Comments on: Sea Serpent Candidates: Georgiacetus & The Ancient Whales

By: drjon

drjon — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 06:04:13 +0000

Maybe these have something to do with the 2004 reports about the 52hz Cryptowhale?

By: DinosaurTeacher

DinosaurTeacher — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 17:44:01 +0000

BigfootDad, we know because of the unique earbone that clade/dynasty of mammals has evolved to adapt to the water. Its as distinct as a paleontological fingerprint, and found in all the cetaceans streching back to pakicetus. Ambulocetus DOES look like an alligator, but we have an amazing record of the way gradual changes overtime added up in that evolutionary clade.

By: MattBille

MattBille — Sat, 20 Sep 2008 07:25:30 +0000

The Japanese carcass was definitively identified as a shark, see several sources for confirmation of that finding.

Roy Mackal opined that the White River Monster was a very lost elephant seal. See his Searching for Hidden Animals for details.

As to cetaceans and sea serpents:

I group sea serpent reports into two categories. The first is elongated animals. A basilosaur would make a good fit for some reports of elongated animals, though surely is it more likely that a huge eel or eel-like fish (much better equipped to hide from scientists as well as from harpooners) is involved when that also fits the evidence.

The other main grouping of sea serpent reports (the SS Umfuli’s, for example) involve witnesses insisting they clearly saw a long neck much smaller than the body. We have no fossils of any cetacean with a long neck, and indeed they were evolving the other way, until only the beluga and some river dolphins have visible necks at all. The pinnipeds, which have maintained visible, flexible necks and did include one extinct long-necked form we know of, seem like better candidates if these reports do, in fact, concern mammals.

By: Devonian

Devonian — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 23:12:11 +0000

“Has any body else noticed how much like a primate’s hands the front feet of Ambulocetus look?”
I think that’s just the generic tetrapod hand…

By: Munnin

Munnin — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 22:16:22 +0000

DWA: On April 25, 1977, the Japanese trawler Zuiyo Maru, sailing east of Christchurch, New Zealand, caught a strange, unknown creature in the trawl. Photographs and tissue specimens were taken. While initially identified as a prehistoric plesiosaur, analysis later indicated that the body was the carcass of a basking shark.

By: kentmcmanigal

kentmcmanigal — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 15:41:14 +0000

Back around 1980 I did research and made an expedition to investigate the “White River Monster” of Newport AR. Based upon old newspaper photos I decided it looked similar to a zeuglodon, but with legs.

By: mystery_man

mystery_man — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 15:40:48 +0000

Absolutely surviving species of ancient whales could be out there if they were able to adapt to any changes that their habitat might have undergone, or managed to evolve to branch out or meet new demands put upon them by their environment. The oceans continually amaze and surprise us, and there is a lot that has not been properly explored. In my opinion, the oceans are some of the most promising places for truly remarkable large animal discoveries in the future. The possibility of one of these ancient species surviving is certainly there.

By: DWA

DWA — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 15:33:35 +0000

Well, shoot, in the oceans anything’s possible.

But that’s the rub, if we’re talking about this from a scientific perspective. We need to see evidence, which would include lots of sightings which ARE INTERNALLY CONSISTENT. That is something that seems to me lacking when we talk about sea serpents, lake monsters and the like. Lots of people see stuff in the water. But it starts falling apart when one tries to categorize it and come up with commonalities. As Myra Shackley says: we’re looking for frequency and coherence. And not even Nessie, in my humble, lives up to that standard. (Maybe frequency. But coherence? Phweef.)

I still wonder about that plesiosaur-like thing (photographed) brought up by, I believe, a Japanese trawler a number of years back. One photo, a really vague article, and then nothing else. What was THAT? I wonder how many finds like that just got tossed overboard because the livelihoods of the crew - can’t keep this on board, it’ll spoil the catch - combined with fear of the unknown (or I-don’t-need-to-know-thanks) to override curiosity.

I will say this, though. For cool insight into what evolution can come up with, you can’t beat bats and cetaceans.

By: YourPTR!

YourPTR! — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 15:17:14 +0000

Kutchicetus resembles a platypus with an extended bill, legs and a much longer tail.

By: MattBille

MattBille — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 15:00:26 +0000

Ambulocetus would make a great bunyip.