature, it’s mostly about hope of finding it in what we like to imagine is a world that still holds mystery. And, unfortunately, it is an awful lot about people thinking you found it and usually making bank from that. Check out this short review of a book on how the media created Nessie. By the way, I don’t know how much money this Bigfoot Remains joker pocketed from the gaff, but the gimmick has already been mostly forgotten. We’re so used to such hoaxers.

Champ at the Museum

The monster of Lake Champlain now has its own exhibit. Both Port Henry, NY and Burlington, VT have tributes to Champ as they vie for the official place of the creature. Now Burlington has another attraction besides the Champ memorial and the Lake Monsters team mascot. They have a dedicated spot in the museum. The shore-side Echo Leahy Center at Lake Champlain is perfectly situated to promote the beast. The kiddie-themed gift shop was already full of toys depicting Champ as a cute cryptid. It’s logical they would capitalize even more as well as offering an opportunity to draw kids into learning about the lake’s natural history. I haven’t seen the exhibit because it just opened, and I was there last year. But the museum follows the template of Loch Ness, and other cryptid-themed real and pop-up “museums” that draw in those interested in the topic. And they sell merch.

Do you sense a theme? I’m afraid that I’m pretty jaded on the pop cryptid theme as it relates to cashing in. But that’s the American way these days. Gosh, it’s all so predictable and boring…

Mothman says, “You Matter”

In more rather misappropriate uses of pop cryptids, Mothman is pictured on informational material regarding mental health distributed by a West Virginia police department. This seems cool but using an imaginary creature that was also known as an omen of doom seems slightly clueless. While the project director says that distributing the material at the WV State Fair has let them connect to average people, the “friendly cryptids letting them connect with kids and create conversations”. Ok, sure. But, if people know the story about how Mothman was related to one of the most tragic events in WV history, the collapse of the Silver Bridge, they might struggle with the message “You matter”. Maybe I’m overthinking it…

West Virginia leads all states in the in commodification of their town mascots, like Mothman, Sheepsquatch, Veggie Man, and the Flatwoods Monster.

Cryptids overexposed

I don’t know… it seems to me the mystery is all gone. Cryptids are everywhere. They aren’t hidden anymore. They are losing their mystique. As I’ve noted in other places, cryptids, being copyright-free, are easily adapted for use in consumer products and logos. As the pop cryptid model spreads, where cryptids are seen as fun emblems or symbols, you can bet you’ll see their use increasing.

New Mexico indoor football team reveals new name: New Mexico Chupacabras

For more on the crossover between cryptids and sports teams, see here.

Here are more cryptid related stories from the past month from my main blog:

• If I don’t believe in cryptids, why am I here? – I answer why “skeptics” (those who question claims of cryptids), are bothering with participating if they don’t think there is any truth to the claims.
• Not a mystery beast, just a dog – Two photos on social media reveal that people can’t call a dog “a dog”.
• Pop cryptid in the News: Jackalope – I updated a section from a past Pop Cryptid Spectator to address the recent news of Frankenbunnies.
• Spooky seismic lakes – Loch Ness and its monster – In a crossover of spooky geology and cryptids, I dive into the idea that some people love: that Nessie is related to seismic activity.

The pop cryptid trend would not be icky if it wasn’t for the blatant overexposure and twisting of the concepts so that the original ideas behind them are now totally lost. In a way, this is what the Bigfooters hated about the NY State fake Bigfoot. It was disconnected from their vision and version of what a cryptid is. It mocked their view. Such things disregard the impact of the rich folklore and history by appealing to the casual fan and consumer who just know the stories from comics, games, mass distribution movies and Reddit groups. I can’t help but feel these depictions for the mass market are shallow and pathetic. Many people agree. I’m not sure it’s all that different from depicting other animals in anthropomorphic, cute, or exaggerated ways. This has also always been the way of things. It just took a longer time for beloved cryptids to become familiar enough to use in this way.

I’ve learned a lot in the few years that I’ve been examining cryptids in this new frame. I think it’s been highly useful, even if many cryptozoology-minded viewers thought it was dumb or reacted indignantly to what seemed like a cheapening of their belief system. I apologize if you felt aggrieved but, let’s face it, it’s NOT reasonable to view traditional cryptozoology as a useful field of study. You are not going to have success finding new species that correspond to Bigfoot, Nessie, Yeti, etc. However, you have a good chance of success in marketing these creatures’ images and talking about them in cultural terms.

A current wrap-up of trends

Some of the other trends I’ve seen lately:

• The #CryptidTok trend is far quieter than it was 2 years ago. It’s still a lot of AI and people performing knowledge (which isn’t knowledge, but stuff they got from other bad videos). I’m not sure how influential this is except for low-value content creators. Maybe people are tired of hearing the same wikipedia-derived info over and over again.
• Weird Appalachia – This genre continues to grow as we see with the prevalence of West Virginia/Pennsylvania/Ohio/Kentucky cryptid content and the marketing of their location-specific monsters. The popular idea now is that the land is haunted and the eldritch creatures or spirits take the form of not-deer, dogmen, shapeshifters and such that are called “cryptids”. It’s a fun and useful idea.
• Town festivals feature speakers who spread new stories as “lore” making it sound more credible than it is. But they aren’t asking any actual folklore or cultural experts, just popular content creators, personalities or artists. This is disappointing and a missed opportunity – I hope it changes.
• The continued gap between original cryptozoology concepts and the current state of things. There is very little solid work being done that produces credible knowledge worthy to be published. Instead, self-styled cryptozoology is still self-published books, YouTube, websites, and facebook posts. This is low value stuff that gets a short bump in interest but does not last.
• Increased use in all forms of merchandising and commercial representation. This means more fiction, movies, promotion, branding, etc. using cryptids.
• Growing popularity of “fearsome creatures” (fictional beings made up as old lumberjack tales such as the squonk, slide-rock bolter, hodag, snallygaster, etc. or indigenous/native stories such as the wendigo, skinwalker, La Llorona, etc.), “creepypasta” creatures (invented monsters from digital storytelling such as Slenderman and the rake), and AI generated monsters. These manufactured beings have nothing in common with traditional cryptozoology but are becoming the best known “cryptids”.
• Overhyping of bad evidence. The “sightings” are just as bad as ever. They are either nothing, obvious hoaxes, or AI generated. There is nothing worth paying attention to here. Yet, people click because it’s fun and they really want to believe.

All those trends say something important about cryptids. I’ve gotten the message – fun cryptid are great but serious interest in the complex folklore, the socio-economic and cultural effects, and the overall phenomena of cryptid encounters is unimportant to the masses. They want the scary, cute, funny, neatly packaged and easily digested popular fluff. But there are still several followers of “scientific” cryptozoology that only want a serious zoological (or supernatural) take on this subject and get angry with a lesser, “fluffier” treatment.

My view is the same as before – there is no value in an effort to search for mystery creatures as new species. It has not been successful and it CAN’T be, considering the modern times in which we exist. New species discovered by zoologists aren’t cryptids, even if they have the occasional help of citizen scientists. The contrived methodology of Heuvelman’s cryptozoology isn’t relevant. However, I’m all for expanding the field into relevant areas of anthropology, cultural studies – folklore, art, media, socio-economic, etc., psychology, wildlife biology, data science, etc. that will provide endless opportunities to research and analyze interest in cryptids. This was my position when I first envisioned the pop cryptid model and it applies just as much as ever. It’s likely to happen on its own.

For more, content and a fuller explanation of Pop goes the Cryptid, visit the subpage.

This has been the Pop Cryptid Spectator. My work here is done. Thanks for indulging me. Keep sending links and messages.

Now back to my regular blog.

#Bigfoot #cryptids #cryptidtok #Cryptozoology #Mothman #Nessie #popCryptid #PopCryptidSpectator #popCryptids #popCulture #WeirdAppalachia

https://sharonahill.com/?p=10328