Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
DNA Samples Could Decide Loch Ness Monster Legend
Bill McEwen updated website photo 2024
By Bill McEwen, News Director
Published 7 years ago on
May 23, 2018

Share

WELLINGTON, New Zealand — The stories seem as tall as the lake is deep. For hundreds of years, visitors to Scotland’s Loch Ness have described seeing a monster that some believe lurks in the depths.
But now the legend of “Nessie” may have no place left to hide. A New Zealand scientist is leading an international team to the lake next month, where they will take samples of the murky waters and conduct DNA tests to determine what species live there.
University of Otago professor Neil Gemmell says he’s no believer in Nessie, but he wants to take people on an adventure and communicate some science along the way. Besides, he says, his kids think it’s one of the coolest things he’s ever done.

Neil Gemmell
This December, 2016 photo provided by Neil Gemmell, shows University of Otago Professor Gemmell in Dunedin, New Zealand. Gemmell is leading a team to Scotland’s Loch Ness lake in June, 2018 to take DNA samples to find out what species live in the murky waters and to look for any sign of the legendary Loch Ness Monster. (Christine Auste/Courtesy of Neil Gemmell via AP)
One of the more far-fetched theories is that Nessie is a long-necked plesiosaur that somehow survived the period when dinosaurs became extinct. Another theory is that the monster is actually a sturgeon or giant catfish. Many believe the sightings are hoaxes or can be explained by floating logs or strong winds.

DNA Left Behind in Water

Gemmell said that when creatures move about in water, they leave behind tiny fragments of DNA. It comes from their skin, feathers, scales and urine.
He said his team will take 300 samples of water from different points around the lake and at different depths. They will filter the organic material and extract the DNA, he said, sequencing it by using technology originally created for the human genome project.
He said the DNA results will then be compared against a database of known species. He said they should have answers by the end of the year.
“I’m going into this thinking it’s unlikely there is a monster, but I want to test that hypothesis,” Gemmell said. “What we’ll get is a really nice survey of the biodiversity of the Loch Ness.”
He said the real discoveries may come in determining things like the prevalence of invasive species.

 
Loch Ness
FILE – The undated file photo shows Scotland’s 23-mile long Loch Ness, home of the elusive monster, Nessie. In foreground is Urquhart Castle. For hundreds of years, visitors to Scotland’s Loch Ness have described seeing a monster that some believe lives in the depths. Now the legend of “Nessie” may have no place to hide. Researchers will travel there next month to take samples of the murky waters and use DNA tests to determine what species live there. (AP Photo, File)
Gemmell, 51, said he first visited Loch Ness in his late 20s while on vacation. Like thousands of tourists before him, he gazed out over the lake trying to catch sight of a monster. He said he first came up with the idea of testing DNA from the lake a couple of years ago and it resonated with many, including his children, aged 7 and 10.
Graeme Matheson, chief of the Scottish Society of New Zealand, said he, too, has visited Loch Ness and gazed out over the water, and that he wishes Gemmell all the best.

‘Good Way To Get Trip To Scotland’

“I hope he and his cohorts find something, although I think they’ll be battling,” Matheson said. “Still, it’s a good way to get a trip to Scotland.”
Gemmell said that even if they don’t find any monster DNA, it won’t deter some Nessie believers. He said they’ve already been offering him theories, like that Nessie might be on vacation after swimming to the sea via hidden underwater caves, or that the creature might be extraterrestrial and not leave behind any DNA.
“In our lives we want there still to be mysteries, some of which we will ultimately solve,” Gemmell said. “That’s part of the spirit of discovery. And sometimes, what you find may not be what you were expecting.”

DON'T MISS

What to Know About Pam Bondi, Trump’s New Pick for Attorney General

DON'T MISS

North Korean Leader Says Past Diplomacy Only Confirmed US Hostility

DON'T MISS

Democrats Strike Deal to Get More Biden Judges Confirmed Before Congress Adjourns

DON'T MISS

Newsom Gaslights on Potential Gas Price Hikes in Fresno Visit

DON'T MISS

Automakers to Trump: Please Require Us to Sell Electric Vehicles

DON'T MISS

President Biden Welcomes 2024 NBA Champion Boston Celtics to White House

DON'T MISS

Ohtani Makes History With 3rd MVP, Judge Claims 2nd AL Honor

DON'T MISS

Trump Chooses Pam Bondi for Attorney General Pick After Gaetz Withdraws

DON'T MISS

Average Rate on a 30-Year Mortgage in the US Rises to Highest Level Since July

DON'T MISS

Cutting in Line? American Airlines’ New Boarding Tech Might Stop You at Now Over 100 Airports

UP NEXT

Putin Says Russia Has Tested a New Intermediate Range Missile in a Strike on Ukraine

UP NEXT

What Will Happen to CNBC and MSNBC When They No Longer Have a Corporate Connection to NBC News?

UP NEXT

Pope to Make Late Italian Teenager Carlo Acutis the First Millennial Saint on April 27

UP NEXT

US Vetoes UN Ceasefire Resolution in Gaza Conflict

UP NEXT

Bomb Cyclone Kills 1 and Knocks Out Power to Over Half a Million Homes Across the Northwest US

UP NEXT

Israeli Officials Demand the Right to Strike Hezbollah Under Any Cease-Fire Deal for Lebanon

UP NEXT

Spain Will Legalize Hundreds of Thousands of Undocumented Migrants in the Next 3 Years

UP NEXT

TSMC Walks a Geopolitical Tightrope

UP NEXT

Volunteers Came Back to Nonprofits in 2023, After the Pandemic Tanked Participation

UP NEXT

New Study: Proposed Trump Tariffs Could Cost US Consumers $78 Billion a Year

Bill McEwen,
News Director
Bill McEwen is news director and columnist for GV Wire. He joined GV Wire in August 2017 after 37 years at The Fresno Bee. With The Bee, he served as Opinion Editor, City Hall reporter, Metro columnist, sports columnist and sports editor through the years. His work has been frequently honored by the California Newspapers Publishers Association, including authoring first-place editorials in 2015 and 2016. Bill and his wife, Karen, are proud parents of two adult sons, and they have two grandsons. You can contact Bill at 559-492-4031 or at Send an Email

Newsom Gaslights on Potential Gas Price Hikes in Fresno Visit

4 hours ago

Automakers to Trump: Please Require Us to Sell Electric Vehicles

4 hours ago

President Biden Welcomes 2024 NBA Champion Boston Celtics to White House

4 hours ago

Ohtani Makes History With 3rd MVP, Judge Claims 2nd AL Honor

5 hours ago

Trump Chooses Pam Bondi for Attorney General Pick After Gaetz Withdraws

5 hours ago

Average Rate on a 30-Year Mortgage in the US Rises to Highest Level Since July

5 hours ago

Cutting in Line? American Airlines’ New Boarding Tech Might Stop You at Now Over 100 Airports

6 hours ago

MLB Will Test Robot Umpires at 13 Spring Training Ballparks Hosting 19 Teams

6 hours ago

Death Toll in Gaza From Israel-Hamas War Passes 44,000, Palestinian Officials Say

6 hours ago

Jussie Smollett’s Conviction in 2019 Attack on Himself Is Overturned

6 hours ago

What to Know About Pam Bondi, Trump’s New Pick for Attorney General

NEW YORK — Pam Bondi, the former Florida attorney general, was chosen Thursday by Donald Trump to serve as U.S. attorney general hours after...

2 hours ago

2 hours ago

What to Know About Pam Bondi, Trump’s New Pick for Attorney General

3 hours ago

North Korean Leader Says Past Diplomacy Only Confirmed US Hostility

3 hours ago

Democrats Strike Deal to Get More Biden Judges Confirmed Before Congress Adjourns

4 hours ago

Newsom Gaslights on Potential Gas Price Hikes in Fresno Visit

President Joe Biden with Mary Barra, the chief executive of General Motors, at the Detroit Auto Show, Sept. 14, 2022. President-elect Donald Trump has promised to erase the Biden administration’s tailpipe rules designed to get carmakers to produce electric vehicles, but most U.S. automakers want to keep them. (Doug Mills/The New York Times)
4 hours ago

Automakers to Trump: Please Require Us to Sell Electric Vehicles

4 hours ago

President Biden Welcomes 2024 NBA Champion Boston Celtics to White House

5 hours ago

Ohtani Makes History With 3rd MVP, Judge Claims 2nd AL Honor

Former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi, speaks before Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump arrives to speak at a campaign rally at First Horizon Coliseum, Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024, in Greensboro, NC. (AP/Alex Brandon)
5 hours ago

Trump Chooses Pam Bondi for Attorney General Pick After Gaetz Withdraws

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend