Sunday, August 3, 2008

Montauk Monster: It's Alive! Three Live Sightings So Far


New Montauk Monster Photo
"Montauk Monster is Back: Photo Revealed"
(May 13, 2009)
When one of my daughters heard that the Montauk Monster was a carcass found by people on an "upscale East Hampton, N.Y., beach," she understood why they hadn't recognized it. "City people" isn't what she said, exactly, but that's the general idea.


(From College OTR, used without permission)

Bodies of drowned critters don't wash up on Minnesota beaches all that often, but it does happen. When they do, they aren't looking their best. Sort of like the Montauk Monster.

Since the people who apparently found it haven't let scientists, or pretty much anyone else, see the body, it's likely that the carcass won't be identified. Not for some time, anyway.

Biologist Jeff Corwin says that the Montauk Monster's a raccoon. He could be right: although he gave that evaluation rather quickly, after being dragged away from watching a ball game.

" 'Animal Planet' wildlife expert Jeff Corwin video." (FOXNews video 3:08)

I'd say that he's very close. Take a drowned raccoon, leave it in the Atlantic Ocean for a while, and let it wash up on a beach. After hours of baking in the sun, it could look a whole lot like the Montauk Monster. Particularly to upscale city folks. That's my opinion, at any rate.


(From cryptomundo.com, via FOXNews, used without permission)

We get a better look at the head in this photo. It doesn't look much like a raccoon, but remember: we're used to seeing raccoons with the upholstery on.


(From Skulls Unlimited International, used without permission)

That's a raccoon's head, without the flesh and fur. The upper canines aren't in the Montauk Monster, but otherwise it's a pretty good match.

Montauk Monster Live Sightings

Now there have been sightings of the mysterious Montauk Monster. Alive. Three of them, at least.

"Montauk 'Monsters' - At Least Three Live Sightings Reported. Hybrid Dog? Raccoon? What?" (Earthfiles (August 3, 2008)) does a pretty good job of discussing the latest developments: " On July 29, 2008, a photo of a strange, unidentified animal that appeared to have a beak, long, thin paws and the body of a dog was posted on the blog Gawker...." The article even includes a map, that shows how close the Plum Island Animal Disease Center is to Montauk (about a dozen miles).

Here's a Google satellite map of the area:
View Larger Map

I'm not surprised that people have seen the Montauk Monster, running around and breathing heavily. It'd be a little surprising if somebody hadn't seen it, considering the publicity.

Or, seen something about the same size and general shape. It's hard to tell from the photos, but Jeff Corwin's guess about the Montauk Monster being roughly two feet long seems reasonable. There are quite a few critters around that size.

And, from what I've heard and read about the reliability of eyewitness testimony, people can see and remember just about anything, given the right circumstances.

I've come up with an explanation of the Montauk Monster which covers all the known facts, including the recent live sightings: "Montauk Monster: Publicity Stunt by Space Aliens, Implicating USDA's Plum Island?" (July 30, 2008). I don't believe a word of it, but it makes a good story.

Vaguely-related posts: About Eyewitness testimony:

6 comments:

Brigid said...

"It's hard to tell from the photos, but Jim Corwin's guess about the Montauk Monster being roughly two feet long seems reasonable."

The name is Jeff Corwin. ~_^

Having seen raccoons, live and in person, I can readily believe that some uninitiated city folk might mistake them for *things*. Though the beak part of the live specimen description is puzzling.

Brian H. Gill said...

Brigid,

You ought to see what I keyed in as a search term.

I'm fixing that - and thanks!

The beak on the live specimen? No so surprising. Someone, thinking about the Montauk monster (as described and imagined) sees a creature about the right size and shape.

It must be the Montauk monster!

And, since the Montauk monster has a beak, it has a beak. Remember, it's the Montauk monster.

That wouldn't be conscious thought - but people do seem to 'see' things that way.

Brigid said...

I'm never going to understand people. If I see something odd I take another look and try to figure out what all the parts really are.

Brian H. Gill said...

Brigid,

What I said about eyewitness reliability is an overly-quick comment on a very complex part of human nature.

I know what you mean by taking a good look, to see what your eyes are telling you. What's challenging - and important - is learning how to tell the difference between what's coming in through one's eyes, and what is being filled in by memories, extrapolation, and expectations.

georgia said...

its not a raccoon its a dog. the scientists on monster quest on the history channel said it was a boxer/bull dog. and they really studied it.

Brian H. Gill said...

georgia,

The dog (or raccoon) conclusions are much less unlikely than most. I don't know that much about Monster Quest's skills and background - but they could very well be right.

I still like the 'space-alien Elvis' explanation, though. ;) ( http://apatheticlemming.blogspot.com/2008/07/montauk-monster-publicity-stunt-by.html )

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