07-07-2006 First news from Gambian dragon hunters

FIRST NEWS FROM THE GAMBIAN DRAGON HUNTERS
Tuesday, July 5th 2006
For immediate release

The Centre for Fortean Zoology [CFZ], the world's largest mystery animal research group, based in rural North Devon announced tonight that they have received the first news bulletin from their expedition in West Africa. The J.T.Downes memorial Gambia Expedition 2006 has three main aims:

· To dig up part of a beach where an amateur naturalist claims to have buried the carcass of a mysterious fifteen foot sea creature
· To get the first filmed witness testimonies of a dragon-like creature, known to the natives as `Ninki Nanka`, which has terrorized the tiny African state for generations, and has reportedly killed people as recently as the 1990s
· To get the first photographs and film of Armitage's Skink (Chalcides armitagei) - a tiny lizard first described in 1922 and only rediscovered in 1989.

Richard Freeman, the Zoological Director of the CFZ writes:

"A little way up Bungalow Beach we came upon a market place where jewellers made silver Ninki-Nankas. Chris Moiser has known about these traditional designs for years, and knew the man who made them. One of the sellers, Baka Samba told us that his late uncle, a hunter, had seen Ninki-Nanka many years ago. He could not describe it well, as his uncle only described it as very big and terrible. It had four legs, a long tail and an awful looking head. He said it had fire in its mouth. This may actually mean that the inside of the creature's mouth was red, or that it had a red/orange forked tongue that flickered in and out like flame. He said that the creature was very dangerous, and that those who saw it usually died within four or five years of the sighting".

Another local told them of a "lake in Senegal where Ninki-Nanka was supposed to live. The lake was five kilometers long and was about 250 kilometers away. He said he had seen strange lights on the lake at night, and large disturbances in the water during the day. He drew a furrow in the earth and said he had seen drag-marks like these, but around four feet across around the lake".

The expedition will be in the Gambia for the next two weeks, and hopes to come home with conclusive evidence for the existence of these creatures, which Freeman (36) believes are a hitherto undiscovered species of extremely large Monitor Lizard.

Team members are:

· Chris Moiser: Biologist and team leader
· Dr Chris Clark: Engineer
· Lisa Dowley: First aid and security expert
· Richard Freeman: cryptozoologist
· Oll Lewis: Ecologist
· Suzi Marsh: computer expert

You can follow the progress of the expedition at:

http://2006-gambia.blogspot.com/

There will be regular updates and photographs as and when we get them.

Watch this space!

NOTES FOR EDITORS:

+ The Centre for Fortean Zoology is a non profit-making organisation, which was founded in 1992. Over the last 11 years we have mounted expeditions to Central America, Thailand, Mexico, various parts of the United States, as well as numerous investigations in the UK. Further information on the CFZ can be found on their website, www.cfz.org.uk.
+ C F Z director Jonathan Downes has written numerous books on the subject of mystery animals. The latest, entitled `Monster Hunter` is his long awaited autobiography.
+ The honorary life President of the Centre for Fortean Zoology is renowned explorer, author and soldier Colonel John Blashford-Snell OBE, best known for his pioneering Operation Drake and Operation Raleigh expeditions during the 1970s.
+ The CFZ is looking for corporate and private sponsors
+ Photographs from the expedition are available. Please contact Jonathan Downes or Mark North on +44 (0)1237 431413