Wiltshire Coat Of Arms

Coat of arms crops up in field

The remarkable formation was snapped at West Woods, near Marlborough, Wilts, by crop circle expert Lucy Pringle.

Mrs Pringle, of Petersfield, Hants, said: "The area is flown over regularly and this creation was definitely not there the day before I photographed it.

"This interesting design measures approximately 90 feet in diameter.

"It has a resemblance to a Cross Clechee with arms spreading out gradually from the centre. This cross denotes knowledge, guardianship, and dominion.

"Similar to the Cross Toulouse, it is assumed that the bearer of this cross was a crusader from the area of Toulouse."

Mrs Pringle said the new formation is the latest in a long line of strange designs to crop up in the UK over the years.

Previous patterns have included stars, triangles, birds, complicated three dimensional shapes and even designs with hidden mathematical codes.

Fortean / Alternative News - Phantoms and Monsters: Paranormal ...

The Tasmanian tiger, or thylacine, is a wolf-sized marsupial predator that has been presumed extinct since the last known specimen died in Hobart zoo in 1936. Yet despite its apparent demise, reports of Tassie tigers refuse to die. Hundreds of sightings, many from seemingly credible observers, have been recorded, both in Tasmania and on the mainland. McAllister has been searching for the Tasmanian tiger since 1998. Though he might not describe himself as such, he is a cryptobiologist, a chaser of mythical, mysterious or supposedly extinct species. Cryptobiologists are a diverse lot, ranging from conventional scientists to eccentrics far from the mainstream. All share a dream of discovering elusive or unknown creatures unrecognised by conventional science - and with it their share of instant fame. Everyone knows about fabled creatures like Nessie and Bigfoot, but cryptobiologists actually chase a far larger menagerie of exotic beasts which they collectively term "cryptids". Some, like the Tasmanian tiger, clearly once existed. Others, such as giant vampire bats, conceivably might exist, having somehow escaped the attentions of conventional scientists. The third category, oddities such as the Jersey devil and the mothman, are strictly on the fringes. The more credible side of the cryptobiology crowd can be a pretty serious lot. Some, such as tropical ecologist David Bickford of the National University of Singapore and Aaron Bauer, an evolutionary biologist and herpetologist at Villanova University in Pennsylvania, are respected mainstream scientists. Bickford has discovered a number of previously unknown species, including a bizarre lungless frog that lives only beneath waterfalls in Borneo. The most committed cryptobiologists spend big sums of their own money to finance their quests. Being outside the realm of traditional science, they don't usually have a choice. For example, the late Grover Krantz, a physical anthropologist at Washington State University, invested around $50,000 for a light aircraft, infrared heat detector and other expensive gear in a decades-long search for Bigfoot in the Pacific Northwest. But for mainstream scientists, being a cryptobiologist isn't easy. Some have paid for their efforts in more than money.

The Wiltshire archaeological and natural history magazine

THE WILTSHIRE Archeological and Natural History MAGAZINE

Wiltshire notes and queries

A handbook for travellers in Wiltshire, Dorsetshire, and Somersetshire

A handbook for travellers in Wiltshire, Dorsetshire and Somersetshire