Loch Ness Monster

From the Pad of Definitions

From 1.03 Dead in the Water (episode)

Nessie, a giant lake monster, supposedly inhabits Scotland 's Loch (Lake) Ness. Nessie is the world's best-known cryptozoological creature and has been sighted as far back as 656 AD. Nessie is described as being anywhere from twenty to forty feet long, with two humps, a tail and a snakelike head. Nessie's movements have been studied, and many films and photos analyzed, to determine what Nessie might be, if she exists. For the last seventy years or so, since she began receiving regular publicity, Nessie has been a major tourist attraction.

There are numerous theories as to Nessie's identity, including a snake-like primitive whale known as a zeuglodon , a long-necked aquatic seal, giant eels, walruses, floating plants, giant molluscs , otters mirages and diving birds, but many lake monster researchers seem to favour the plesiosaur theory. The case has occasionally been supported by indistinct photographic evidence, though a famous 1934 photograph was revealed to be a hoax.