tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2330795933539580290.post6974008460209036897..comments2024-03-08T17:05:32.361-08:00Comments on Malcolm's Musings: Cryptozoology: Lake Monsters - What They Aren'tMalcolm Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00672612354161787023noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2330795933539580290.post-46106379904421121912015-05-25T05:36:13.978-07:002015-05-25T05:36:13.978-07:00Re: "I suppose, of course, it is theoreticall...Re: "I suppose, of course, it is theoretically possible for the animal to just poke its nostrils above the surface, but why would any long necked animal do that? It would serve no practical purpose."<br /><br />Plesiosaurs may not have been very fast swimmers and so may have practiced stealth tactics. They may have something to fear from other predators and from the sounds and sights of ships.<br /><br />Could plesiosaurs be entering temperate zone lakes in warm summer to reproduce/lay eggs at night? This would also be only brief and occasional visits.<br /><br />The idea is that the correct solution is that basilosaurs and plesiosaurs visit lakes and rivers only occasionally and only briefly. Laurence Clark Crossenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15908708438427333473noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2330795933539580290.post-54182499919815056942015-05-22T13:55:46.229-07:002015-05-22T13:55:46.229-07:00Then if a basilosaur-like archaeocete exists that ...Then if a basilosaur-like archaeocete exists that propels itself by multiple vertical undulations, if it does not have a blow hole on its back, could swim rapidly up rivers into lakes only needing to put its snout above water to breath. It could occasionally follow fish runs and return to the ocean without being noticed very easily.Laurence Clark Crossenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15908708438427333473noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2330795933539580290.post-68558303539498052312015-05-21T19:45:34.243-07:002015-05-21T19:45:34.243-07:00The impression I get is that their size is the sam...The impression I get is that their size is the same order of magnitude as that of whales, which means that their weight on land would be too much for their lungs to function - as is the case with whales. However, they would be better suited for moving in shallow water. Heuvelmans suggested that that is the reason why they do not get stranded as whales do.Malcolm Smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00672612354161787023noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2330795933539580290.post-56871871105586605542015-05-21T11:29:35.821-07:002015-05-21T11:29:35.821-07:00If the can multiple vertical undulate then can the...If the can multiple vertical undulate then can they move on land?Laurence Clark Crossenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15908708438427333473noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2330795933539580290.post-62742473116182911052015-05-21T01:51:30.719-07:002015-05-21T01:51:30.719-07:00Then the "humps" are actually vertical u...Then the "humps" are actually vertical undulations, as I have been supposing for years. Sometimes people have reported seeing under them.Laurence Clark Crossenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15908708438427333473noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2330795933539580290.post-31201933736775202302015-05-21T01:04:47.454-07:002015-05-21T01:04:47.454-07:00Such a method of propulsion would be consistent wi...Such a method of propulsion would be consistent with the reports of great speed and elusiveness.Laurence Clark Crossenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15908708438427333473noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2330795933539580290.post-90810799586510378982015-05-20T23:07:37.638-07:002015-05-20T23:07:37.638-07:00Yes. I suspect that explains many sea monsters, bu...Yes. I suspect that explains many sea monsters, but not lake monsters.Malcolm Smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00672612354161787023noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2330795933539580290.post-9295553899855385352015-05-20T10:30:13.988-07:002015-05-20T10:30:13.988-07:00Could there be a variety of archaeocetes or basilo...Could there be a variety of archaeocetes or basilosaurus that propels itself by multiple vertical undulations?Laurence Clark Crossenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15908708438427333473noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2330795933539580290.post-5725534180005531162015-05-17T12:57:57.670-07:002015-05-17T12:57:57.670-07:00I certainly agree that they are more likely to be ...I certainly agree that they are more likely to be supposedly extinct than new creatures and that they are temporary visitors from the sea. Gould suggested they came in from the sea but the big trouble for this idea is Bauer's confused and muddled version of this which is the straw man. I accept the careful and logical debunking of the surgeon's photo. At the time surgeon's were incredibly highly esteemed and it is likely he had sufficient contempt for folk beliefs to have done this. I do not know why you think the mini submarine is ludicrous. The worst part of that was the material which was not yet available at the time.This could be just a mistake of memory. Ectothermy is not an obstacle for leatherbacks or for plesiosaurs off the British Isles palmly shores. Plesiosaurs would not be ruled out as temporary visitors in warm months by their need to breath. You are falling into the trap of the idea that they reside permanently there. As for poking the head up more than just nostrils, predators are often very stealthy and elusive by habit. <br />Archaeocetes may have been able to move through shallow water or even over bits of land <br />like sand bars considering their ability to vertically undulate. Laurence Clark Crossenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15908708438427333473noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2330795933539580290.post-16349659240898406692015-04-06T18:13:04.568-07:002015-04-06T18:13:04.568-07:00Great questions Malcolm.
http://aquaticandaeriala...Great questions Malcolm. <br />http://aquaticandaerialanomolyassociation.blogspot.com/2014/04/the-american-aquatic-and-aerial-anomaly.htmlChuck Poganhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02516111702134918638noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2330795933539580290.post-27691585113314394912015-04-06T16:58:59.673-07:002015-04-06T16:58:59.673-07:00a very enjoyable read ... I'll be simplistic a...a very enjoyable read ... I'll be simplistic and just refer to them all as 'aquatic creatures' , at which point plenty of known animals fit the bill without having to introduce something unknown: sturgeon (as you mention), oarfish, a single-file group of otters or beavers or large turtles ... I'm sure you're familiar with all these explanation. In the open seas, perhaps still something unknown - but in retrospect Nessie just seems so unlikely as to be, simply, impossible. My opinion on that has been greatly reinforced by the wonderful Internet - until recently I didn't really distinguish between British journalism and American (we look alike, we talk somewhat alike), but their tendencies to over-dramatize things (especially UK things) proved to be quite a surprise. I think the UK always wanted 'their' own monster, making the 'great white hunter' have to travel to Africa or South America must have been discouraging (ie Piltdown man as a similar example). With the Dinsdale film shown to be a boat, the Rines photos heavily 'enhanced (30 years before the term 'photo-shopped' became a commonly used verb), and all photos from the 30's quite suspect, there really is nothing to bank on ... in my opinion.jamesravhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00870675215940687987noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2330795933539580290.post-32581004752456588992015-04-06T16:42:54.244-07:002015-04-06T16:42:54.244-07:00A sea rather than lake monster: http://bizarrezool...A sea rather than lake monster: http://bizarrezoology.blogspot.com/2013/04/a-submarine-pilot-plesiosaur-sighting.html<br />How to explain this in your context of possibilities? Indeed a mystery.Ronhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00452222696907771602noreply@blogger.com