tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-629061224332673795.post5549234644102208575..comments2023-07-15T05:32:20.508-07:00Comments on Frontiers of Zoology: Giant Salamanders at Loch Ness (again)Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-629061224332673795.post-57530825204614443362012-09-24T11:28:20.932-07:002012-09-24T11:28:20.932-07:00Thanks for bringing this to our attention, this ph...Thanks for bringing this to our attention, this photograph always perplexed me and now I can see the "monster" much more clearly. I would be interested to see how the head compares to known eels and fish. Leaving the postcranial material aside and simply focusing on the head one almost gets the impression of a salmon or trout- does anyone else see this? Suppose that the object identified as an "eye" is actually a water droplet and the larger circular area above it is the actual eye- I think it's a fish, maybe one of the giant eels supposed to have existed in the area in the 19th century. <br /><br />Just checking wikipedia, the Atlantic Salmon is supposed have a record length of five feet. <br />The Scottish Gov't site says the largest recorded Ferox Trout weighed 31 lbs, I don't know how long such a creature would be. http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/marine/marine-environment/species/fish/freshwater/ferox<br /> <br />The record for the European Eel is supposed to have been 4 ft 11 in<br />according to wiki but you have documented much larger specimens from the 19th century. <br /><br />I believe there is also a pectoral fin visible behind the head section, no one seems to have pointed this out. If it is a pectoral fin, and the tail section is depicted correctly (ie is not the result of overexposure)then I will cautiously put forth the hypothesis that this is a gigantic eel floundering in the shallows for whatever reason.<br />philhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08513876927710154838noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-629061224332673795.post-79732712349247946442012-09-24T10:58:39.553-07:002012-09-24T10:58:39.553-07:00You have hit upon a problem which faces researcher...You have hit upon a problem which faces researchers in all reports of this type. "Mokele-Mbembe" is no more specific than "Loch Ness Monster" andboth names arecommonly used to label different things. In the case of Congo Cryptids, I believe the single horn goes with the"Water Rhino" while the spiny back goes with a different type, possibly a kind of a crocodile. All this means is that researchers must be careful in sorting out reports. YES, I had known of the possibility of West African sirens (Amphibians) for a long time but in this case there is also the possible confusion with SIRENIANS, ie, manatees in this case. It is just another confusion people need to look out for. While I have been keeping my eyes out for specifically siren-type reports from both Western Europe and Western Africa for years, I have yet to report any positive definite identifications along that score.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-629061224332673795.post-24049524018279205172012-09-24T06:25:19.780-07:002012-09-24T06:25:19.780-07:00Interesting to hear another lake monster identifie...Interesting to hear another lake monster identified as a possible salamander. <br /><br />I saw the film "L’Hypothèse du Mokélé Mbêmbé" - a 2011 documentary by Marie Voignier, which follows Michel Ballot on his quest for alleged living dinosaur Mokélé Mbêmbé in Lake Tele, Congo Brazzaville.<br /><br />Some of the witnesses Ballot interviews talk about "the siren" - which seems to be a siren - an eel-like member of the salamander family with vestigal legs. Some witnesses insist "the siren" in the lake is a different animal to Mokélé Mbêmbé, others say it's one and the same or aren't sure. There are some known fossil sirens from the Eocene, and two living species.<br /><br />“The siren” has a horn on its head according to some witnesses, or it doesn't have a horn, or only the males have a horn, with white streaks on it.<br /><br />The siren according to some witnesses has big “claws” on its back – “like a saw” – spines or ridges. It has overlapping scales all over its body, except its head. It shines like a rainbow with many colours. You can’t see its head, only its body, because it is “shielded” by a mystical power that hides it, an ability that some hereditary sorcerers can learn too, using a power roughly equivalent to “the devil.” It moves underwater, throwing up waterspouts that make a loud noise like a motorboat. It digs into the sand of the riverbottom, so it can hide there. Or it lives in huge waterholes. It destroys the riverbank when it moves along, making a noise like thunder. <br /><br />Other witnesses tell Ballot you might see the siren maybe twice a year when it’s destructively on the move, it's magically shielded so it leaves no trace. And others that it is always surrounded by thick mist. It moves underwater, or it’s seen sunning itself on the sandy banks. It’s bigger than an elephant. Or all the above are characteristics not of "the siren" (salamander) but of Mokélé Mbêmbé, depending on who you ask.Matt Salusburyhttp://mattsalusbury.blogspot.co.uknoreply@blogger.com