🟦PURPOSE OF THE OPEN QUESTION🟦

Consulting out of simple scientific curiosity, the immense mass of alternative (and not self-excluding) explanations on the real origin of the contemporary myth of Nessie or the Lochness Monster, the following explanations are certainly worthy of interest...

--geological origin of the phenomenon (Earth System Processes - Global Meeting, June 24-28, 2001. SEISMOTECTONIC ORIGINS OF THE MONSTER OF LOCH NESS. https://www.researchgate.net/figure/1_fig650_346931099 );

--origin from groups of European eels https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loch_Ness_Monster#Eels or from a massive catfish https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loch_Ness_Monster#Wels_catfish

--very interesting Wade https://jeremywade.co.uk/about thesis about the Greenland https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loch_Ness_Monster#Greenland_shark shark.

In this open question, a further zoological explanation is added, which would be interesting to bring to the attention of the scientific community and/or enthusiasts, in order to complete and expand the cryptozoological puzzle of Nessie.

🟦DATA🟦

This open question arises from the fact that one of the main morphological characteristics of some descriptions of Nessie's silhouette concerns the structure of the head https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/13/Loch_Ness_monster_views.svg/800px-Loch_Ness_monster_views.svg.png decidedly rounded and not comparable to that of a plesiosaur, an eel, a catfish, a Greenland https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greenland_shark Shark.

Therefore the first morphological characteristic sought was that of a head that was not elongated and flat but rounded and globoidal.

The second characteristic is that the dimensions must be at least those of an adult human and certainly not those of an eel or a catfish, however corpulent they may be.

The other characteristics that were searched for in association with the previous ones are:

--body length of at least 2m;

--very tapered body shape;

--grey / dark gray body color;

--dorsal fin absent;

--teeth present and clearly visible-recognizable;

--presence in Lochness Lake https://maps.app.goo.gl/jBMknT45dQn8woWr5 and/or the adjacent River Ness https://maps.app.goo.gl/mjNnhfA6bdutqYwV8 which connects the lake to the Moray Firth https://maps.app.goo.gl/XwuuGeLT6BSgYDKM8 (including the sea in front https://maps.app.goo.gl/FmnfheeNDzzbgubT6) with detailed historical or recent references.

🟦Delphinapterus leucas as Nessie??🟦

The relatively recent sighting of a beluga dolphin Delphinapterus leucas (Pallas, 1776) in the River Thames (2018) pushed me to carry out a series of preliminary bibliographic searches in order to evaluate whether or not the characteristics of the beluga itself match those of Nessie. Beluga has..

..rounded head https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beluga_whale#Head_and_neck and mobile neck;

..absence of dorsal fin https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beluga_whale#Fins not even outlined;

..tapered body and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beluga_whale#Size over 2 meters long;

..teeth present and well https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beluga_whale#/media/File:Delphinapterus_leucas_beluga_MNHN.jpg recognisable-individuable.

🟦PROBLEMS🟦

The problems to overcome in order to associate some Nessie sightings with the beluga dolphin, would be:

--body color;

--geographical location.

The coloration in young specimens https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beluga_whale#Colour is grey-brown; therefore it is very plausible that rare and large animals could be over 2 meters long and of an unusual color (grey-brown-dark); furthermore, medium-large specimens with undoubtedly dark https://www.researchgate.net/figure/fig97_346931099 coloring are regularly captured. So this element would also theoretically be overcome.

The beluga dolphin spends part of the year near fjords https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beluga_whale#Habitat and river estuaries. So also this element would theoretically be overcome.

Several specimens have been spotted in the marine area connected to the Moray fjord

Balintore sea .. https://www.researchgate.net/figure/fig689_346931099

https://uk.whales.org/whales-dolphins/which-whales-and-dolphins-live-in-the-uk/

which makes the main obstacle, that of possible presence near Lochness lake, easily overcome.

Recent sightings of beluga dolphins have also been made in the rivers:

Amur, Hillsborough, Kuskokwim, Nelson, Saguenay, Seine, Thames..

https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/news/2018/september/could-storms-be-behind-the-lost-beluga-in-the-thames-.html

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/aug/10/beluga-whale-that-strayed-into-river-seine-dies-during-rescue-operation

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/267288634

https://alaskapublic.org/2022/05/31/beluga-whales-swam-up-the-kuskokwim-river-to-bethel-and-scientists-want-samples-of-them/

https://artsandculture.google.com/story/the-st-lawrence-beluga-and-humans-at-a-crossroads-parks-canada/CgXRLmiecm-Z9g?hl=en

https://www.pbs.org/video/great-lakes-now-beluga-whales/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beluga_whale#Distribution

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/prince-edward-island/pei-beluga-whale-colville-bay-1.6025378

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/prince-edward-island/pei-beluga-whale-watching-covid-1.6029540

confirming the previous point.

There have even been documented lake sightings, such as:

--Lake Aleknagik

https://www.kdlg.org/environment/2022-07-17/belugas-spotted-swimming-in-lake-aleknagik

https://maps.app.goo.gl/m3ShYN6zREpESu7B9

https://maps.app.goo.gl/FukJWqhTRfdMYEmt7

--Lake Champlain

https://www.unexplained-mysteries.com/news/274499/incredible-discovery-at-lake-champlain

https://inovemondi.forumfree.it/?t=69792598

https://maps.app.goo.gl/1uwbCTW7quMRkxuu9

--Baker Lake

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/baker-lake-catches-its-first-beluga-1.2731523

https://nunatsiaq.com/stories/article/65674baker_lake_bears_its_first_beluga/

https://maps.app.goo.gl/oJ5ZX8iaF6hN7wUY9

🟦CONCLUSIONS🟦

The elements characterizing the beluga associate quite well with some of the overall characteristics of Nessie and in some cases even better than the zoological explanations so far attributed to the Lochness Monster.

The beluga also reveals itself as an authentic unexpected guest of deep fjords, estuaries, rivers and lakes in numerous locations in the seas of the northern hemisphere, in some cases generating local mini-legends similar to Lochness but not as famous as it.

In the current state of the accumulated data, the ""Nessie as Beluga Whale hypothesis"" appears not only well-founded but also one of the most plausible: serpentine body; absence of dorsal fin; globoidal head, mobile and with evident teeth; grey-brown body, at least during part of life and also for medium-large specimens; overall length 300-600cm; sightings coinciding with the Moray Firth area; not rare sightings in lake environments hundreds of km from the open sea.

To these listed data, others are added which can actually further mislead the identification of a dolphin in a lake:

--the beluga does not have the behavior of jumping out of the water;

--the beluga swims slowly and during emergence from the water surface it rarely exposes its tail, which therefore remains under water unlike its back, which instead forms at least a well-pronounced and visible hump;

--mature and large belugas have lateral expansions of the body which give them a much larger and broader shape when viewed from above https://www.researchgate.net/publication/237064254 a characteristic which could further increase the confusion with the real type of animal (Nessie-like??). Further data will be necessary, even if the evidence produced so far appears robust.

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Il Mostro di Lochness potrebbe essere la risultante anche di avvistamenti lacustro-fluviali di beluga (Delphinapterus leucas)??

🟩SCOPO DELLA OPEN QUESTION🟩

Consultando per semplice curiosità scientifica, l'immensa mole di spiegazioni alternative (e non auto-escludenti) sull'origine reale del mito contemporaneo di Nessie o Mostro di Lochness, certamente degne di interesse sono le spiegazioni seguenti ..

--origine geologica del fenomeno (Earth System Processes - Global Meeting, June 24-28, 2001. SEISMOTECTONIC ORIGINS OF THE MONSTER OF LOCH NESS. https://www.researchgate.net/figure/1_fig650_346931099 );

--origine da gruppi d'anguille europee https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loch_Ness_Monster#Eels o da un massiccio pesce gatto https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loch_Ness_Monster#Wels_catfish;

--interessantissima tesi di Wade https://jeremywade.co.uk/about dello squalo https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loch_Ness_Monster#Greenland_shark della Groenlandia.

In questa open question si aggiunge una ulteriore spiegazione di tipo zoologico, che sarebbe interessante porre all'attenzione della comunità scientifica e/o di appassionati, al fine di completare ed ampliare il puzzle criptozoologico di Nessie.

🟩DATI🟩

La presente open question nasce dal fatto che una delle principali caratteristiche morfologiche di alcune descrizioni della silhouette di Nessie riguarda la struttura del capo https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/13/Loch_Ness_monster_views.svg/800px-Loch_Ness_monster_views.svg.png decisamente arrotondata e non assimilabile a quella di un plesiosauro, una anguilla, un pesce gatto, uno Squalo https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greenland_shark della Groenlandia.

Pertanto la prima caratteristica morfologica ricercata è stata quella di un capo non allungato e piatto ma arrotondato e globoidale.

La seconda caratteristica è che le dimensioni devono essere almeno quelle di un umano adulto e non certamente quelle di una anguilla o di un pesce gatto, per quanto corpulenti.

Le altre caratteristiche che sono state ricercate in associazione alle precedenti, sono:

--lunghezza del corpo di almeno 2m;

--forma del corpo molto affusolata;

--colorazione corporea grigio / grigio scura;

--pinna dorsale assente;

--denti presenti e ben visibili-riconoscibili;

--presenza nel lago di Lochness https://maps.app.goo.gl/jBMknT45dQn8woWr5 e/o annesso fiume Ness https://maps.app.goo.gl/mjNnhfA6bdutqYwV8 che lo collega al Fiordo di Moray Firth https://maps.app.goo.gl/XwuuGeLT6BSgYDKM8 (mare antistante incluso https://maps.app.goo.gl/FmnfheeNDzzbgubT6 ) con circonstanziati riferimenti storici o recenti.

🟩Delphinapterus leucas as Nessie??🟩

Il relativamente recente avvistamento di un delfino beluga nel fiume Tamigi (2018) mi spinse ad eseguire una serie di ricerche bibliografiche preliminari al fine di valutare l'aderenza o meno delle caratteristiche del beluga Delphinapterus leucas (Pallas, 1776) stesso a quelle di Nessie. Il beluga difatti possiede ..

..testa arrotondata https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beluga_whale#Head_and_neck e collo mobile;

..assenza di pinna dorsale https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beluga_whale#Fins nemmeno accennata;

..corpo affusolato e https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beluga_whale#Size lungo ben otre 2 metri;

..denti presenti e ben https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beluga_whale#/media/File:Delphinapterus_leucas_beluga_MNHN.jpg riconoscibili-individuabili.

🟩PROBLEMI🟩

I problemi da superare per associare alcuni avvistamenti di Nessie al delfino beluga, sarebbero:

--colorazione;

--collocazione geografica.

La colorazione negli esemplari giovani https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beluga_whale#Colour è grigio-bruna; pertanto è ben plausibile che rari animali e di grandi dimensioni possano risultare di oltre 2 metri e di colore inusuale (grigio-bruno-marrone); inoltre vengono regolarmente catturati esemplari di medio-grandi dimensioni dalla colorazione indubbiamente https://www.researchgate.net/figure/fig97_346931099 scura. Quindi anche questo elemento sarebbe teoricamente superato/superabile.

Il delfino beluga trascorre una parte dell'anno in prossimità di fiordi https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beluga_whale#Habitat ed estuari fluviali. Quindi anche questo elemento sarebbe teoricamente superato/superabile.

Diversi esemplari sono stati avvistati proprio nell'area marina connessa al fiordo di Moray..

https://www.researchgate.net/figure/fig689_346931099

https://uk.whales.org/whales-dolphins/which-whales-and-dolphins-live-in-the-uk/

il che rende agilmente superato proprio l'ostacolo principale, quello della possibile presenza

Recenti avvistamenti di delfino beluga poi sono stati effettuati nei fiumi:

Amur, Hillsborough, Kuskokwim, Nelson, Saguenay, Senna, Tamigi..

https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/news/2018/september/could-storms-be-behind-the-lost-beluga-in-the-thames-.html

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/aug/10/beluga-whale-that-strayed-into-river-seine-dies-during-rescue-operation

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/267288634

https://alaskapublic.org/2022/05/31/beluga-whales-swam-up-the-kuskokwim-river-to-bethel-and-scientists-want-samples-of-them/

https://artsandculture.google.com/story/the-st-lawrence-beluga-and-humans-at-a-crossroads-parks-canada/CgXRLmiecm-Z9g?hl=en

https://www.pbs.org/video/great-lakes-now-beluga-whales/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beluga_whale#Distribution

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/prince-edward-island/pei-beluga-whale-colville-bay-1.6025378

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/prince-edward-island/pei-beluga-whale-watching-covid-1.6029540

confermando il punto precedente.

Addirittura ci sono stati documentati avvistamenti lacustri, come:

--Lago Aleknagik

https://maps.app.goo.gl/m3ShYN6zREpESu7B9

https://www.kdlg.org/environment/2022-07-17/belugas-spotted-swimming-in-lake-aleknagik

https://maps.app.goo.gl/FukJWqhTRfdMYEmt7

--Lago Champlain

https://maps.app.goo.gl/1uwbCTW7quMRkxuu9

https://www.unexplained-mysteries.com/news/274499/incredible-discovery-at-lake-champlain

https://inovemondi.forumfree.it/?t=69792598

--Lago Baker

https://maps.app.goo.gl/oJ5ZX8iaF6hN7wUY9

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/baker-lake-catches-its-first-beluga-1.2731523

https://nunatsiaq.com/stories/article/65674baker_lake_bears_its_first_beluga/

🟩CONCLUSIONI🟩

Gli elementi caratterizzanti il beluga si associano abbastanza bene con alcune delle caratteristiche complessive di Nessie ed in alcuni casi anche meglio delle spiegazioni zoologiche finora attribuite al mostro di Lochness.

Il beluga inoltre si rivela come un autentico ospite inatteso di fiordi profondi, estuari, fiumi, laghi di numerose località dei mari dell'emisfero nord, generando in alcuni casi mini-leggende locali analoghe a Lochness ma non famose come essa.

Allo stato attuale dei dati accumulati, l'ipotesi Nessie as Beluga Whale appare non solo fondata ma anche una delle più plausibili: corpo serpentiforme; assenza di pinna dorsale; capo globoidale, mobile e con denti evidenti; corpo grigio-bruno, almeno durante una parte della vita ed anche per esemplari di medio-grandi dimensioni; lunghezza complessiva 300-600cm; avvistamenti coincidenti con la zona del fiordo Moray Firth; non rari avvistamenti in ambienti lacustri a centinaia di km dal mare aperto.

Ai dati elencati se ne aggiungono altri che effettivamente possono fuorviare ancor più l'identificazione di un delfino in un lago:

--il beluga non ha il comportamento di saltare fuori dall'acqua;

--il beluga nuota lentamente e durante le emersioni raramente espone la coda, che pertanto permane in acqua a differenza del dorso, che invece forma almeno una gobba ben pronunciata e visibile;

--beluga maturi e di grande taglia, presentano espansioni laterali del corpo che gli conferiscono una forma molto più larga e ampia in visione dall'alto https://www.researchgate.net/publication/237064254 caratteristica che potrebbe ulteriormente aumentare la confusione con la reale tipologia di animale (Nessie-like??). Ulteriori dati saranno necessari, anche se gli indizi finora prodotti appaiono robusti.

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◎ACAD.-- https://www.academia.edu/107123208/