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Sea Serpents

Separating Myth from Reality

The Oceans are Planet Earth's last great, unexplored frontier. The vast majority of the oceans and seas are completely unexplored. Because of this, although it is hard to believe there are creatures that live so far down in the ocean's depths, or in such remote areas, that they are rarely, if ever, seen by man. In fact, it is easy to hypothesize that we have not even come close to cataloging all the creatures that dwell beneath the waves...

Since the dawn of time... since the very first sailor went "down to the sea in ships", men of the sea have told stories of seeing strange creatures while plying the deep. Are these just ramblings? Are they simply "tall tales" and fanciful stories dreamed up to amuse and entertain, or are they actual eye witness accounts of creatures yet unknown to science, and seen so rarely as to become "mythical" and "legendary" in nature?

A classic example of this is the Giant Squid, which was thought of as a creature of myth and legend until recently, when in October of 1997, scientists discovered the corpse of just such a creature. Many of the common "sea serpents" described by mariners, bear a remarkable similarity to creatures that are thought to be extinct. The Coelacanth, a fish inhabiting deep waters off the coast of Africa, was thought to be extinct for 70 million years until it was discovered alive and well in 1938. It is, of course, no longer on the extinct list.

If this fish could survive all those years undetected, why can't other prehistoric giants have done the same thing? Every year more unknown animals or animals that were previously thought extinct are discovered. Because most of them do not fit into the "monster" category, there is very little written about them that a lay person would ever notice, or for that matter, see. New species of water creatures that were discovered recently include the Japanese beaked whale (1958), the cochito porpoise (1958), the Megamouth Shark (1976), and Prudes Bay killer whale (1983). Judging from this, it would seem to be a safe assumption that since creatures are discovered or rediscovered constantly, there might just possibly be sea serpents and lake monsters just waiting their turn to be properly identified and added, or returned to the lists of the living.

Just over one hundred years ago, in 1896, a strange corpse was washed ashore at St. Augustine beach, Florida. The massive, bloated and deformed corpse arrived along with the winter tides, and attracted the attention of Dr DeWitt Webb from local Science and History society. Dr Webb prevented local residents from damaging the corpse until he could identify it. That's how he saved first physical evidence that the Giant Octopus does, in fact exist.

Upon identifying his "discovery", Dr Webb immediately began to correspond with Dr. W. H. Dall of National Museum in Washington, who, quite naturally, wished to have further details on the creature. The corpse, however, was stuck in the sand and doctor, no matter how he tried, couldn't make it budge. "We couldn't move the corpse", he wrote, "and that means that it weighted six or seven tons, because twelve men with wheel and rope should be able to move anything under that weight." Later, dr. Webb came back with four horses, six men, three hooks, iron backups and with lots of hard wooden boards, and they barely made it to drag the corpse 40 ft. along the beach.

At that point, he could tell Dr. Dall that this corpse has no backbone, beak, or anything else what could belong to a squid. The corpse was no squid. It was 21 ft. long and seven ft. wide, and the skin was 3.5 inch thick, and almost completely impenetrable. However, Dr Webb took samples of the tissue and sent them to Washington.

After short discussion, "experts" pronounced that the corpse belonged to a whale. The Smithsonian Institution's conclusion was that they could not "afford sending someone all the way down to Florida just to examine the corpse!"

Still, Dr Webb kept some of the samples in his basement. Seventy-five years later, those samples were found by two scientific detectives, Joseph Gennaro and F.G. Wood, after they read about the event in some old newspaper. Gennaro, a Professor of the Cellular Biology at the University of New York, prepared samples for historical analysis. he looked at the samples through a microscope and immediately found out that this tissue doesn't belong to a whale. Neither was it a squid. He was forced to conclude that the corpse actually was that of an octopus. But... the implications were almost unimaginable. A corpse of that size presented an octopus 200 ft. long, with legs some ten feet in diameter. Meanwhile, Wood reviewed the St Augustine documents. Yes, there were, in fact, pieces of legs near the corpse... some of them were still fastened to the corpse itself. A local resident named Wilson saw a 32 ft. long leg extend "westwardly" from the corpse, and three legs on the "south" side. He said: "The one I measured was 32 ft. long and looked like it was fastened to the corpse, but I couldn't dig to prove it because it was quite deep in the sand, and I was very tired." Wilson's statement had the ring of being both honest and precise.

Since that time, numerous other corpses have been found, especially in and near Bahamas. People of Bahamas call the creature Lusca, and it is not a squid.

In 1865 a giant Lion's Mane jellyfish was found in Massachusetts Bay. The bell, or upper portion of this creature was 7 1/2 feet and it's tentacles measured 120 feet long and a width of 245 ft..

In 1973, the Motor Vessel Kuranda, collided with a giant jellyfish that was estimated to have weighed 20 tons. The Captain of the Kuranda, Langley Smith, estimated the tentacles length to be over 200 ft in length.

With the aid of another ship, the giant jellyfish was forced off the front of the ship. A sample of the slime left behind was analyzed and found to be from a lion's mane jellyfish. One crew member of the Kudra died during this encounter after being stung by the creature.

In 1969 two divers, working out of Port Royal, encountered a jellyfish that they claimed was 150 to 200 ft in diameter. Were these men "spinning a tale"? Not likely. In spite of high salaries... both repeatedly refused to dive in the area, ever, again. There also have been reports of giant jellyfish attacking small boats and pursuing divers.

Submitted Article.

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Cryptozoology: Another Giant Squid Caught in the Azores - 8/14/01

SOURCE: Associated Press

DATE: Tuesday, August 14, 2001

Over five meters long Nemoesque-type Squid Caught in the Azores

VIGO, 13 (AP).- A group of fishermen looking for swordfish came across one of natures most mysterious creature's instead: a giant squid, measuring over five meters in length and with black eyes the size of apples. A Spanish vessel operating in the Azores, in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, found the creature's remains in July, when it was ensnared by the fishermens' nets. The crew froze the animal and took it to the Spanish port of Vigo in that country's northeastern corner.

Giant squid are so mysterious that only some 300 sightings have been documented in the past 500 years, and no one has seen one alive, said Mario Rasero, a biologist with the Oceanographic Institute of Spain In 1999, the leading expert on the species-- Clyde Roper of the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, D.C.-- placed a camera on the head of a sperm whale, the giant squid's only known predator, in the deep waters off New Zealand. Even so, he was unable to locate a live specimen.

Giant squid live at depths of 200 to 1000 meters, allowing themselves to be carried along by the currents.

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OCEANOGRAPHIC INSTITUTE ANALYZES A GIANT SPECIMEN MEASUIRNG 5 METERS IN LENGTH AND WEIGHING 80 KILOS.

Museum-Quality Squid

MIGUEL NÚÑEZ , a biologist, measured the giant squid yesterday at the Centro Oceanográfico de Vigo.

A. DEL OLMO - Vigo

The giant squid is one of the sea's last myths. It lives at depths between 200 and 1000 meters and no one has ever seen a living specimen in spite of the expeditions organized by scientists and adventurers, although the foremost expert on the subject hopes to do so by next spring.

The crew of the "Nueva Zumaia" found the giant squid, belonging to the species known as Architeuthis Dux, some 300 miles to the west of the Azores, in the center of the North Atlantic, while the collected their tackle on July 15, 2001. After measuring the specimen, the notified the Oceanographic Institute. When scientists confirmed their interest in the creature, they froze it.

The giant squid reached the Oceanographic Institute on August 6. Four biologists with the Deep Water Fisheries Program are researching the specimen, which is in a relatively good state of preservation, which is customary with finds of this nature. However, its arms, tentacles and the body's rear end are damaged, showing signs of a violent death due either to contact with the fishing tackle or a predator attack. The length of its body is of one and a half meters, but when alive and with its complete set of tentacles and arms, it reached a length of 5 meters. Its eyes resemble soccer balls.

When the team of biologists conclude their tasks, the giant squid shall be frozen once more until its preservation at some museum is discussed. In principle, the Oceanographic Insititue wishes to donate it to the Marine Museum currently under construction at Alcabre. For display, formaldehyde shall be pumped into its tissues and it shall be placed within a methacrylate container with 50% alcohol, the same method employed for the one being exhibited at a museum in Luarca.

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NESSIE

Without a doubt, Scotland's Loch Ness is one of the most famous lakes in the world... not just because of the rugged, natural beauty of the place, which is impressive, nor for the sheer size of the lake... which is immense... nearly 1,000 feet deep and twenty-four miles long. No, as we all know... Loch Ness is famous for something else, entirely... the most well known and highly publicized, as well as one of the most elusive "Lake Monsters" known to man... "NESSIE".

Since the general public first became aware of the Loch Ness Monster in 1933, the famous beastie has become an international media star. Even world governments are becoming involved... as one of her most recent appearance was on a commemorative stamp recently issued by the Maldive Islands. Nessie has attained the status of a classic phenomenon and her popularity not only endures but is on the rise.

No other monster is as tied in with a country's image as Nessie is with Scotland. Nessie has been featured in hundreds of newspaper and magazine articles, dozens of books, and has starred or co-starred in several feature films and innumerable documentaries, at least three major studio releases. She is beyond doubt the most recognizable cryptozoological creature in the world today.

Nessie is certainly one of the most-sighted monsters in the world. After almost seventy years of notoriety, she continues to draw not only the attention of the world, but the curiosity of it's scientific community.

She often appears in advertisements (usually selling beer or liquor), is the object of sonar searches of the Loch, and/or is exploited by public relations people cashing in on her ability to attract the international mass media. She is, in fact, the only biological creature to have had a Royal Navy submarine (miniature research submarine) dispatched specifically to prove, or disprove her existence... And there are new sightings of the old girl practically every day. Requests to search the lake and to examine it in detail have even been submitted than none other than Robert Ballard... the man who "found" the Titanic, and explored the sunken German Superdreadnaught Bismark.

If Nessie is proven to exist, British bookmaker William Hill faces a payout of over 1 million Pounds Sterling (almost 1.6 million U.S. dollars). Nessie might be worth over a million to those who gamble on her existence, but to Scotland the monster has been worth millions a year as its premiere tourist attraction. Nessie has certainly come a long way since her "discovery" in the 1930s.

There are many negatives in the search for lake monsters. Despite many credible eyewitness sightings, no live monsters have been caught after innumerable attempts in their respective lakes. No carcasses have ever been found that might be anything other than recognizable animals. It is a fact that giant nets, submarines, underwater cameras, sonar, and loch-side crews of observers have all failed to come up with the solid evidence that will prove to the world that there is, in fact, a Loch Ness Monster.

On the other hand, the great number of eyewitness sighting... which show absolutely no signs of abating... make it hard to easily dismiss Nessie, who remains the Queen of all lake monsters. But... if there is a "Nessie", what is she?

There has been much speculation on this point over the years... the most plausible explanation is that she is not a single beastie, but several... members of a small, but still vital heard of prehistoric creatures which were trapped in the Loch when it was cut off from the sea, in the upheavals of the last Ice Age. In fact, most eye wittiness accounts reveal a creature which bears a striking resemblance to several known fossil specimens. Being part of a small heard, rather than a single creature, would also explain the appearance of the beast over a period of almost seventy years... much more easily than the assumption that there is only one... very long lived... beast.

Will Nessie be "discovered"? Given the advances in modern technology over the past seventy years, most likely she will... if she does, in fact, exist.

Submitted Article

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Also see: "Other Lake Monsters"

Mokele Mbembe:

Described as a Suropod Dinosaur, reported in Central Africa, in the Congo Basin- inhabiting the swamps.

Claimed to be between 30-40 feet long, redish brown in color, great long neck with a crest running down it. Claimed to be as the Suropod- a herbivore, but very dangerous, destroying canoes with it's slashing tail. Mokele Mbembe is also claimed to hate hippopotamus- and will kill it on sight.

Mokele Mbembe; means "One who stops the flow of rivers." Believed to inhabit in the specific- Likouala swamp- 50,000 sq. miles of swamps and forests. Only a footprint has been found of what is believed to be it, no carcass, bones, or physical evidence has been found yet, besides the tales of encounter and sightings that the natives of the region claim.

Cadborosaurus:

The waters off the Pacific Nothwest coast of North America is said to be the home of a seafairing cousin of the Lock Ness Monster, dubbed Cadborosaurus by Victoria, British Columbia newspaper editor Archie Willis in the early 1930's. The large snake-like creature has been seen for over a thousand years from Alaska to Oregon, with most of the reported sightings occuring in

the the inland waters around Vancouver Island and northern Olympic Peninsula.

Vancouver biologist Dr. Edward L. Bousfield and Dr. Paul H. Leblond, a professor of oceanography at the University of British Columbia have created a composite discription of the creature based on numerous sightings:

1. It's dimensions, ranging from 5 to 15 meters in length;

2. It's body form: snake-like, or serpentine, with extra ordinary flexiblity in the vertical plane;

3. The appearance of it's head, variously described as resembling that of a sheep, horse, giraffe or camel;

4. The length of it's neck, elongated, ranging from one to four meters;

5. The verical humps or loops of the body, arranged in tendem series directly behind the neck;

6. The presence of a pair of anterior flippers; posterior flippers absent or nearly fused with body;

7. The tail; dorsally toothed or spiky, and split horizontally or fluke like at the top;

8. The very high swimming speed, clocked up to 40 knots at the surface.

Morag:

Seventy miles southwest of Loch Ness, Loch Morar claims to be the home of a beast called Morag. The name is derived from the Gaelic "Mhorag" (pronounced "Vorack"), meaning "spirit of the lake."

In August 1969, Duncan McDonell and William Simpson were turning their motorboat to the shore of Loch Morar after a day of fishing. Suddenly they found themselves having a close encounter with the legend of the lake, as McDonell later explained:

"I heard a splashing or disturbance in the water astern of us. I looked up and about twenty yards behind us this creature was coming directly after us in our wake. It took only a matter of seconds to catch up on us. It grazed the side of the boat. I am quite certain this was unintentional. When it struck the boat it seemed to come to a halt or at least slow down. I grabbed the oar and was attempting to fend it off, my one fear being that if it got under the boat it might capsize it."

In desperation, Simpson grabbed a rifle and fired a shot at the creature, which then slowly sank out of sight. During the five-minute experience, the men said they could clearly see the rough brown skin of the creature's humped back. They estimated it to be about 25-30 feet long, and said that it swam as fast as 30 mph. McDonell claimed to glimpse the creature's head, which looked like a snake's and was about a foot wide.

In April 1971, Ewan Gillies and his son John reported seeing Morag swimming peacefully across the lake as they watched from the shore. They described the creature as about 30 feet long, with two or three humps on its back and a small head no thicker than its long, slender neck. The elder Gillies went for a camera and shot two pictures, but the developed film showed nothing unusual.

In fact, there are no significant Morag photos on record, and the only evidence available is eyewitness accounts. In 1996, a mysterious skeleton was dredged up from a depth of 60 feet beneath Loch Morar. Analysis revealed that the carcass was not a dead Morag, but the badly deteriorated remains of a deer. Undeterred, the monster-hunting diver who found the bones offered the following shaky hypothesis: "...the only reason that they could have been so deep in the water is if they are the remains of Morag's dinner."

Two people claimed to have seen this creature in September 1975. They said it was long and had a humped back and that the head even had stumpy horns. In february 1976 a woman sent photos to a local newspaper. she had taken two pictures and even sent a note with the photos describing her encounter. she claimed It looked like an elephant waving It's trunk, but the trunk was a long neck with a small head on the end, like a snakes head. It also had humps on the back. the color was brown or black and the skin seemed to be like a sea lion's..."The animal frightened me. I would not like to see It any closer. I do not like the way It moved when swimming." Another photograph had been taken in July 1976 by tony 'doc' shiels. He was living near cornwell at the time but he also took a picture of nessie later in the next year.

Ogopogo:

Ogopogo is said to be a 20 to 50 foot-long, serpent-like creature with a dark-coloured body, several large humps on its back and a reptilian shaped head. It is believed to inhabit Okanagan Lake in British Columbia's (Canada) interior. The natives who settled this land called it N'ha-a-itk, or lake demon.

Ogopogo's home, Okanagan Lake, stretches from Vernon in the north to Penticton in the south with Kelowna in the centre. It is 85km (52 miles) long with some depths reaching 300 metres (1000 feet).

Although never considered an endangered species, the animal is presently protected under both the Fisheries Act and the Wildlife Act [of Canada]. Relatives include the Loch Ness Monster of Scotland and sea and lake serpents in more than a dozen countries.

N'ha-a-itk "Lake demon". The native name for Ogopogo. Gifts were carried to appease him whenever they had to make a crossing of the lake, and travelers were happiest when he was not sighted.

Family videos what could be Ogopogo

Friday, October 22nd, 2004

By SERINA PARSONS Special to The Daily Courier

A video showing a long, writhing shape in Okanagan Lake is being investigated as a possible Ogopogo sighting.

John Casorso and his family rented a houseboat to spend some quiet time on the lake, but ended up with intriguing video footage of something mysterious in the water.

On Aug. 9, at 7:30 a.m., he said the houseboat started rocking back and forth fiercely. The rocking woke up the family, who ventured to the top deck to see what was happening. When Casorso reached the deck, he said he was shocked to see something swimming away from the boat. "The only reason we noticed it is because it passed underneath the houseboat," said Casorso. "We could really feel the power and size of what it was." Casorso acted quickly, retrieving his video camera to get footage of the creature. He has a total of approximately 15 minutes of video footage that clearly shows a calm lake, no boat movement and a long, dark hump rising above the water.

Casorso said what he saw looked to be about 15 metres long, and there may have been more than one.

"It seemed like, on one occasion, there was at least one parallel to the larger one and at least one behind it," he said. "It couldn't have been a wave because it wasn't dissipating. It remained in the same area for over 10 minutes." Asked why he decided to wait so long to let the public know about his sighting, Casorso said he took the advice of local Ogopogo expert Arlene Gaal.

"I showed her, and she said we should take it slow," said Casorso. "I also didn't want to rush into it too quickly because over the years lots of people have gotten pictures or footage and the response is not always favourable." Gaal, a chronicler of Ogopogo sightings and an author on the subject, said she believes Casorso has an interesting video and has caught on tape what many people believe to be Ogopogo.

"I feel that John has some really good footage that adds to solving the puzzle and mystery of Ogopogo," said Gaal. According to Gaal, there have been nine reported sightings this year, and she suspects there have been more that were not reported due to the ridicule factor surrounding such a story.

Casorso also followed Gall's advice to copyright the video.

He showed it to a few friends first, to get their opinion, and said he enjoyed seeing their reactions. "One thing I like about the video is that it's poor quality at first, but then it gets very clear and people always say, `Wow, what is that?' when they realize there is more there than just wave," Casorso said.

Janet Courtney was one of the people to see the video, and she says it's convincing.

"I believe anything is possible," said Courtney. "But after seeing the video, I'm convinced that there is something there, for sure." Daily Courier news editor Jon Manchester said he's usually skeptical about Ogopogo sightings, but was perplexed after viewing Casorso's video. "I don't know how to describe it . . . I know I saw something, I don't know what, and it was more than a log floating in the water. It's by far the most convincing Ogopogo evidence I've ever seen." Casorso has lived in the Okanagan all his life and always thought there was some merit to the Ogopogo legend.

"I would always carry on with my kids that we would see Ogopogo," said Casorso. "We were pretty excited when something actually happened because you never expect to actually see it." Ogopogo is the subject of the Sci-Fi channel's Proof Positive on Dec. 1 at 8 p.m..

Article by: Kelowna B.C

Colossal Claude and Marvin the Monster

Submitted by Viewer: May 14, 2004

Peter Ciams, "Colossal Claude and The Sea Monsters," The Oregonian. September 24, 1967.

Colossal Claude hasn't been seen for some time, but Marvin the Monster is reportedly alive and well. He's even appeared on television.

Claude was first seen cavorting near the mouth of the Columbia River in 1934. Over the years he was often sighted by Columbia River lightship crewmen and by passing fishermen. But the once-familiar sea serpent hasn't shown up since the mid-1950s- Marvin is a comparative newcomer.

He was first discovered swimming off the Oregon Coast by Shell Oil Company divers in 1963. His presence was recorded by video tape cameras, later screened for study by the nation's leading marine biologists.

In addition to Claude and Marvin, the watery denizens have been sighted off Newport, Bandon, Nelscott, Waldport, Empire, Delake and also in Crescent and Crater Lakes.

They come in several varieties and sizes. Some are shiny and some have scales. Some reportedly have coarse fur. There is even a variety of mini-monster, for the compact minded.

One thing they usually have in common is the shape of their heads. Observers say they are most often found to be like those of the camel, or horse.

L.A. Larson, mate of the Columbia River lightship, was probably the first to see Claude. That was back in 1934. Other members of the crew confirmed the sighting as did the captain and members of the crew of the lightship tender Rose.

"It was about 40 feet long," and Larson. "It had a neck some eight feet long a big round body, a mean looking tail and an evil, snaky look to its head."

A news story of the day reported: "Members of the crew (of the lightship) after studying the monster for some time with field glasses, wanted to lower a boat and go after it, but the officers discouraged the plan for fear it would swamp the boat."

Claude next popped into the news in 1937, when skipper Charles E. Graham of the troller Viv raced back to Astoria with the story of sighting a "long, hairy, tan colored creature, with the head of an overgrown horse, about 40 feet long, and with a 4-foot waist measure."

Veteran fishermen gazed out over the Columbia bar and said: "It's Claude.

Claude was repeatedly sighted through the years that followed. Once by Captain Chris Anderson of the schooner Arpo. He said he got a face to face look at Claude.

"His head was like a camel's," he said. "His fur was coarse and gray. He had glassy eyes and a bent snout that he used to push a 20-pound halibut off our lines and into his mouth."

Other Oregon monsters that have competed for the headlines over the years include:

Bandon's mini-monster, a 12 1/2 foot animal with a bulbous nose and a cow-like body covered with brownish hair.

--a 30-foot serpent with "a slender neck, a snake-like head, and a fan-shaped tail" seen by more than 30 people at Nelscott. The "thing" splashed around the Nelscott reefs on several occasions. One group of observers was considered extremely reliable--its members were on a WCTU outing from the Willamette Valley.

Proximity of Whiskey Run reef apparently had nothing to do with the sightings of a sea monster off Empire a few years ago. Ben Tanner, skipper of the troller Gold Coast, said the creature approached his fishing boat, "smacked its mouth, rolled its long lashed eyes at the crew, then pointed its tail in the air and dived straight down."

Oregon Indians, of course, believe there is a monster in just about every fair-sized pool of water in the state. Their legends are full of such stories.

There is a paleface corroboration, however, for monster sightings in both Crater and Crescent lakes. The latter, in particular, is said to have an unusual inhabitant that has been sighted several times.

One day Henry Schwering and Bert Vincent were fishing on the lake. Henry later reported: "I suddenly noticed that the fish had stopped biting. Then I noticed fish scooting away and the water started boiling. Then I saw a huge, round head break water not far from the boat. " The next day Bert also saw the "thing" himself, as did others on the lake shore.

Reports that a 22-foot hairy-chested monster had been washed up on the beach at Delake brought people hurrying to the spot on March 4, 1950. What brought them running was Old Hairy (as locals quickly dubbed him.)

"It had the body of a cow, approximately nine tails, and is covered with hair all over the body and legs," ran one enthusiastic account.

Pretty teen-ager Marybell Allum of Delake was the first to stumble on Old Hairy. Then her dad, town marshal Andy Allum, had a look. He said the monster weighed all of 1,000 pounds.

"It's a whale shark, undoubtedly," said Dr. E. W. Gudger, of the American Museum of Natural History. "A harmless critter with the body shaped like a tadpole."

"Whale blubber," said an Oregon Fish Commission biologist.

"It's an elasmobranch," said Prof. Fred J. Kohlruss of the University of Portland. "It's a sea inhabitant whose bones remain in the cartillage stage."

Despite all of this leaned thinking, the who and what of Old Hairy was never satisfactorily explained.

And so it is with Marvin, Oregon's youngest monster.

Marine biologists have examined the Shell Oil Co. video tapes, which show Marvin in detail. The footage was shot during the company's search for off-shore oil.

Marvin shows up as being about 15-feet long. He has barnacled ridges along his body, and he propels himself in corkscrew fashion in waters about 180 feet in depth.

The University of California believes Marvin is a etenaphor jelly fish); Scripps Institute of Oceanography thinks he's a salpida: the University of Washington plumps for a siphonophore (another jelly fish,) the University of Texas believes simply that he is a creature left over from prehistoric times.

But the fishermen hunched over their beer glasses in Astoria taverns know otherwise. Misty-blue eyes strained seaward, with not a little affection, they say: "It's probably Claude."

Marge Davenport, "Caddy, northwest sea serpent and other fishy stories, " Afloat and Awash in the Old Northwest. Tigard, Oregon: Paddlewheel Press, 1988, p. 201-208.

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Myths & Mysteries

Scotsman.com

Thu 26 May 2005

Even The Weekly Scotsman - here in 1960 - got in on the act of covering monsters of the sea.

Great water monsters and mer-folk

DIANE MACLEAN

WATER-DWELLING beasties abound in Scotland. Monsters and mermaids frolic and swim in our lochs and seas from the Highlands to Lowlands. Some are shy, while others seem to bask in the limelight.

The one thing that connects them is that they've all been spotted. They've all been recorded and noted. And, furthermore, there are people out there who believe they exist.

No review of Scottish beasties could start anywhere else but with the Loch Ness Monster, or "Nessie" to her friends (and there are many of them). She has appeared in legend since the sixth century, but the building of a new road around the loch - just southwest of Inverness - in the 1930's brought her international fame. Sightings of this long, humped lady have been frequent ever since she was famously sighted in 1934 by a London surgeon who had the foresight to snap off a couple of photos and the sense to sell them to a daily paper.

Tail or tale: Did sea monsters and mermaid swim the waters in and around Scotland?

Nessie's less well-known cousin is "Morag", who is said to inhabit Loch Morar, northwest of Fort William along the west coast near Mallaig. There have been fewer sightings around Loch Morar, being altogether more remote than Loch Ness. Yet when she has been seen, descriptions are very similar to Nessie.

Take the most famous sighting of Morag. It was 1969 when two local people - Duncan McDonell and William Simpson - were fishing in the loch. Suddenly they saw a long creature approaching their boat at great speed. It rammed them, and fearing they were to be capsized, the terrified fisher-folk started shooting. The beast disappeared into the depths of the loch but left them with the impression that it was between 20 and 30 feet long and had three humps. Sound familiar? Well it does to Neil Bass a biologist and member of the Loch Morar Investigation Team who spotted a "hump-shaped black object" and is convinced it's another Nessie.

Across Scotland there are monsters aplenty lurking in deep, dark water. So, just what's going on? Is it collective hysteria or is there really something down there? There have been a number of theories put forward to explain the animals' existence but the current top five claim they are either:

*A zeuglodon - put forward by biologist Roy P Mackal who thinks the monsters are a type of giant prehistoric snake-like creature thought to have become extinct about 20 million years ago

*A plesiosaur - very similar to the above. Just substitute the word plesiosaur (a water-dinosaur) for zeuglodon

*A log - what more is there to say, except that there are plenty of trees in Scotland

*A sturgeon - biologist Adrian Shine thinks these creatures are nothing more exciting than a great, ginormous sturgeon - a freak-fish if you like

*A bona fide monster - yes, yes, well, all right, it's possible.

Another creature currently living in Scotland's lochs is the kelpie, or water-horse. These watery quadrupeds wait by lochs for unsuspecting mortals. Should you ever mount a kelpie, then prepare for a watery doom, as the kelpie will canter into deep water and drown you. They can also take on human form, so should you spot a brooding man by the side of a loch with seaweed instead of hair, then you'd be well advised to run away. Fast.

Mermaids were commonly featured as curiousity acts.

The kelpie is transposed in the Highlands into the Each Uisge (sea horse), who lives in seas or lochs. If you see one, do not approach. Their fur is like Velcro and once you lay so much as a pinkie on its hide then it's off to the deep with you. There he will devour you from top to toe, leaving only your liver to wash up on the shore as a warning to others that the Each Uisge has struck again.

Kelpies are not the only watery beasties living in Scotland. We are also awash with tales of finned people and mermaids. Finned people have often been sighted in Orkney close to their home at Eynhallow village. They are dark and swarthy with long fins, which they can cunningly disguise to look like cloaks. They are also rather modern, in that they are twinned with the underwater city of Finfolkhaheen where they go to spend the winter.

Finmen often harass local fishermen and are known to abduct local men to provide husbands for their finwomen who had a vested interest in finding a mortal husband. If they did not, they have to settle for marrying a local finman and degenerating from a beautiful woman into an ugly crone. Marriage to a mortal man ensures their lovely looks last forever.

Similar to finpeople are mermaids, who have been bewitching mortals with their beautiful singing voices and exquisite beauty for hundreds of years.

If documentation is proof of existence then you could be fairly assured of the presence of fish-folk in our midst. The Aberdeen Chronicle is particularly fond of mermaid sightings, but stories have appeared in the London Times as late as 1809.

What is interesting with all the reports is the consistency of the description. The mermaid is always young, beautiful, with soft white skin and long dark hair. Surprisingly the person reporting the sighting is not an old drunk who has left his glasses in the pub, but is often an upstanding and respected member of the community.

If you're beginning to think that there might be something in these fishy-stories, then you'll need to explain why it is that the mermaid is often to be found speaking Latin or singing hymns. Presumably she's been well educated at the "Underwater Church Academy" for young mermaids.