Loch Ness Monster: Nessie likely to be an eel, say
scientists
Researchers from New Zealand have
tried to catalogue all living species in the loch by extracting DNA from water
samples.Following analysis, the scientists have ruled out the presence of large
animals said to be behind reports of a monster.No evidence of a prehistoric
marine reptile called a plesiosaur or a large fish such as a sturgeon were
found.Catfish and suggestions that a wandering Greenland shark were behind the
sightings were also discounted.
The aim of the research was not
to find Nessie, but to improve knowledge of what plants and animals live in
Loch Ness.Prof Neil Gemmell, a geneticist from New Zealand's University of
Otago. said: "People love a mystery, we've used science to add another
chapter to Loch Ness' mystique."We can't find any evidence of a creature
that's remotely related to that in our environmental-DNA sequence data. So,
sorry, I don't think the plesiosaur idea holds up based on the data that we
have obtained."
He added: "So there's no
shark DNA in Loch Ness based on our sampling. There is also no catfish DNA in
Loch Ness based on our sampling. We can't find any evidence of sturgeon either,"There
is a very significant amount of eel DNA. Eels are very plentiful in Loch Ness,
with eel DNA found at pretty much every location sampled - there are a lot of
them. So - are they giant eels?
"Well, our data doesn't reveal
their size, but the sheer quantity of the material says that we can't discount
the possibility that there may be giant eels in Loch Ness. Therefore we can't
discount the possibility that what people see and believe is the Loch Ness
Monster might be a giant eel."
Steve Feltham, who is recognised by the Guinness Book of
Records for the longest continuous monster hunting vigil of Loch Ness, is not
convinced the scientists have yet identified the creature behind the sightings.Mr
Feltham, who made childhood visits to the Highlands and moved from Dorset
almost 30 years ago to look for Nessie, said he had seen seals in Loch Ness.He
added: "A 12-year-old boy could tell you there are eels in Loch Ness. I
caught eels in the loch when I was a 12-year-old boy."
Read rest here:
Many
of us have long said that giant eels were responsible for the sightings. It
could be of course there are giant eels and something else in the Loch…we may
yet find out.
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