Scotland and Monsters: The Real Ones!

Probably the most famous monster in the world is the Loch Ness monster, or Nessie as the monster is often called. The Yeti, Sasquatch and Abominable snowmen (rather popular during the winter seasons) are probably too diverse both geographically and in appearance to be thought of as a single species to be any real competition (although there are those who might argue there is more evidence for these then the beloved Nessie).

After the revelation that the infamous surgeon’s photo was faked, there was some disappointment for Nessie believers. No evidence has been found yet which would definitively prove the existence of such an animal in the Loch.

However….. although there may not be monsters in the loch at this time – that doesn’t mean there have never been huge animals anywhere in Scotland, and it is becoming more and more evident that Scotland is a great source of prehistoric monstrous animals. Lately, several such finds have proven that dinosaurs walk on land which is now Scotland and swam in the waters in the country.

There are some interesting developments along the prehistoric “monster” lines in Scotland and more have been found. . Some time back in issue 44 we reported that scientists claimed a fish called Microbrachius dicki was the first animal known to stop reproducing by spawning and invented “sex” so to speak. The primitive bony fish was small, perhaps 8cm long, lived in lakes about 385 million years ago which are now in Scotland.

Now some other interesting fossils have appeared on Scottish ground. What has become known as “The Storr Lochs Monster “was found in the summer in 1966 by an amateur fossil hunter, Norrie Gillies. Gillies, contacted the Royal Scottish Museum about his find and they sent a team of scientists to excavate the fossil. Later the fossil because part of the National Museums of Scotland collection, when the Royal Scottish Museum was absorbed by the National Museums of Scotland.

Despite the fact the fossils were discovered and excavated in the mid 1960’s it wasn’t until 2015 that work began extricating the fossil from the surrounding sedimentary rock – tricky process requiring both expert scientific knowledge and the correct tools. Such things are often expensive and there wasn’t enough money to carry out the work.

Alan Gillies, Norrie’s son, contacted SSE (Scottish and Southern Energy) company, for which his fossil hunting father had worked as an electrical engineer, and company decided to support the work on the fossil.

The fossil turns out to be an ichthyosaur, a marine reptile from the middle Jurassic period – a period about 56 million years which lasted from roughly 201 million years ago until about 145 million years ago. There are many species of ichthyosaurs, and it is not clear if this particular one belongs to a known species or is a member of a heretofore unknown species. This particular specimen is about 13 feet long. Ichthyosaurs range in size from a small form about a foot in length to the Shonisaurus sikanniensis aka Shastasaurus sikanniensis which was estimated to have been 21 m (69 ft) in length.

Skye seems to be a kind of treasure trove for fossils and a good number of them have turned up on The Misty Isle. In 2008, the earliest known turtles were found on the Isle.

Another interesting find were trackprints the fossilized footprints of dinosaurs on the Isle of Skye. In 1982 the first of these was found on the island. They belong to a bird footed plant eating iguanadon. Other discoveries have been the fossilized bones of sauropods – the largest kind of land animals known.

A few years ago, herds of sauropods also left their footprints on Skye. Dr. Steve Brusatte and his team found the footprints as the tide ebbed below Duntulm Castle. These date from approximately 170 million years ago.

Now, palaeontologist Elsa Panciroli, 35, a PhD student in palaeontology, who hails from Inverness, and is based at the University of Edinburgh and the National Museum of Scotland has announced yet another find on Skye. The dig which she leads appears to have located some individual bones of what may be a medium sized dinosaur. Dinosaurs are very specific kinds of reptiles and there are many of those around at the same time as the dinosaurs. The ichthyosaur discussed above, for example is a marine reptile which lived at the time of the dinosaurs is not itself a dinosaur but a contemporary.

It was also hinted that there might have been some further discoveries in Eigg as well. Scientists, reasonably enough, are very cautious about revealing information about finds before a good deal of study has taken place. Many details have to be worked out before any kind of certainty has been achieved, and scientists are cautious about making any statement before the evidence is in.

In addition, many areas of science which seem not to have immediate technological value are often underfunded and so new finds in evolution are often kept hidden until finding cycles make it more productive. Sad, but it is the case.

While Skye has many sites where there are fossils and even dinosaur footprints, it is most important that people not run around gathering up fossils for their own private collections. If anyone finds a fossil, they should contact their local Natural History museum with a paleontologist and notify them of the find as Norrie Gilies did. Removal of fossils from the places where they are found causes the loss of much data which could have provided valuable information.

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