The Cryptonaturalist

"Crypto" is a slippery prefix, and it's best to be careful with it. 

Thanks to Evan Dicken for writing the bulk of today’s episode. By day, Evan Dicken studies old Japanese Maps and crunches data for medical research at Ohio State University. By night, he does neither of these things. His audio fiction can be heard performed on: The NoSleep Podcast, Pseudopod, Beneath Ceaseless Skies, and Podcastle. He also writes media tie-in fiction for Legend of the Five Rings and Warhammer: Age of Sigmar. If you've got nothing better to do, feel free to visit him at www.evandicken.com.

Thanks to Matthew Zahnzinger for voicing our CryptoNumismatist. Matthew is an amateur chef, a would-be world traveler, and still very much a stage actor in the Greater Boston area. If you're also in the area, check out TheatreUnCorked.com for info on his next performance in "The Lion in Winter" this December. He has been a regular cast member on The Penumbra Podcast, and a featured guest on Second Star to the Left. Reach out to him for voice acting inquiries at [email protected].

The theme for the CryptoNumismatist is the Song “Homeward,” by Scott Buckley. CC licensed: https://www.scottbuckley.com.au/

To find bonus content and a variety of strange rewards, support our show by visiting Patreon.com/CryptoNaturalist. You can also help by rating, reviewing, and telling a friend.  

For books and poetry collections by Jarod K. Anderson and Leslie J. Anderson, visit CryptoNaturalist.com/books. 

You’ll find information about submitting your poetry or prose for our hidden lore segments in the about section of our website at CryptoNaturalist.com. 

This show is produced and edited by Tracy Barnett. You can find them online, anywhere at TheOtherTracy or TheOtherTracy.com. 

Thanks to Adam Hurt for the use of his song Garfield’s Blackberry Blossom from his album Insight. For more information on Adam’s music, performances, and teaching, visit adamhurt.com. 

Reminder: Transcripts of this and every episode are available at cryptonaturalist.com.

Autumn is full of fun, cozy traditions, like keeping watch on the knothole man so he doesn’t reach too far into our world.

Thanks to Harrison Hamm for this episode’s hidden lore segment. 

Harrison Hamm is an LA-based poet, screenwriter, and essayist originally from rural Tennessee. Selected for fellowships with New York Stage & Film Filmmakers Workshop, Diverso's The Minority Report, and Roadmap Writers, he has also received research grants for interdisciplinary academic, creative, and pedagogic pursuits at his alma mater Loyola Marymount University. Writing can be found published/forthcoming in The Missouri Review's "Poem of the Week," West Trade Review's "Ecobloomspaces" anthology, Pacific Coast Poetry's "Poetry Goes to the Movies" anthology, Fatal Flaw Literary, Broken Antler, Hominum Journal, Susurrus & more at harrisonhamm.com.

Thanks to Rhys Lawton for voicing this episode’s hidden lore. 

Rhys Lawton is an award winning performer, writer and director based in London. With over a decade of performance experience, and skills that include puppeteering, improvisational role play, interactive performance, and voice acting, Rhys can bring any character to life. Most recently he has been heard as Press Secretary Carson in the Silt Verses and Gryffudd in The Amelia Project. He has one cat at present.

The CryptoNaturalist is written and read by Jarod K. Anderson. 

To find bonus content and a variety of strange rewards, support our show by visiting Patreon.com/CryptoNaturalist. You can also help by rating, reviewing, and telling a friend.  

For books and poetry collections by Jarod K. Anderson and Leslie J. Anderson, visit CryptoNaturalist.com/books. 

You’ll find information about submitting your poetry or prose for our hidden lore segments in the about section of our website at CryptoNaturalist.com. 

This show is produced and edited by Tracy Barnett. You can find them online, anywhere at TheOtherTracy or TheOtherTracy.com. 

Thanks to Adam Hurt for the use of his song Garfield’s Blackberry Blossom from his album Insight. For more information on Adam’s music, performances, and teaching, visit adamhurt.com. 

Reminder: Transcripts of this and every episode are available at cryptonaturalist.com. 

Stay Curious. Stay Wild. Stay Weird. 

Best to have a telepathic microphone when searching for cryptid dragonflies. Sometimes the simple, straightforward solutions are the best option.

Thanks to Luísa Black Ellis for this week’s hidden lore poetry. Luísa is a Brazilian-American poet and self-taught ecologist methodically inspecting mosses in traditional Nansemond and Chesepian territory. She lives a quiet and devotional life in a monastery with her husband, renowned interdisciplinary artist JJJJJerome Ellis. Her loyalties lie with the lichens. Consider supporting her work with the Tidewater Solidarity Bail Fund by visiting 757bailfund.com. 

The CryptoNaturalist is written and read by Jarod K. Anderson. 

Preorders for Jarod K. Anderson’s new memoir about loving nature and struggling with depression are now open. Visit JarodKAnderson.com for more information. 

To find bonus content and a variety of strange rewards, support our show by visiting Patreon.com/CryptoNaturalist. You can also help by rating, reviewing, and telling a friend.  

For books and poetry collections by Jarod K. Anderson and Leslie J. Anderson, visit CryptoNaturalist.com/books. 

You’ll find information about submitting your poetry or prose for our hidden lore segments in the about section of our website at CryptoNaturalist.com. 

This show is produced and edited by Tracy Barnett. You can find them online, anywhere at TheOtherTracy or TheOtherTracy.com. 

Thanks to Adam Hurt for the use of his song Garfield’s Blackberry Blossom from his album Insight. For more information on Adam’s music, performances, and teaching, visit adamhurt.com. 

This episode is an audiobook preview for Something in the Woods Loves You, Jarod K. Anderson's new memoir coming this September from Timber Press and Hachette Books. For more information, visit JarodKAnderson.com.

Many seemingly common corvids are cryptids. There’s a world of difference between perceiving a thing and knowing the full story.

Thanks to Jamie Lackey for today’s hidden lore. Jamie Lackey lives in Pittsburgh with her husband and their cats. She has had over 200 short stories published in places like Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Apex Magazine, and Escape Pod. In addition to writing, she spends her time reading, playing tabletop RPGs, and hiking.

Check out Jamie’s new short story collection Shadows on Glass and Other Stories - "From sentient stuffed animals to haunted terpsitones to friendly toasts, this whimsical and unsettling collection of weird little stories contains something for everyone." 

And check out her new novel!  Toil and Trouble: A Pride and Prejudice Retelling, which is a Pride and Prejudice retelling with witches.

Find out more at www.jamielackey.com.

Thanks to Richard Parrington for voicing today’s field report. Richard is an amateur British voice actor who fled the U.K for Ohio after it was exposed that he doesn’t like tea.

The CryptoNaturalist is written and read by Jarod K. Anderson. 

Preorders for Jarod K. Anderson’s new memoir about loving nature and struggling with depression are now open. Visit JarodKAnderson.com for more information.

To find bonus content and a variety of strange rewards, support our show by visiting Patreon.com/CryptoNaturalist. You can also help by rating, reviewing, and telling a friend.  

For books and poetry collections by Jarod K. Anderson and Leslie J. Anderson, visit CryptoNaturalist.com/books. 

You’ll find information about submitting your poetry or prose for our hidden lore segments in the about section of our website at CryptoNaturalist.com. 

This show is produced and edited by Tracy Barnett. You can find them online, anywhere at TheOtherTracy or TheOtherTracy.com. 

Thanks to Adam Hurt for the use of his song Garfield’s Blackberry Blossom from his album Insight. For more information on Adam’s music, performances, and teaching, visit adamhurt.com. 

Reminder: Transcripts of this and every episode are available at cryptonaturalist.com. 

Stay Curious. Stay Wild. Stay Weird. 

Volunteering is a great reminder that many of the most important things in life don’t involve money changing hands.

Thanks to Bennett Berardi for this week’s hidden lore poem. Bennett is an arborist and honorary goblin moonlighting as a gardener-poet in Nevada County, California. He draws inspiration from forests, fields, and fairy realms as well as the works of Gary Snyder, Mary Oliver, and the vibrant community of contemporary haiku and eco poets around the world.

You can find a trove of photographic baubles, poetic odds and ends, and the word of the day on his Instagram @poem.sower

Thanks to Angela M Cowan for writing today’s Field Report. Angela is a writer, editor and hedge witch living on a small island off the West Coast of Canada. She loves strange fiction and fairy tales, and can often be found spending too much time listening to mosses and small stones. Her flash fiction has been published in Idle Ink, and poetry is forthcoming in Clarion Magazine. Follow her Substack newsletter Inksmithing for monthly-ish writing exercises, creative inspiration, occasional fiction and general witchery. When she's not wandering the woods, you can find her at www.angelamcowan.com.

Thanks to Amanda Milstein for voicing Dr. Minerva Pond. Learn more about Amanda’s work at www.AmandaMilstein.com.

Contentment is both a skill and a gift we grant ourselves.

The CryptoNaturalist is written and read by Jarod K. Anderson.

Preorders for Jarod K. Anderson’s new memoir about loving nature and struggling with depression are now open. Visit JarodKAnderson.com for more information.

To find bonus content and a variety of strange rewards, support our show by visiting Patreon.com/CryptoNaturalist. You can also help by rating, reviewing, and telling a friend.

For books and poetry collections by Jarod K. Anderson and Leslie J. Anderson, visit CryptoNaturalist.com/books.

You’ll find information about submitting your poetry or prose for our hidden lore segments in the about section of our website at CryptoNaturalist.com.

This show is produced and edited by Tracy Barnett. You can find them online, anywhere at TheOtherTracy or TheOtherTracy.com.

Thanks to Adam Hurt for the use of his song Garfield’s Blackberry Blossom from his album Insight. For more information on Adam’s music, performances, and teaching, visit adamhurt.com.

Ebbing and flowing, teaming with life, soft to the touch. Some things are better left to themselves.

Thanks to Emily Kramer for today’s hidden lore poem “An Absence of Ants.” Emily is a poet from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania with an MA in English from Ohio University. She currently works at a nonprofit for domestic violence and crime survivors. Outside of work, she loves hiking, playing cozy video games, and spending time with her two cats. Her work has appeared in Ghost City Review, Split Rock Review, and more.

The CryptoNaturalist is written and read by Jarod K. Anderson.

Preorders for Jarod K. Anderson’s new memoir about loving nature and struggling with depression are now open. Visit JarodKAnderson.com for more information.

To find bonus content and a variety of strange rewards, support our show by visiting Patreon.com/CryptoNaturalist. You can also help by rating, reviewing, and telling a friend.

For books and poetry collections by Jarod K. Anderson and Leslie J. Anderson, visit CryptoNaturalist.com/books.

You’ll find information about submitting your poetry or prose for our hidden lore segments in the about section of our website at CryptoNaturalist.com.

This show is produced and edited by Tracy Barnett. You can find them online, anywhere at TheOtherTracy or TheOtherTracy.com.

Thanks to Adam Hurt for the use of his song Garfield’s Blackberry Blossom from his album Insight. For more information on Adam’s music, performances, and teaching, visit adamhurt.com.

Reminder: Transcripts of this and every episode are available at cryptonaturalist.com.

Night is Earth’s shadow and many creatures call it home. The moon’s shadow is a different sort of night entirely.

Thanks to Nicolette Nuytten for today’s hidden lore, “Water Beetles.” Nicolette works at the library and spends her free time walking in the woods or reading everything she can get her grubby little hands on. She lives in Manitoba with her wife and a little grey chinchilla. You can find her at www.nicolettenuytten.com or on Twitter @LibraryNii

The CryptoNaturalist is written and read by Jarod K. Anderson.

Preorders for Jarod K. Anderson’s new memoir about loving nature and struggling with depression are now open. Visit JarodKAnderson.com for more information.

To find bonus content and a variety of strange rewards, support our show by visiting Patreon.com/CryptoNaturalist. You can also help by rating, reviewing, and telling a friend.

For books and poetry collections by Jarod K. Anderson and Leslie J. Anderson, visit CryptoNaturalist.com/books.

You’ll find information about submitting your poetry or prose for our hidden lore segments in the about section of our website at CryptoNaturalist.com.

This show is produced and edited by Tracy Barnett. You can find them online, anywhere at TheOtherTracy or TheOtherTracy.com.

Thanks to Adam Hurt for the use of his song Garfield’s Blackberry Blossom from his album Insight. For more information on Adam’s music, performances, and teaching, visit adamhurt.com.

Reminder: Transcripts of this and every episode are available at cryptonaturalist.com.

What counts as a ghost is, perhaps, open to interpretation. 

Thanks to Steve Shell for voicing today’s field report. Steve is a co-creator, writer, and voice of the narrator on the Old Gods of Appalachia podcast. Old Gods is entering the homestretch of their fourth season and will be heading out on tour again this summer. 

Thanks to Emilie Lygren for today’s hidden lore poem, “Chrysalis.” Emilie Lygren is a poet and educator who has published poems in several literary journals and anthologies and developed dozens of publications focused on outdoor science education. Her first collection of poems, What We Were Born For, was selected by the Young People’s Poet Laureate as the Poetry Foundation’s monthly book pick for February 2022. Emilie lives in San Rafael, California, where she wonders about oaks and teaches poetry in local classrooms. Find her online at: emilielygren.com

Thanks to Leslie Anderson for reading today’s hidden lore. You know Leslie as the voice of Cassandra and the voice of the credits. You may not know that Leslie has a new horror novel coming this August from Quirk Books. The book is titled The Unmothers and it’s a folk horror-mystery about a journalist going to a small town to investigate a rumor about a horse giving birth to a healthy, human baby. 

“The Unmothers is exquisite and haunting in equal measure. . . . Nauseatingly tense and crushingly insightful. This book represents an absolutely vital entry into the horror canon.”—Sarah Gailey, nationally best-selling author of The Echo Wife and Just Like Home

For preorder information, visit LeslieJAnderson.com 

Preorders for Jarod K. Anderson’s new memoir about loving nature and struggling with depression are now open. Visit JarodKAnderson.com for more information. 

To find bonus content and a variety of strange rewards, support our show by visiting Patreon.com/CryptoNaturalist. You can also help by rating, reviewing, and telling a friend.  

The CryptoNaturalist is written and read by Jarod K. Anderson. 

For books and poetry collections by Jarod K. Anderson and Leslie J. Anderson, visit CryptoNaturalist.com/books. 

You’ll find information about submitting your poetry or prose for our hidden lore segments in the about section of our website at CryptoNaturalist.com. 

This show is produced and edited by Tracy Barnett. You can find them online, anywhere at TheOtherTracy or TheOtherTracy.com. 

Thanks to Adam Hurt for the use of his song Garfield’s Blackberry Blossom from his album Insight. For more information on Adam’s music, performances, and teaching, visit adamhurt.com. 

Reminder: Transcripts of this and every episode are available at cryptonaturalist.com.