THE PAIGNTON SEA MONSTER: AUBREY'S HYPOTHESIS

Jon, I'm writing about the photographs that have recently been published of the new Nessie off the Devon coast. The pictures, though not clear, could be that of a very rare whale found in British waters, that of the northern bottlenose whale (Hyperoodon ampullatus). The northern bottlenose whale matches the colour described by Gill Pearce as greenish brown. Actually the northern bottlenose whale has a colour range from dark grey to greenish brown and everything in between. It has a short dorsal fin found two thirds of the way down its back. The photograph I attached shows what appears to be a small dorsal fin. The photograph also shows a bulbous head sticking out of the water, and this is the trade mark of the northern bottlenose whale.

I stuck a picture from one of my books next to Gill Pearce's photograph for comparison. These whales are found from the Canadian coast in the east around southern Greenland, Iceland and Europe. They tend to travel in small groups but are also found on their own. They range in size from 23 to 29 feet. I did not read anywhere if a length was given by Gill Pearce. It is a member of the beaked whale family. The males have between 2 to 4 teeth the females none, or are hidden below the gum line. Some whales have no teeth at all. Their favourite food, like all beaked whales, are small fish and squid. Gill said this creature "snapped stalking a shoal of fish just 30 yards off the British coast." These whales are normally found in deep water but they are also known to strand themselves on beaches; anything is possible.

It was a whale of this species that died in the Thames a few years ago.