Saturday, 14 February 2015

Whales in Scottish Lochs

In my previous article, I referred to a letter which appeared in the Inverness Advertiser on the 3rd January 1854. The writer of the letter, an M. Bankes, asked for opinions on the existence of whales in Scottish lochs. 

The context to that letter turns out to be the famous story of the Loch Na Beiste creature which gained national coverage as the locals attempted to capture the mysterious denizen of this rather small loch in Ross and Cromarty.  Mr. Bankes was the proprietor of the estate in which the loch lay and you can read the story of the hunt here.

A reader requested I reproduce the second letter and I do so here. The first letter is shown first and the second from the same paper dated 14th March 1854. The text is too much for the OCR I use, so hopefully you can read it from the original!




Some were, of course, sceptical of whales and the matter of seals comes up. Mr. Bankes assures them he knows what a seal look likes but in the end he seems favourable to another candidate that sometimes appears in cryptozoology, 160 years on, the Wels Catfish (Silurus Glanis).

Now I am not sure if this creature has ever been observed or captured in Scottish waters, be it rivers or lochs. Perhaps someone can enlighten me, but it appears that Mr. Bankes never caught his presumed catfish.




The author can be contacted at lochnesskelpie@gmail.com



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33 comments:

  1. Chasing Leviathan15 February 2015 at 12:42

    Many thanks, GB! Interesting to see how the discussion developed.

    Very interesting to see Mr Bankes goes with the Wels Catfish as the probable solution to his sighting. If I recall aright I think Dick Raynor has also suggested the Wels as a possible 'Monster'.

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    1. Glasgow Boy15 February 2015 at 13:35

      You read it okay I presume.

      Interesting how the usual suspects (seals, catfish) are nothing new.

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    2. John Alvarado15 February 2015 at 14:27

      That's not surprising, Dick Raynor has often proposed the “Big Fish “ solution.

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    3. Anonymous15 February 2015 at 23:52

      How about the giant salamander AND/or plesesaur type,and giant eel solution?

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    4. Anonymous16 February 2015 at 05:13

      Better to choose animals which exist.

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    5. Glasgow Boy16 February 2015 at 05:15

      You mean known to exist?

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    6. Anonymous16 February 2015 at 05:33

      Yes, rather than ones we know do not exist in loch ness.

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    7. Glasgow Boy16 February 2015 at 05:45

      Which ones do we know do not exist in Loch Ness?

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    8. Anonymous16 February 2015 at 06:34

      Giant salamanders, plesiosaur like animals and giant eels. These are known to not exist in the loch.

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    9. Anonymous18 February 2015 at 02:48

      They exist,and possibly together.

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    10. Anonymous18 February 2015 at 03:45

      Great! There must be loads of videos then. I'll take a look on YouTube now!!

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    11. John Alvarado18 February 2015 at 11:57

      Well, according to one well known believer of something “Big” residing in the loch, the LNM could very well be a gigantic salamander. And there are large salamanders to be found in the world and on YouTube, just not “gigantic or monstrous” ones. You probably know who I,m referring to, but in case you don't, look here:

      http://thelochnessgiantsalamander.blogspot.com/

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    12. Anonymous18 February 2015 at 14:07

      Salamanders up to 30ft long? All head and neck reports would need to be mistaken or fake for a monster salamander to be our beastie. Thoughts, John?

      Delete
    13. John Alvarado18 February 2015 at 14:46

      I didn't say I believed there is a giant salamander in Loch Ness. I said the author of that blog does. I don't believe there is a plesiosaur there either, just some unknown “something”

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    14. John Ayzapric19 February 2015 at 03:40

      John, do your theories on loch ness echo Glasgow Boy's exactly, or do you have any differing views to him about the monster?

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    15. John Alvarado19 February 2015 at 08:03

      I don't have theories, or one specific theory. Suffice to say that I just believe there is a large animal unknown to science. I wouldn't want to speak for GB, but, yes I go along with most of his line of thinking. That is to say, no big fish, no plesiosaur, no giant eel (not sure on that on, ask him on that) and perhaps no giant salamander, due to the long neck discrepancy. As such for both he and I, identity of said animal is pretty much still up in the air.

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    16. John Ayzapric19 February 2015 at 10:07

      You know what, if you'd asked me 6 months ago I'd have screamed from the rooftop that this thing could not be a large fish. Now I'm not so sure. When reading witness reports and seeing the docu's I have found the hump reports far more convincing than the neck ones. None of those have ever quite rung true for me. I'm thinking a large migratory fish could account for this legend. Doesn't seem to be around any more though.

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    17. John Alvarado19 February 2015 at 12:10

      Yes, I suppose anything is possible and who knows, if it is a big fish maybe the head/neck configuration mentioned now and then is some sort of an appendage. One interesting bit of lore I've read from days of yore going back to medieval times, is not so much head and neck, but of moving islands. One could surmise that this was the back of some great fish! But then how does one account for land sightings and closeup eyewitness reports of a head chomping on something?

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    18. John Ayzapric19 February 2015 at 13:55

      Well there are many reports which contradict that 'false plesiosaur'iimage so beloved by artists over the years. That is the problem here. If we select one reported set of features then we are simultaneously rejecting numerous other reports. It's a conundrum for sure, John.

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    19. Glasgow Boy19 February 2015 at 14:10

      This has been discussed before. A proportion of reports are misidentifications and hoaxes which contaminate the true database.

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    20. Anonymous20 February 2015 at 09:26

      Ultimately the entire database may contain junk data. Take away the 'unproven' data and you are left with 0Kb. :(

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    21. The Shrimper20 February 2015 at 23:03

      I'm really looking forward to Roland's article on the huge discrepancies in the sightings database. I think he sits at home scratching his head over the various insurmountable problems facing the believers. Then formulates some half baked excuse, publishes it and feels like he has singlehandedly saved Nessie. Those who echo Roland's every word applaud with vigor while the rest of us are left thinking "No Roland, you haven't answered it properly!!!!"

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  2. John Alvarado18 February 2015 at 14:03

    I'll say this again and for the last time, lest I get in trouble for it... again. It's hard to know which Anonymous is which. Sounds like a schizophrenic talking to himself or a person engaged in a soliloquy. Very confusing!

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    1. Glasgow Boy18 February 2015 at 14:06

      Seems they are embarrased to be associated with the subject, the complete opposite of their zeal to debate it.


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    2. Geordie Sceptic18 February 2015 at 14:20

      Might they remain anonymous to avoid the vitriol and bile they've seen directed my way? Not everyone can handle that level of monster-loving hysteria directed towards them.

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    3. Glasgow Boy18 February 2015 at 14:53

      Probably not.

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    4. Anonymous6 March 2015 at 15:00

      If its not on you tube it does not exist!!
      (Typical skeptic) facepalm*

      Delete
  3. Dane_7318 February 2015 at 22:17

    Hi All. Has anyone seen the Serton Analysis of the Tim Dinsdale 1960 film? The results are finally in from the US lab. Not formally published yet. A friend involved let me have a sneak peek on Tuesday and all I can say is O-M-G!!!

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    1. Glasgow Boy19 February 2015 at 02:01

      We would all be interested in any new research. When you have a link or some other source, let us know.

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  4. Geordie Sceptic22 February 2015 at 06:16

    How was the Tarot Club meeting in Edinburgh, GB? Any LN discussions?

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  5. trevorthecat25 February 2015 at 09:29

    http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/enormous-20stone-catfish-caught-with-fishing-rod-in-italy-after-40minute-boat-battle-10069898.html

    20-stone well catfish caught in Italy.

    They're out there!

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  6. jd27 August 2015 at 00:53

    Whilst paddling the great glen trail we found cetacean vertebrae on the south bank of Loch Ness.

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