SCIENCE

If the famous cryptid exists, this eDNA hunt ought to find evidence—but if not, scientists will still gain valuable ecological data. (National Geographic)

What is the Loch Ness Monster? What is eDNA? Use our resources to find out.

Teachers, scroll down for a quick list of key resources in our Teachers Toolkit, including today’s MapMaker Interactive map.

Discussion Ideas

• A new genetic study aims to “find out once and for all if Scotland’s most famous ‘resident,’ the Loch Ness Monster, is or ever was hiding in the deep by sequencing as many DNA fragments as they can find in the lake’s murky waters.” What is the Loch Ness Monster? Consult our short, fun article for some help.
  • The Loch Ness Monster is a cryptid, described as an animal or other organism whose existence has not been proved. The Loch Ness Monster, nicknamed Nessie, is probably the most famous subject of cryptozoology, the study of cryptids. Other cryptozoology subjects include Bigfoot and the Yeti. (Take a look at this map for even more.) The first sighting of the Loch Ness Monster was in 564, and the latest was about 18 months ago. So what is Nessie?
    • plesiosaur. “Some cryptozoologists have argued that Nessie is a plesiosaur, a type of long-necked marine reptile that lived during the age of dinosaurs. Fossil evidence strongly suggests that, like nonavian dinosaurs, plesiosaurs went extinct no later than 66 million years ago.”
      • Skeptics: “Ecological studies suggest that Loch Ness doesn’t have enough fish to sustainably feed a breeding population of plesiosaurs, which could weigh upwards of 2,000 pounds each.”
    • fish. “As an alternative to plesiosaurs, some theorists suggest that Nessie’s witnesses have actually spotted a wayward sturgeon or an introduced Wels catfish.” (Notice it’s the same guy in both of those video links.)
      • Skeptics: Neither fish has been captured in Loch Ness yet.
    • economic resource. Every year, about a million people visit Loch Ness (Great Britain’s largest freshwater lake), and generate up to $173 million (£130 million).
      • No skeptics. Nothing cryptic about that.

• Scientists are searching for Nessie using environmental DNA (eDNA). What is eDNA?
  • Environmental DNA, also called metagenomics, describes the study of genetic material taken directly from environmental samples. Environmental samples are usually soil or water.
    • DNA is left in the environment as organisms go about their daily lives: “[S]kin, poop, eggs, sperm, you name it. This bio-schmutz contains samples of the organisms’ DNA, which then get mixed into the surrounding water and dirt. That means a single vial of soil or water can act as an accidental genetic library. Scientists can isolate and decode this eDNA and compare it against a database of known DNA sequences to identify the creatures that left it behind.”

• Scientists don’t have a DNA sample from Nessie (likely because one does not exist, ahem). So, how will they identify her DNA in Loch Ness?
  • Researchers expect to find hundreds, maybe thousands, of DNA sequences from plants, fish, fungi, and other organisms in Loch Ness. The samples will be sent to laboratories in New Zealand, Australia, Denmark, and France to be analyzed against a genetic database holding more than 200 million DNA sequences. “If we find any reptilian DNA sequences in Loch Ness, that would be surprising and would be very, very interesting,” says one scientist.

• How has eDNA been used before?
  • Scientists have been able to extract the DNA of ancient hominins from the dirt of cave floors. Learn about that with our “Dirty DNA” study guide here.
  • Researchers recently used metagenomics to discover and identify new strains of antibiotics. Learn more about that with our study guide here.
  • Metagenomics was part of the National Microbiome Initiative, which studied the microbes in crops, soils, oceans—and humans. Learn more about the National Microbiome Initiative with our study guide here.
  • “In 2011, biologists found the DNA of Asian carp in the canals around Chicago, suggesting that the invasive fish was poised to move into the Great Lakes. In 2016, biologists sampled seawater off the coast of Qatar to understand the genetics of a massive ‘swarm’ of whale sharks.”

• Why in the world are respected researchers using sophisticated science to search for the Loch Ness Monster?
  • They’re not, really. “I was skeptical about my lab head joining the hunt for the Loch Ness monster,” says one scientist, “until I realized it was an excellent way to promote the amazing possibilities of environmental DNA.”
    • The research should yield nothing less than a reliable genetic profile of every living thing in the entire Loch Ness ecosystem. (!)
    • Warning to cryptozoologists out there: DNA evidence has not been kind to cryptids in the past.

TEACHERS TOOLKIT

Nat Geo: Loch Ness Monster Hunters to Try DNA Search? Get the Facts.

BBC: Loch Ness Monster: DNA tests may offer new clue

Nat Geo: 564: Loch Ness Monster Sighted

Nat Geo: Potentially Powerful New Antibiotic Discovered in Dirt

Nat Geo: Cryptid Cartogram