Changes

An article on an active cryptozoology website acknowledges that "By definition, cryptozoology is the study of hidden or unknown animals. Something that should also be noted is the fact that it is not recognized by the scientific community as a science. There are no degrees in it, and therefore, there is no such thing as a cryptozoologist." He defends it as "the search for truth," but laments the amateurishness and arrogance that, he feels, make cryptozoology "more of a hobby than it will ever be a science."<ref>Bates, J. P. [http://www.cryptozoology.com/articles/wic.php What is Cryptozoology?]</ref>

An article on an active cryptozoology website acknowledges that "By definition, cryptozoology is the study of hidden or unknown animals. Something that should also be noted is the fact that it is not recognized by the scientific community as a science. There are no degrees in it, and therefore, there is no such thing as a cryptozoologist." He defends it as "the search for truth," but laments the amateurishness and arrogance that, he feels, make cryptozoology "more of a hobby than it will ever be a science."<ref>Bates, J. P. [http://www.cryptozoology.com/articles/wic.php What is Cryptozoology?]</ref>

That there are many real animals unknown to science is hardly disputed. Those studying global biodiversity estimate, based on rates of new species discovery, that there are about 10 to 30 million living species (animals and plants), of which about 1.4 million have been described in the scientific literature. Furthermore, as ISC secretary J. Richard Greenwell observed, "Zoology was once essentially cryptozoology." He characterized the difference between traditional zoological practice and cryptozoology by saying that cryptozoologists target a specific animal, while zoologists tend to inventory a geographical area and catalog a new animal if it turns up: "Zoology throws a net," says Greenwell, "while cryptozoology throws a spear."<ref name=mccarthy/>

That there are many real animals unknown to science is hardly disputed. Those studying global biodiversity estimate, based on rates of new species discovery, that there are about 10 to 30 million living species (animals and plants), of which about 1.4 million have been described in the scientific literature. Furthermore, as ISC secretary J. Richard Greenwell observed, "Zoology was once essentially cryptozoology." He characterized the difference between traditional zoological practice and cryptozoology by saying that cryptozoologists target a specific animal, while zoologists tend to inventory a geographical area and catalog a new animal if it turns up: "Zoology throws a net," says Greenwell, "while cryptozoology throws a spear."<ref name=mccarthy/> Cryptozoologists largely focus their efforts on relatively large animals, while the vast majority of undiscovered or uncataloged species are very small.

To mainstream scientists, cryptozoology occupies a spot somewhere near the fringe of science; it is often classed as a protoscience or pseudoscience, bracketed with ufology and parapsychology. One writer comments: "This is a field that has carved a strange path between relative respectability and derision in the last century.... Quasi-academic articles often try to claim for the field a level of scientific rigour that denies the clear links between certain writers in the area and 'fringe' paranormal beliefs."<ref>Day, Peter (2006), ''Vampires: Myths and Metaphors of Enduring Evil'', [http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN9042016698&id=vAMRyvJR5bkC&pg=PA99&lpg=PA99&ots=nF9bU3K2a3&dq=cryptozoology+paranormal&sig=HvyoxVGvVosUIG8KR29F0dD4z94 p. 99]</ref>

To mainstream scientists, cryptozoology occupies a spot somewhere near the fringe of science; it is often classed as a protoscience or pseudoscience, bracketed with ufology and parapsychology. One writer comments: "This is a field that has carved a strange path between relative respectability and derision in the last century.... Quasi-academic articles often try to claim for the field a level of scientific rigour that denies the clear links between certain writers in the area and 'fringe' paranormal beliefs."<ref>Day, Peter (2006), ''Vampires: Myths and Metaphors of Enduring Evil'', [http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN9042016698&id=vAMRyvJR5bkC&pg=PA99&lpg=PA99&ots=nF9bU3K2a3&dq=cryptozoology+paranormal&sig=HvyoxVGvVosUIG8KR29F0dD4z94 p. 99]</ref>