Book Description
The ultimate quest for the world's most mysterious creatures The Loch Ness Monster, Bigfoot, the Abominable Snowman -- these are the names of the elusive beasts that have caught the eye and captured the imaginations of people around the world for centuries. Recently, tales of these "monsters" have been corroborated by an increase in sightings, and out of these legends a new science has been born: cryptozoology -- the study of hidden animals. Cryptozoology A to Z, the first encyclopedia of its kind, contains nearly two hundred entries, including cryptids (the name given to these unusual beasts), new animal finds, and the explorers and scientists who search for them. Loren Coleman, one of the world's leading cryptozoologists, teams up with Jerome Clark, editor and author of several encyclopedias, to provide these definitive descriptions and many never-before-published drawings and photographs from eyewitnesses' detailed accounts. Full of insights into the methods of these scientists, exciting tales of discovery, and the history and evolution of this field, Cryptozoology A to Z is the most complete reference ever of the newest zoological science.

About the Author
Loren Coleman, a forty-year veteran of cryptozoological field expeditions and research, has written several books on nature's mysterious creatures, including The Field Guide to Bigfoot, Mysterious America, and Tom Slick and the Search for the Yeti, and has served as both on- and off-camera consultant to NBC-TV's Unsolved Mysteries and A&E's Ancient Mysteries. Coleman is the mission cryptozoologist for the 1999 Nessa Project's search for the Loch Ness Monster, and a consultant to a forthcoming expedition in search of Mongolia's hairy wildmen, the Almas. He is a professor at the University of Southern Maine and lives in Portland.

FROM THE PUBLISHER