America's Loch Ness Monster: Champ

America's Loch Ness Monster: Champ Part I Katy Elizabeth Lurking beneath the deep dark waters of Lake Champlain, stories of a large, long necked serpent, though to be a prehistoric throwback known as "Champ" have gone as far back as the native Abenaki, and Iroquois tribes. The Abenaki called the creature Tatoskok or Gitaskog, a horned serpent. According to Abenaki Legend Tabaldak/Dabaldak (meaning “Lord”) was walking across the universe with his friend Tôlba (The turtle) as they were coming across the milky way, they saw a planet in the distance blue in color, and being quite thirsty they thought there would be some water there. Abenaki gods shaped the earth and when they created Lake Champlain they created the creatures known as Champ to protect it. The Legend of Champ gained thriving popularity, particularly in the 1800's which attracted the interest of showman P.T. Barnum, who posted a $50,000 reward for the "hide of the great Champlain serpent to add to my mammoth World's Fair Show." A number of photographs, Echolocation recordings and strange sonar readings have come forth and with over 600 sightings of Champ till present day, these creatures have maintained their elusiveness and have continued to be a scientific engima. Candidates Ideas on what the type of creatures "Champ" may be, have been a great deal of debate among many throughout the years. From long necked seals to giant eels. Below is a list of the most common candidates. Plesiosaur Scientific classification Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Reptilia Superorder: Sauropterygia Clade: Pistosauria Order:Plesiosauria de Blainville, 1835 Plesiosaurs first appeared in the late Triassic Period, about 203 million years ago. They became especially common during the Jurassic Period, thriving until their disappearance due to the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event at the end of the Cretaceous Period, about 66 million years ago. They had a worldwide oceanic distribution. Plesiosaurs were among the first fossil reptiles discovered. In the beginning of the nineteenth century, scientists realized how distinctive their bid was and they were named as a separate order in 1835. The first plesiosaurian genus, the eponymous Plesiosaurus, was named in 1821. Since then, more than a hundred valid species have been described. In the early twenty-first century, the number of discoveries has increased, leading to an improved understanding of their anatomy, relationships and way of life. Plesiosaurs had a broad, flat body and a short tail. Their limbs had evolved into four long flippers, which were powered by strong muscles attached to wide bony plates formed by the shoulder girdle and the pelvis. The flippers made a flying movement through the water. Plesiosaurs bore live young,; they were air breathers, so they had to swim to the surface frequently. Some species of the Plesiosaur had necks that could reach seven meters long. However the necks were inflexible and could only turn gently.There are indications that they were warm-blooded. Basilosaurus Basilosaurus (Basilosaurus Harlan, 1864) Order: Cetacea Suborder: Archaeoceti Family: Basilosauridae Genus: Basilosaurus Time period: lived 40 to 34 million years ago in the Late Eocene Size: Body length of 12 to 20 metres. The skull is 2 metres long. Basilosaurus ("king lizard") is a genus of early whale that lived 40 to 34 million years ago in the Late Eocene. The first fossil of B. cetoides was discovered in the United States and was initially believed to be some sort of reptile, hence the suffix -"saurus", but it was later found to be a marine mammal. Richard Owen wished to rename the creature Zeuglodon ("yoked tooth"), but, per taxonomic rules, the creature's first name remained permanent. Fossils of B. isis have been found in Egypt and Jordan. B. drazindai was described based on a single vertebra found in Pakistan. The species B. cetoides is the state fossil of Mississippi and Alabama in the United States. Measuring 12-20 m, Basilosaurus cetoides was the largest ocean animal. B. isis is slightly smaller than B. cetoides The head of Basilosaurus did not have room for a melon like modern day toothed whales, and the brain was smaller in comparison as well. It is believed that they therefore did not have the social capabilities of modern whales. Fahlke et al. 2011 concluded that the skull of Basilosaurus is asymmetrical like in modern toothed whales, and not, as previously assumed, symmetrical like in baleen whales and artiodactyls closely related to cetaceans. In modern toothed whale this asymmetry is associated with high-frequency sound production and echolocation, neither of which is thought to be present in Basilosaurus. This cranial torsion probably evolved in protocetids and basilosaurids together with directional underwater hearing and the sound receiving apparatus in the mandible (the auditory fat pad and the pan bone (thin portion of mandible). Basilosaurus has an anguilliform (eel-like) body shape because of the elongation of the centra of the thoracic through anterior caudal vertebrae. In life, these vertebrae were filled with marrow, and, because of the enlarged size, this made them buoyant. From this it can be deduced that Basilosaurus swam predominantly in two dimensions at the sea surface, in contrast to the smaller Dorudon which was probably a diving, three-dimensional swimmer. The skeletal anatomy of the tail suggests that a small fluke was probably present, which would have aided only vertical motion. Most reconstructions show a small, speculative dorsal fin similar to a rorqual whales's, but other reconstructions show a dorsal ridge. A 16 m individual of Basilosaurus isis had 35 cm long hindlimbs with fused tarsals and only three digits. The limited size of the limb and the absence of an articulation with the sacral vertebrae, makes a locomotory function unlikely. Analysis has shown that the reduced limbs could rapidly adduct between only two positions. It is also believed that Basilosaurus relied on unusual modes of locomotion, relative to other cetaceans; similarly sized thoracic, lumbar, sacral and caudal vertebrae imply that it moved in an anguilliform (eel-like) fashion, but predominantly in the vertical plane. Paleontologist Philip D. Gingerich theorized that Basilosaurus may also have moved in a very odd, horizontal anguilliform fashion to some degree, something completely unknown in modern cetaceans. The vertebrae appear to have been hollow, and it is likely that they were also fluid-filled. This would imply that Basilosaurus typically functioned in only two dimensions at the ocean surface, compared with the three-dimensional habits of most other cetaceans. Judging from the relatively weak axial musculature and the thick bones in the limbs, Basilosaurus is not believed to have been capable of sustained swimming or deep diving. It is also believed that it was incapable of terrestrial locomotion. The cheek teeth of Basilosaurus retain a complex morphology and functional occlusion. Heavy wear on the teeth reveals that food was first chewed then swallowed. Analyses of the stomach contents of B. Studies have shown that this species fed exclusively on fishes and sharks, while bite marks on the skulls of juvenile Dorudon have been matched with the dentition of B. Isis, suggesting a dietary difference between the two species, similar to that found in different populations of modern killer whales. PlesioTurtle The idea of a Long Necked Giant turtle or PlesioTurtle (probably my favorite theory opposed to the other candidates mentioned above) was proposed by fellow Lake Monster researcher Mr. Charles Pogan. Charles maintains his website <http://aquaticandaerialanomolyassociation.blogspot.com/>. Here is Mr. Pogan's hypothesis in his own words. "In May of 2012 I was afforded the opportunity to view in its entirety, the original 2005 "ABC news" series of clips shot on Lake Champlain by Peter Bodette, which supposedly contained images of the famous beast. After the footage was originally shot, ABC news was told they were free to use the entire video in a feature news presentation. For unknown reasons, producers chose instead to broadcast just a fraction of the total footage that was shot that day. Several deleted sequences, when freeze framed and enhanced, revealed what seemed to be an enormous, flippered Snake Necked Turtle with the tell tale carapace (shell) being noticeably visible. I was surprised to believe that a Plesiosaur look alike turtle was the culprit, not having heard much speculation in the past that a Chelonian could be seriously considered for the role of the famous "Monster." Later, when I did some basic research on them I was again surprised to find that turtles have many positive attributes for lake monster nomination that have not been discussed. What if there were a species of un-captured 15 feet long, fully aquatic snake neck turtles in Lake Champlain? Could they be the producers of the famous "echolocation" signals we've heard so much about? The only known indigenous reptiles actually living in Lake Champlain are 5 species of water loving turtles. Could it be that there might just be another species yet to be classified? Conclusions If in fact, these animals were cetaceans, being air breathers we would be seeing them surfacing on a regular basis. Cetaceans would be more social, they would also be eating constantly and most likely having a large impact on the food web of the Lake. My personal theories about the identity of the Lake Champlain creatures have certainly changed over the years. My extensive field research, capturing video, audio as well as gathering many eyewitness reports of Champ, I have used all of these pieces of a giant puzzle to form an "Identikit" to what I believe this population of animals may be; using many of the morphological, behavioral traits, feeding habits etc. These animals possess Reptilia as well as Amphibia traits. I believe that these animals are a population of an unclassified species of Amphibia or Reptilia (leaning more towards Amphibia) that have yet to be unearthed in the known fossil record. Could Champ be a Hybrid? In biology a hybrid is the result of the reproduction of two parents of genetically different species, although in most cases hybrids are either unviable or sterile. Yet in some species of amphibians, sometimes hybrids are not only viable, but also become new species with special characteristics. Jefferson salamander (Ambystoma jeffersonianum JJ genome) is a mole salamander native to the northeastern United States (found in the Lake Champlain region) southern and central Ontario, and southwestern Quebec. SALAMANDERS WITH SEVERAL GENOMES The salamanders of the Ambystoma genus, usually known as mole salamanders, are a genus endemic of North America and are the only living representatives of the Ambystomatidae family. Five of these species form what is known as the “Ambystoma complex”, in which these species contribute to the genetic composition of a unisexual lineage of salamanders which reproduce by gynogenesis (gynoklepton). Based on the mitochondrial DNA of the unisexual populations, it is thought that this complex originated from a hybridization event of about 2.4-3.9 million years ago. Hearing There are many reports of Champ that indicate that these animals having a highly sensitive hearing range not only underwater but above water as well. Old Nadeau Farm, Crown Point N.Y A woman from Crown Point N.Y told of her sighting of "Champ" one summer afternoon. "It was around about the year of 1972 or 1973 in July when I had company from out of town visiting and we were spending a delightful afternoon on the large porch drinking iced tea while the three children kept themselves amused. This porch has screens all around and screen doors to the floor, where I was sitting opposite. My eyes wandered out to the lake as they often did, and to my shocking amazement, there, right on our shore, sitting there in waist high water was this huge animal--I was aghast--I yelled,"Well, would you look at that!" All the chairs screeched on the wooden porch, as everyone got up to see what I was so wide eyed about. I scared this animal by yelling and I guess the screeching of the chairs on the wood floor did too, but it just Seemed rather shy and was not in any rush, but slowly lowered its long neck and head flat out and rather lumbered slowly in the direction of Port Henry. It appeared to be 18 - 20 feet in size. It was a very dark Greenish black and smooth. It had one hump, a small rounded one, and long neck and tail. Its neck was Erect." "It was no sturgeon". 1961 Thomas Morse of Westport N.Y in a letter to former Champ researcher Joseph Zarzynski reported that in 1961 while driving beside North West Bay said "When at first seen appeared as a massive gunmetal gray approx. 18-inch-wide cable on the shore and out into the lake... it appeared to be a monstrous eel with white teeth that ranked rearward in the mouth". Mr.Morse said that while on shore, Champ raised its head a full 4 feet. Possibly it was reacting to the sound of the car. Aquatic Hearing During the search on Champlain for these elusive animals, sonar has been somewhat successful in the detection of large targets but as soon as these targets were within range, the animals fled with great speed. In 1993 a Japanese team searched the entire lake with 15 boats and multiple helicopters. They came back with a sonar report of a very large object. Underwater sound allows marine animals to gather information and communicate at great distances and from all directions. The speed of sound determines the delay between when a sound is made and when it is heard. The speed of underwater sound is five times faster than sounds traveling in air. Sound travels much further underwater than in air. Thus marine animals can perceive sound coming from much further distances than terrestrial animals. Conclusion My conclusion is that these animals have a highly sensitive hearing range explaining when side scan sonar is used they flee the area quickly. Below is the sonar image of a large target obtained by Tokyo Broadcasting during their extensive Sonar sweep of Lake Champlain. In the second image shown below, once this animal reached the bottom, the sonar lost track, perhaps the animal buried itself? Operation Deep Scan at Loch Ness October 9th 1987 There are many similarities of "Champ" and "Nessie" of Loch Ness. One such similarity in my opinion is the effects of sonar to their sensitive hearing. Operation Deep Scan has been by far the largest and most intense search of Loch Ness to attempt to find the proof of the mystery known as the Loch Ness monster. 19 boats, all fitted with Lowrance X-16 sonar units scoured the loch. It was estimated that the search covered 60% of the total loch area as the sides and bays could not be covered. They did record 3 large sonar contacts in the loch of a size too large to be made by anything known to live in the loch. The question is what were the three contacts which were said to be larger than a shark but smaller than a whale? On the first day 3 strong sonar contacts were recorded from 78 meters (256ft) to 180 meters (590ft). The best of these was made just off Whitefield opposite Urquhart Bay. The object entered the sonar at 174 meters (570ft) and was tracked for 140 seconds. The New Atlantis moved forward to try and engage the target with the Simrad scanning sonar but without success. Effects of Sonar on Marine Life I have yet to find a specific study on the effects of sonar on reptiles and amphibians, but there has been many studies performed on the effects of sonar on cetaceans. Since the 1990s , scientific research has been carried out on the effects of sonar on marine life. This scientific research is reported in peer reviewed journals and at international conferences such as The Effects of Sound on Marine Mammals and The Effects of Noise on Aquatic Life. A study on the effects of certain sonar frequencies on blue whales was published in 2013. Mid-frequency (1 –10 kHz) military sonars have been associated with lethal mass strandings of deep-diving toothed whales, but the effects on endangered baleen whale species were virtually unknown. Controlled exposure experiments, using simulated military sonar and other mid-frequency sounds, measured behavioral responses of tagged blue whales in feeding areas within the Southern California Bight. Despite using source levels orders of magnitude below some operational military systems, the results demonstrated that mid-frequency sound can significantly affect blue whale behavior, especially during deep feeding modes. When a response occurred, behavioral changes varied widely from cessation of deep feeding to increased swimming speed and directed travel away from the sound source. The variability of these behavioral responses was largely influenced by a complex interaction of behavioral state, the type of mid-frequency sound and received sound level. Sonar-induced disruption of feeding and displacement from high-quality prey patches could have significant and previously undocumented impacts on baleen whale foraging ecology, individual fitness and population health. Lake Champlain's Natural History Before present day Lake Champlain the area was the Champlain Sea, an inland arm of the Atlantic Ocean that flooded lowland areas following the retreat of the great continental ice sheets between 12,000 and 13,000 years ago. Ocean waters occupied areas depressed below sea level by the weight of continental ice sheets, ice sheets which at times were over a mile thick. Once the weight of the ice disappeared, the land slowly rebounded until it was once again above the level of the sea. (The elevation of present day Lake Champlain is approximately 95 feet above sea level). During its maximum extent, the Champlain Sea covered an area of over 20,500 square miles in portions of Ontario, Quebec, New York and Vermont. This area includes much of what is now the St. Lawrence River Valley, the lower Ottawa Valley and the Champlain Valley. During this time the Champlain Sea was home to Beluga Whales, Seals & Walrus. Evidence of the area of Lake Champlain was once the Champlain sea. A Gastropod (Maclurites Magnus)from the Ordovician period 485.4 Mya, that I discovered while on the search for Champ near my home at Kingsland Bay VT. Ecolocation Animals that Echolocate have a high sensitivity of hearing and a very advanced brain. Using cetaceans for an example who use Echolocation, the sounds produced by cetaceans range from 5 to 200,000 hertz, largely surpassing the hearing abilities of humans. However, the frequency used is dependent on the species and the activity. Blue whales for an example, can produce low-frequency, omnidirectional sounds which are inaudible to the human ear known as infrasound. Echolocation Recorded 2003 Elizabeth von Muggenthaler, leader of a team of scientists who were on the lake in June, 2003, doing research for the Discovery Channel, which had just finished shooting a TV documentary on Champ. Underwater microphones picked up a series of strangely highpitched clicking sounds, similar to that of a dolphin or Beluga whale, yet different. "The echolocation signal under analysis is similar to Beluga whale echolocation, yet different enough so that we can not make a positive identification. Methods such as crosscorrelation, where one compares the properties of one sound to another, can usually tell us what type of creature it is, but not in this case. It is significantly different from both whale and dolphin, but it is echolocation." According again to Muggenthaler: ''What we can say is that there is a creature in the lake that produces bio-sonar. We have no idea what it is.'' Says Dr. Joseph Gregory, a member of the team who is a professor of sound and vibration engineering at North Carolina State University: "I feel that the effort was a technical success as we were able to conduct far reaching, lownoise sound measurements and, indeed, were able to detect signals the nature of which suggests the presence of some interesting, unexpected phenomena." Spectrogram of the sounds recorded by Dr. Elizabeth Von Muggenthaler in 2003. Now, a couple of questions I asked myself. 1. If these animals are in fact reptile or amphibian how would they echolocate when these animals are not currently known to echolocate? 2. Could adaptations be a key factor in these animals producing similar sounds to the Beluga Whale that were present during the Champlain Sea? After doing extensive research on Cetaceans which obviously Echolocate and have an advanced brain, I discovered that Beluga Whales are known to mimic other sounds known as vocal mimicry. A captive beluga seemingly "learned" another language and adopted it over her own.The whale, then four years old, started making whistling sounds unique to dolphins and dropping her own beluga vocalizations after being housed with bottlenose dolphins for only two months. Before being moved to the Dolphinarium Koktebel in Crimea in 2013, the whale in question was well socialized with other beluga whales in her previous facility. But after the move to Koktebel, her new companions were only bottlenose dolphins. Initially, things were awkward. "The first appearance of the beluga in the dolphinarium caused a fright in the dolphins," write researchers Elena Panova and Alexandr Agafonov of the Russian Academy of Sciences in Moscow. Thankfully it wasn't long before she settled in - and started copying the whistles of the dolphins. In turn, she gradually stopped making beluga sounds. The team recorded over 90 hours of audio. In the first fews days in the dolphinarium, the whale made sounds typical for her species. Two months later, she was "speaking dolphin." What's particularly interesting is that she started making the dolphins' signature whistles individual whistles assigned to each dolphin, sort of like names. She stopped using the beluga contact call, which beluga whales use as a sort of call-and-response check-in. A year after her introduction to her new dolphin companions, the proportion of her calls that were similar to dolphin sounds was no different from the recordings at the two-month mark. She'd seemingly created her own cetacean pidgin. It's well documented that beluga whales are powerful mimics. They have been observed making human-like sounds, as in the case of Noc, a beluga whale studied by the US Navy in the 1970s. More recent experiments have shown that they can even be taught to mimic computer-generated artificial sounds. Conclusions As I had mentioned before, I don't believe Champ is a Cetacean species, but with this fascinating discovery of vocal mimicry, perhaps Champ with the same Echolocation capabilities and advanced brain function could imitate Beluga Whales that were sharing the same habitat during the time of the Champlain Sea, whether it be for social interaction or competing for food and perhaps not only mimic Echolocation but vocalizations as well. Evolutionary adaptations may also play a factor in Champ's Echolocation and vocalization capabilities as well as their unique physical and behavioral features. Adaptation, in evolutionary terms, is the process that species go through in order to become accustomed to an environment. Over many generations, through the process of natural selection, organisms physical and behavioral features adapt to function better in the face of environmental challenges. Adaptations are slow and incremental, and the result of successful adaptation is always beneficial to an organism. On July 2014 at approximately 7:45 PM in an area of Lake Champlain called Scotch Bonnet with our Dolphinear Hydrophone system, we captured a pulsating sound, a lower frequency of Echolocation. We decided on this location particularly because this is one of the prime sighting locations as well as certain times these animals have been seen. I have performed thousands of hours of bioacoustic studies on the Lake and its tributaries, recording known species of fish (Sturgeon, Perch etc.) as well as man made sounds (Boat motors, sonar) that do not fit into this category of sound that we recorded that evening. Recording of an unknown animal captured July 31, 2014 @ 7:45 PM Scotch Bonnet, Lake Champlain Beluga Study 2018 The winter of 2018 brought me to the Mystic Aquarium in Mystic CT. I sat beside the giant glass tank that is home to two resident Beluga whales. Kela: Born in 1981, Kela at 11 feet long and weighs 1,200 pounds, and Juno who was born in July 2002. Juno is 12 feet, nine inches long and weighs 1,950 pounds. During my hour of recording, I captured many vocalizations ranging from Low-Frequency, high frequency clicks and both high and low frequency vocalizations. I found it extremely fascinating and to be a major breakthrough on the similarities between the pulsating Echolocation of the Beluga and the recording of a Champ animal I had recorded in July, 2014. Spectrogram of the Low Frequency pulsating Echolocation of the Beluga recorded winter of 2018 , Mystic Aquarium Low frequency creaking vocalization of the Beluga Whale Winter 2018, Mystic Aquarium. NBC Champ Expedition 2018 June 2018, I received a phone call from the producers of NBC's Program "1st Look" explaining they wanted to do a segment on my field research on Champ. August 13th, the crew arrived and we ventured out into the Lake to a prime sighting location. During the filming, we recorded Echolocation clicks. We did not capture anything on the underwater camera, but with such a low visibility due to the algae content that time of year it was quite difficult. This area of the Lake is called "The Narrows" and my conclusion is that the Champ animal could have been at least 1-2 miles away due to the faintness of the recording.Due to this being the Narrow part of the Lake, this was extremely helpful as acting as a "funnel" for the sound to travel at a compressed rate and at a longer range to our location. Echolocation clicks on Spectrogram recorded August 13, 2018 during the filming of the NBC program "1st Look". • Sound Production in Aquatic Amphibians Modern day Amphibia and Ancient Amphibia are currently not known to have or have had Echolocation capabilities, but with the idea of vocal mimicry anything is possible. Sounds that have been captured whether it be low-frequency, Medium Frequency or High Frequency, just because there are series of clicking in vocalizations does not necessarily mean that all of these sounds are Echolocation. Like other animals, I believe whatever species Champ may be, have a complex language. A study performed by Jenna A. Crovo, Hearing and Sound Production in the Aquatic Salamander, Amphiuma means Author(s): Jenna A. Crovo , Jeffrey N. Zeyl , and Carol E. Johnston Source: Herpetologica, 72(3):167-173. Published By: The Herpetologists' League Acoustic Behavior Trials In contrast to anurans, acoustic communication and hearing within Order Urodela is poorly understood. Several studies have documented sound production in a few salamander species; however, these studies did not examine auditory ranges of these salamanders simultaneously. Two-Toed Amphiumas (Amphiuma means) were used as a model to examine the ecological significance of sound production in salamanders. We conducted a series of behavioral trials to validate sound production in this species, and auditory-evoked potentials (AEPs) were measured to assess hearing abilities. Amphiuma means produced three unique broadband acoustic signals: low-, mid-, and high-frequency clicks. All acoustic signals were produced when A. means were placed in groups, but not when housed individually. The audiogram was relatively flat at 100-700 Hz; above this range, sensitivity declined with increasing frequency. No auditory responses were detected between 1.5 and 10 kHz. The dominant frequencies of the acoustic signals (2.7-11.7 kHz) were higher than the audiogram bandwidth, although the lower bound of lower-frequency clicks could effectively stimulate the auditory system for communication at short distances. Our study suggests that A. means utilizes acoustic signals during social interactions. A total of 172 separate clicks were recorded from eight trials using a total of seven individuals. There were three separate types of sounds, which were classified as low clicks, midclicks, and high clicks, based on their dominant frequencies. In their respective subsets, subjects exhibited few overt behaviors during sound production; therefore, it was not possible to determine the individual that produced sounds during each trials. One individual, however, was observed to make a head jerk motion while producing low-frequency clicks when approached by another individual. Morphology Size Over the years the stories of Champ have been turned into quite the Fish-Tale by people who have not researched the factual reports, creating the elaboration of these animals being "Monsters" thus being monsters in size as well. The average size of a Champ animal is around 15-25 ft. There have been a few cases where the animals were reported to be much larger (30 ft) and perhaps sightings of more than one creature (directly behind one another) could also contribute to the belief of the enormous size of one individual. Ancient Amphibians Although ancient reptiles that were large in size ranging from 15-30 ft that are in the fossil record are mentioned, I discovered that there were also Ancient Amphibians in this range of size. The population of present day amphibians, frogs, toads and salamanders alive today have been quite small in size with the exception of the largest amphibian in the world the Giant Chinese Salamander (Andrias davidianus)measuring 1.8 m (5.9 ft), and second largest the Giant Japanese Salamander (Andrias japonicus) measuring up to 1.5 m (5 ft). For tens of millions of years spanning the late Carboniferous and early Permian periods amphibians were the dominant land animals on earth. Some of these ancient creatures achieved crocodile-like sizes, up to 15 feet long, which may not seem so big today but was positively huge 300 million years ago, and terrorized smaller animals as the "apex predators" of their swampy ecosystems. None of these amphibians have been unearthed composing of a long neck, but with the theory of evolutionary adaptation, perhaps these animals developed a long neck to aid in snatching prey (an ambush predator), in correlation to my idea of the Champ animals possibly being a unique amphibian species that has yet to be found in the fossil record. Cyclotosaurus Name: Cyclotosaurus (Greek for "round-eared lizard"); pronounced SIE-clo-toe-SORE-us Habitat: Swamps of Europe, Greenland and Asia Historical Period: Middle-Late Triassic (225-200 million years ago) Size and Weight: About 10 to 15 feet long and 200 to 500 pounds Diet: Marine organisms Distinguishing Characteristics: Large size; unusually large, flat head The golden age of amphibians was ushered in by the "temnospondyls," a family of massive swamp-dwellers typified by the amusingly named Mastodonsaurus. The remains of Cyclotosaurus, a close Mastodonsaurus relative, have been discovered across an unusually wide geographical span, ranging from western Europe to Greenland to Thailand, and as far as we know it was one of the last of the temnospondyls. (Amphibians started to dwindle in population by the start of the Jurassic period, a downward spiral that continues today.) As with Mastodonsaurus, the most notable feature of Cyclotosaurus was its large, flat, alligator-like head, which looked vaguely whimsical when attached to its relatively puny amphibian trunk. Like other amphibians of its day, Cyclotosaurus probably made its living by prowling the shoreline snapping up various marine organisms (fish, mollusks, etc.) as well as the occasional small lizard or mammal. Eogyrinus Name: Eogyrinus (Greek for "dawn tadpole"); pronounced EE-oh-jih-RYE-nuss Habitat: Swamps of western Europe Historical Period: Late Carboniferous (310 million years ago) Size and Weight: About 15 feet long and 100-200 pounds Diet: Fish Distinguishing Characteristics: Large size; stubby legs; long tail If you saw Eogyrinus without your glasses on, you might have mistaken this prehistoric amphibian for a good-sized snake; like a snake, it was covered with scales (a direct inheritance from its fish ancestors), which helped protect it as it twisted its way through the swamps of the late Carboniferous period. Eogyrinus did have a set of short, stumpy legs, and this early amphibian seems to have pursued a semi-aquatic, crocodile-like lifestyle, snapping up small fish from shallow waters. Koolasuchus Name: Koolasuchus (Greek for "Kool's crocodile"); pronounced COOL-ah-SOO-kuss Habitat: Swamps of Australia Historical Period: Middle Cretaceous (110-100 million years ago) Size and Weight: About 15 feet long and 500 pounds Diet: Fish and shellfish Distinguishing Characteristics: Large size; broad, flat head The most remarkable thing about Koolasuchus is when this Australian amphibian lived: the middle Cretaceous period, or about a hundred million years after its more famous "temnospondyl" ancestors like Mastodonsaurus had gone extinct in the northern hemisphere. Koolasuchus adhered to the basic, crocodile-like temnospondyl body plan-oversized head and long trunk with squat limbs--and it seems to have subsisted on both fish and shellfish. How did Koolasuchus prosper so long after its northern relatives vanished off the face of the earth? Perhaps the cool climate of Cretaceous Australia had something to do with it, allowing Koolasuchus to hibernate for long periods of time and avoid predation. Mastodonsaurus Name: Mastodonsaurus (Greek for "nipple-toothed lizard"); pronounces MASS-toe-donSORE-us Habitat: Swamps of western Europe Historical Period: Late Triassic (210 million years ago) Size and Weight: 20 feet long and 500-1,000 pounds Diet: Fish and small animals Distinguishing Characteristics: Huge, flat head; stubby legs Granted, "Mastodonsaurus" is a cool-sounding name, but you might be less impressed if you knew that "Mastodon" is Greek for "nipple-tooth" . Mastodonsaurus was one of the biggest prehistoric amphibians that ever lived, a bizarrely proportioned creature with a huge, elongated, flattened head that was almost half the length of its entire body. Considering its large, ungainly trunk and stubby legs, it's unclear if the late Triassic Mastodonsaurus spent all of its time in the water, or ventured occasionally onto dry land for a tasty snack. Prionosuchus Name: Prionosuchus. Phonetic: Pre-on-o-soo-kus. Named By: L. I. Price - 1948. Classification: Chordata, Amphibia, Temnospondyli, Archegosauridae, Platyoposaurinae. Species: P. plummeri (type). Diet: Carnivore/Piscivore. Size: Most specimens estimated to be about 2-2.5 meters long. One exceptionally large skull however has a length of about 1.6 meters, suggesting that this individual had a total body length of about 9 meters. Known locations: Brazil - Pedra do Fogo Formation. Time period: Mid Permian. Fossil representation: Several individuals, usually of skulls. Prionosuchus was a temnospondyl amphibian that lived in South America during the Permian, and one that was surprisingly crocodile-like in appearance with a snout similar to that of a gharial crocodile. Most specimens of Prionosuchus are fairly small at only about two and a half meters in length, but one exceptionally large skull just over one and a half meters in length has yielded a truly terrifying proposition. With a skull this large the total body length achievable for Prionosuchus would have been up to nine meters long, something that not only makes Prionosuchus possibly the largest temnospondyl amphibian known, but also one of the biggest predators of the Permian. Most temnospondyl amphibians are perceived to be hunters of aquatic organisms such as fish and other amphibians, and there certainly is no evidence to refute this for Prionosuchus. With the additional possibility of individuals growing to exceptional sizes, then Prionosuchus may well be one of the key apex predators of the Permian. This would mean that larger Prionosuchus would be able to attack and kill almost anything else in the water, even smaller members of their own species. It is also not improbable that they may have attacked land dwelling animals that came to the water to drink in a similar manner as modern day crocodiles and alligators, though it should be pointed out that there is no evidence for this. Coloring In eyewitness descriptions of Champ, coloration has varied. From brown to Olive green to black. Some descriptions have also been of a lighter underside. This feature is called Countershading, or Thayer's law, a method of camouflage in which an animal's coloration is darker on the upper side and lighter on the underside of the body. This pattern is found in many species of mammals, reptiles, birds, fish, and insects, both predators and prey, and has occurred since at least the Cretaceous period. Many turtles, frogs, and salamanders that live in the water have light colors on their bellies and dark colors on their backs. This color pattern makes them less visible to aquatic predators that see them against a light sky. A depiction of "Champ" as green in color on the Burlington VT Waterfront. The Hebert sighting 20 years ago, dogs barking wildly woke Christine Hebert's Marina on a foggy night. A new dock had recently been built at the Auer Family Boathouse, with a light that extended out into the water. Christine looked out to see what was alarming the dogs, thought someone might be taking a boat, and to her surprise, she saw a large creature rise up out of the water right under the light. A couple of weeks later a similar incident occurred, a smaller creature appeared under the light. "We just put the walk out and you'll see the lamp , now the lamp is right where he came out to light and he stopped, where the new cement ramp is. He looked all around and even thought I looked at him I couldn't even see him moving and then finally he turned around and went out in the Lake"."He wasn't laying down in the water, his head stuck up he looked like a dinosaur". "His head was up, maybe the head and the body and it went into the water and then there was a hump"."He was pea green he looked all Moldy to me, that's all I could think of but I was so tired I didn't realize what I saw and about maybe a week or two later, my mother was with me in that window up on the right and the same thing happened again only this one that came out of the woods was smaller and it was brown, it was not pea green". What could the color differences signify? Could this be something that indicates age, sex or just individuality? Most reports describe a brown, blackish coloring. Since these animals have been seen in many of the surrounding marshland, I believe the green coloring could be a covering on the animal's skin of Spirodela polyrhiza which is a species of duckweed known by the common names common duckmeat, greater duckweed, common duckweed, and duckmeat. It can be found nearly worldwide in many types of freshwater habitat. It is a perennial aquatic plant usually growing in dense colonies, forming a mat on the water surface. A covering of Spirodela polyrhiza on the skin of the American Alligator (Alligator mississippiensis). Scent There are many eyewitness reports of Champ that not only involved sight but also smell. The question here is why would these animals have a particular odor? Could it be a defense mechanism? Is this odor used to attract mates? Species of both Amphibians and Reptiles are known to secrete a pungent odor. In the case of Amhibia, the parotoid gland (alternatively, paratoid gland) is an external skin gland on the back, neck, and shoulder of toads and some frogs and salamanders. It can secrete a number of milky alkaloid substances (depending on the species) known collectively as bufotoxins, which act as neurotoxins to deter predation. Parotoid gland of the Ambystoma gracile ( Northwestern Salamander) Gular Gland Gular and paracloacal gland secretions of crocodilians: A comparative analysis by thin-layer chromatography Paul J.Weldon∗Michael J.Tanner In reference to Reptilia, The gular and the paracloacal gland secretions of 21 crocodilian species, including representatives of all extant genera—Alligator, Caiman, Crocodylus, Gavialis, Melanosuchus, Osteolaemus, Paleosuchus, and Tomistoma—were analysed by thin-layer chromatography. Secretions from one adult male and one adult female were examined separately for most species. Gular and paracloacal gland chromatograms display bands consistent with sterols, free fatty acids, triglycerides, steryl esters, and other compound classes. Comparisons of gular and paracloacal chromatograms of each species suggest qualitative and/or quantitative differences in the compounds produced in each gland type. Our results provide tentative evidence for taxonomic variation in crocodilian skin gland secretions. Comparisons of gular and paracloacal gland chemicals of extant species allow inferences to be made on the chemicals produced by these organs in ancestral crocodilians. Neck & back Many detailed Champ sighting reports as well as my own sightings of these animals have consisted of the description of a knob like protrusions on the animal's neck and back with shiny amphibian-like skin. Still photograph from a video taken by Champ Quest's Dennis Hall on September 8th, 2002 showing the neck of a Champ animal. An enhanced version of the Mansi photograph taken in 1977, clearly showing the knob like protrusions on the animals back. An example of the Prominent vertebral ridge with a series of knobs formed from the expansion of the neural processes of the dorsal vertebral bones on The Himalayan newt (Tylototriton verrucosus). The Himalayan newt (Tylototriton verrucosus) is considered one of the most primitive species amongst living Salamanders (Das 1987) found in the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia. Other common names include: crocodile newt, crocodile salamander, Himalayan salamander, red knobby newt. This newt can reach a length of 20 cm. The tongue is small and is free on the sides and only slightly towards its base. The teeth on the palate are in two oblique rows that meet at the front of the mouth. The skull has a thick, bony fronto-squamosal arch, a feature of all salamanders.They have five toes and the tail is flattened to aid swimming. The head is wide and the snout is short. The head has three prominent bony ridges with pores, one along the center and two along the back of the sides of the heads (the parietal ridge). There are no lobes on the lips. The body is 3 to 3.5 times as long as the head. There is no crest running along the dorsal midrib as in some newts but there is a prominent vertebral ridge with a series of knobs formed from the expansion of the neural processes of the dorsal vertebral bones.There is a series of 15 or 16 knob-like porous glands along the sides with the last three behind the leg.The legs are moderately long with the fingers and toes within webbing but are slightly flattened. The tail is at least as long as the head and body and is flattened to help in swimming. The tail has an upper and lower crest which meet at the tip of the tail. The anal opening is a longitudinal slit, and its borders are not raised. The skin is rough and the parotoid glands are large. There is a strong fold on the chin. The entire newt is uniformly blackish brown, slightly paler on the lips, snout, chin, throat, and under surface of limbs Neck I have to admit, I was a bit skeptical of the head and neck sightings that had been previously reported due to the fact the first sighting I had of a Champ animal in August 2012 consisted of just the top portion of the animal around 3 ft out of the water with no head and neck. Two years later in 2014, I learned from my own head and neck sighting that the reports of a long snakelike neck were indeed not an exaggeration or a figment of other eyewitnesses imaginations. July 24, 2014 7:55 PM While on watch at Button Bay, I observed two dark objects on the NY side of the lake with the naked eye in which I had thought were two boats. Looking through my binoculars, both objects moved from left to right as they picked up speed along came a serpentine vertical undulation of humps. The animal behind the one in the front never picked up its head and neck and swam with about 3 feet of its back above the water, the animal in the front picked up its head (which was shaped like a horse's head, but with a sharper jawline) and neck and then proceeded to stretch its chin up in the air and had what appeared to be a fish in its mouth (very similar to a Blue Heron gulping a fish down into its gullet). The neck was very long and slender, I would estimate it was 7ft or more. The animal proceeded to coil its neck near the top of the head like a snake coiling. The neck went down in such a controlled slow motion movement gracefully diving into the water and submerging. I cried with excitement for two hours, not only for what an unbelievable experience, but also the frustration of not getting that on film! I did have my camera, but due to my camera at the time being limited to a much shorter range, I was unable to get the animals in focus which broke my heart and frustrated me to no end. Fifteen days later on the afternoon of August 9th, I hit a streak of luck and captured a video of a Champ animal that was in much closer range. Since then I have updated my technology and have a fantastic camera (learned my lesson on using a low quality camera). I am ready for that next head and neck sighting and this time capturing it on film! My reconstruction of the head and neck sighting and coiling motion of the neck with a fish in the Champ animals mouth.that I experienced on July 24, 2014 at 7:55 PM. Having this remarkable experience I have since been enthralled with the question "How did that animal pick up its very long neck and then displaying a coiling fashion? The only conclusion I have come up with is that these animals must have a specialized vertebrae for such controlled movements and the ability to keep its neck held high out of the water. I knew that snakes were capable of this, but in reference to an amphibian, I unearthed the same type of vertebrae of a bizarre amphibian called a Caecilian. Below are representations of the vertebrae structure of a known reptile (the Snake) and an amphibian (Caecilian). Snake Vertebrae: Reptile Snakes have between 200-400 vertebrae with as many ribs attached,that is what makes them so flexible and the capability to hold up its upper body and even tie themselves in a knot. Caecilian Vertabrae: Amphibian Caecilian Atretochoana eiselti is a rare species of caecilian amphibian found in Brazil. One of its main pecularities is that it lacks any lungs and, being about 80 cm long, it’s the largest lungless tetrapod known. Caecilians in the family Typhlonectidae are aquatic, and the largest of their kind Head Many descriptions of Champ have told of these creatures having a Horse-like head. Ray Williams and his wife Alice along with their daughter headed to Bartons Island to spend the night. Alice was scanning the horizon with binoculars and spotted around 200 yards away an animal 3-5 ft out of the water the head seemed to be horse-shaped with smooth grayish skin like that of a snake followed by very large humps. The animal maintained a parallel course with their boat for five minutes before submerging back into the depths. Having my own personal and rare sighting of the head and neck that I mentioned earlier, I can attest to the particular animal that I had seen had a Horse-like head with a distinct jawline and features remarkably resembling a Horse. Legends of Loch and Sea creatures with a Horse-like head go back over the centuries . The Water Horse or Kelpie in the Celtic mythology of Scotland is a supernatural entity could be found in the lochs and rivers of Scotland and also has a place in Irish folklore . The description of their appearance can vary in different tales. Sometimes white with smooth, cold skin, or black and gray with a horse -like head , legs like a horse , webbed feet, and a long, two-lobed , whale -like tail and described as ‘shape shifters’. They are said to be able to transfer themselves into beautiful women who can lure men and trap them. However , the Water Horse does not always take a female form and are mostly male. They are also described as posing a particular danger to children when in the shape of a horse . Attracting their victims to ride them they are taken under the water and then eaten. Although 95 % of these stories are based in myth, considering the many eyewitness reports of the horse-like head, seem to suggest that this morphological description is the one part of the Water Horse story that may not be so mythical after all Intertwined Water Horses in a pictish carving Enhancement of the video taken by Peter Bodette and Richard Affolter in 2005 which was featured on ABC news. Another frame enhancement of the Bodette footage. Champ Search 2016 Horns?? Stories of Horned Serpents have been told all over the world. The native Abenaki and Iroquois tribes living along Lake Champlain told stories of a mysterious 'horned serpent' that was said to reside in the lake. Nessie of Loch Ness in the Scottish Highlands has also been described with having these "horns" one example in this newspaper report below. "They are funny looking things"! 1958- Local fisherman and Bait Shop owner Vincent Dattilio had a strange sighting of three Champ animals near Juniper Island on Lake Champlain. Vincent, his son and a few friends were fishing for Perch one summer afternoon. The water on the lake was like glass. Around 30 feet in front of the boat appeared three heads. When they started the motor to get a closer look, the heads moved in a backwards fashion as if avoiding the boat. Vincent described them being black in color and the size of a horse's head. In my interview with him, he said "They had these two knob things on the top of their head and with an excited voice and a big wide eyed expression he said loudly "they sure are funny looking things"! Champ Eyewitness Vincent Dattilio at his Bait Shop in South Burlington VT July 21,1998 An eight year old girl from Norfolk, Virginia, while on vacation in Vermont, was looking for Champ when she had the good fortune of seeing A Champ animal as it fed in St. Albans Bay. While sitting on the end of a wooden dock, she saw the animal as it stuck its neck out of the water. When asked what she saw, she said, " A neck sticking out of the water at an angle." When asked, how far out of the water? She pointed to the 7 foot roof of the Burlington to Port Kent Ferry. How big around was the neck? She said "about six inches," while holding her hands in a circle. She then said "Oh! And it had a fish in its mouth!" Then when asked, did you see the head very well? A smile of wonder appeared on her face as her mind relived the experience. She suddenly blurted out " Yes, there were two bumps on its head, and it didn't, you know, (twirling her hand in a circle one finger pointed down) mess up the water when it went under." When asked what time was it when she saw Champ, she replied, " In the afternoon, late, just around supper time." What could these hornlike structures be? A hypothetical theory is that these are snorkels to take in air. Rather than coming up with a hypothetical conclusion that is unsupported by zoology and in reference to my theory of these animals, possibly being of Amphibian or Reptilian origin due to the features mentioned in compiled eyewitness reports over the years. I believe that using morphology of cataloged animals to support these features is an important key component of identification of these structures. The parotoid gland the external skin gland on the back, neck, and shoulder of toads, some frogs and salamanders that I had discussed previously. In my opinion, this seems to fit the best match to what these hornlike structures may be. . Enhancement of the Mansi Photograph 1977 showing a protruding knob behind the eye which has been described as "horns" by various eyewitnesses as well as legends of many "Horned Serpents". Bony Eye Ridge on the Cuban crocodile (Crocodylus rhombifer) Parotoid gland shown on the Northwestern salamander (Ambystoma gracile) A "hood" behind his head? In quite a few detailed reports on the morphological descriptions of Champ's head, some eyewitnesses have described a "hood" of loose skin. A "hood" of loose skin on the Eastern Spiny Softshell Turtle (Apalone spinifera spinifera) According to the 2009 Vermont Eastern Spiny Softshell Turtle Recovery Plan, the estimated population is only 200300 individuals making them very rare. A "hood" of loose skin on the Common Snapping Turtle (Chelydra serpentina) also found in the Champlain Region. Whitehall Times 1873 "As he rapidly swam away, portions of his body, which seemed to be covered with bright silver-like scales, glistened in the sun like burnished metal. From his nostrils, he would occasionally spurt streams of water above his head to an altitude of about 20 feet. The appearance of his head was round and flat, with a hood spreading out from the lower part of it like a rubber cap often worn by mariners with a cape to keep the rain from running down the neck. His eyes were small and piercing, his mouth broad and provided with two rows of teeth, which he displayed to his beholder. As he moved off at a rate of 10 miles an hour, portions of his body appeared above the surface of the water, while his tail, which resembled that of a fish, was thrown out of the water quite often." from the lower part of it like a rubber cap often worn by mariners with a cape to keep the rain from running down the neck. His eyes were small and piercing, his mouth broad and provided with two rows of teeth, which he displayed to his beholder. As he moved off at a rate about 10 miles an hour, portions of his body appeared above the surface of the water, while his tail, which resembled that of a fish, was thrown out of the water quite often." The body of this monster was judged to be 20 inches in diameter. After skimming the surface for about a quarter of a mile, he simply dropped from sight. A very close encounter July 2000 A woman was wading in a shallow area of an area called Arnold Bay, she looked out and saw something dark in color swimming towards her and turned around to ask her husband what exactly she was seeing. Her husband was taking a leisurely afternoon nap in the car. When she turned back around within 6 feet from the base of her feet, a dark creature with an extremely long and erect neck was looking right at her! She screamed with horror and in response to her screaming, the animal proceeded to back up, a hood like portion of skin slipped over the front of its head and over its eyes. Quickly the animal lumbered off with great speed and vertical undulations towards Button Bay. The woman was a native of Mexico and had never heard of Champ. She said "I saw a crocodilian" and additionally described the protruding knobs on its back. Eyes There have been many reports from eyewitnesses in marsh systems around Lake Champlain who have seen large glowing eyes, ranging from a yellow to red in color. These reports go back as far as the 1800's and have continued to present day. July, 1873- General David Barrett of Dresden, reported the loss of two calves from his pasture. Tracks nearby indicated the animals had been dragged to the shore of Lake Champlain; the grass between the pasture and the shore having been matted and broken as if something heavy had passed over it. Other farmers in the vicinity reported losing sheep and fowl, and great bellowing was heard among their cattle at night. The General and his sons set a watch for the monster, hoping to catch it, or at least stop its night marauding. The lake at Dresden offers an impressive shoreline, full of bayous, marshes, and caves. The marsh called Cat Den makes a deep cut into Dresden Mountain, and Axehelve Bay is a deep slash in the rock opposite Pulpit Point, these and nearby caves would have made perfect places of concealment. Local legend told of a cave on the Chapman farm that was supposed to be inhabited by huge monsters, many observers claiming to have seen "bright and hideous looking eyes" in the darkness there. Harvey W. Buel admitted to having knowledge of a very large serpent in the vicinity for many years, and the Barrett family testified that traces of the beast had been seen on their farms at intervals for ten or fifteen years. Two weeks before the sighting by the railroad gang, a party of fishermen had seen what they took to be a huge turtle surface four feet above the water in Lindley Marsh, with fish jumping excitedly. Spring 1991 Ferrisburgh local Todd Huestis and a couple of his friends were camping and fishing one spring night on his family's property on Overville's Marsh. They heard was sounded like a cow walking through the shallow water of the swamp. He described seeing a set of green eyes around 7-8 feet out of the marsh. The animal proceeded to run off towards the direction of a large "Duck Hole" in the marshland. During the span of a couple of years Todd found four toed webbed prints and a drag mark of a tail crossing the tow path going into the marsh which did not fit anything he had ever seen as he has been tracking wildlife and hunting the local forests and wetlands for many years. May 2004 Matthew Hotte was camping along Orville's marsh when he had a very strange encounter. It was around 1:00 in the morning when he heard something splashing and running through the brush in the marshland. He proceeded to grab his flashlight, after hearing the strange commotion he shined his light out to where he heard the sound. To his amazement, he saw a set of very large glowing eyes, reddish in color and around 6-7 feet out of the marsh. Matt ran towards his friend's camper (that was on the edge of the marsh) to tell him what he saw and heard. His friend had the windows open, and said " what the heck was that running through the brush out there, I heard it in here!"? Matt replied " I saw red eyes 6-7 ft up in the air dude". He was quite shaken from the experience. Myself doing field research in Orville's Marsh where the sightings of "glowing eyes" have been reported. Strange game camera video August 14, 2016 In the humid summer morning of August 12th, I packed my backpack full of Game cameras and trekked to a location where a Champ animal in previous years had been eyewitnesses crossing a dirt road. I set up two Moultrie game cameras on a tree near the mouth of the creek which empties into Lake Champlain. After 3 days of collecting video data on the cameras, I decided to go back to the location and collect my SD cards for review. Analyzing dozens of videos triggered by waves, ducks and boats, one particular video clip caught my attention. Towards the end of the screen, very quickly I saw two bright anomalies. I slowed the down the footage 3x and saw what appeared to be two bright, eye shaped objects. The interesting feature of this was that at the end of the frame they seemed to duck down as if they had seen the IR light on the game cameras. I had hoped the camera would have picked up this at the beginning of the video instead of the end. I compared these bright anomalies to boat lights on a bow, which the placing of such lights was the complete opposite of these anomalies, the eyes of geese (geese do not have tapetum lucidum) as well as beavers or otters which would not be 2-5 ft out of the water. I had also tried debunking this clip with the idea perhaps of owls flying over the water, but after these objects went by,waves crashed on the shore, which was an indication these entities were in fact in the water.One of the eyes you can clearly see in one of the frames slightly closes as if squinting or in process of blinking . The anomaly behind the first one (which is almost out of the frame in this still), changes shape as if it was squinting, perhaps when it saw the IR light on the camera and at the same time ducks down as if avoiding the light the IR was giving off. Waves hitting the shoreline after the objects passed by Tapetum Lucidum Both Reptiles and Amphibians have tapetum lucidum (Latin: "bright tapestry", plural tapeta lucida) which is a layer of tissue in the eye of many vertebrate animals, that lies immediately behind or sometimes within the retina. It reflects visible light back through the retina, increasing the light available to the photoreceptors. This improves vision in lowlight conditions, but can cause the perceived image to be blurry from the interference of the reflected light. The tapetum lucidum contributes to the superior night vision of some animals. Many of these animals are nocturnal, especially carnivores that hunt their prey at night, while others are deep sea animals. Eyeshine known as Tapetum Lucidum of the American Alligator Reptilia Eye Photo Transduction The transduction of the photoreceptor of the parietal eye in lizards is unique to any vertebrate. In response to light, rod and cone cells decrease the amount of secondary signaling molecule, cGMP, inside the cell. This causes cation channels to close and the cell to hyperpolarize decreasing the rate in which the cell fires. The opposite is true for the photoreceptor of the parietal eye. Going from dark to light conditions causes a cascade of cGMP inside the cell which opens non-selective cation channels and allows calcium and sodium to enter the cell and depolarize it. The result is an increase in firing of the receptor cell. Snakes use a combination of infrared vision (developed in the trigeminal nerve), variable (by species) visual acuity and color detection, limited eye mobility, and chemosensation to find prey and recognize features in their environment ( including their keepers). As with other reptiles, snakes have a yellow filter that absorbs ultraviolet light and protects the eyes. Crocodiles see well during the day and may even have color vision, plus the eyes have a vertical, cat-like pupil that also gives them excellent night vision. The iris is silvery (a layer of crystals behind the retina at the back of the eye, present in many animals. This layer is known as the tapetum lucidum, and the crystals reflect the light that passes through the retina back onto the retina, thus increasing their ability to see in weak light), making their eyes glow in the dark. • Neuronal Processing in Reptiles In crocodilia there is also a small muscle (which is also seen in geckos) next to or upon the stapes, the stapedius, which probably functions in the same way as the mammalian stapedius muscle does, dampening strong vibrations. The upper and lower jaws are covered with sensory pits, seen as small, black speckles on the skin, the crocodilian of the lateral organ seen in fish and many amphibians. But they have a completely different origin. These pigmented nodules encase bundles of nerve fibers that respond to the slightest disturbance in surface water, detecting vibrations and small pressure changes in water, making it possible for them to detect prey, danger, and intruders even in total darkness. These sense organs are known as DPRs (Dermal Pressure Receptors). While alligators and caimans only have them on their jaws, they have similar organs on almost every scale on their body. The function of the DPRs on the jaws is clear, but it is still not quite clear what the organs on the rest of the body in crocodilians actually do. They are probably doing the same as the organs on their jaws, but it seems like they can do more than that, like assisting in chemical reception or even salinity detection. Eyeshine known as Tapetum Lucidum of the greater swamp frog (Limnonectes ingeri) Amphibians and Reptiles: Ectotherms Since amphibians are ectothermic, they have to regulate their body temperature by moving between warmer and cooler environments. Most amphibians are also susceptible to rapid water loss due to their porous skin, and they have to remain moist to avoid dehydration. For these reasons, amphibian behavior and activity is largely dictated by environmental conditions. Because metabolic activity and energy levels are dependent on temperature, amphibians are relatively slow and inactive when they are cold and more active when they are warm. Terrestrial activity tends to be highest during rainy weather, which allows amphibians to remain moist while they forage or migrate across the landscape. Terrestrial amphibians avoid desiccation during periods of hot, dry weather by seeking shelter under cover, underground or in other moist micro-environments. By not expending metabolic energy to maintain a particular body temperature, ectotherms have much lower energy requirements and require much less food than similarly sized endotherms (warm-blooded animals) which also leads to my conclusion, we are not dealing with a cetacean species as they would require an extensive amount of food to survive. • Water Temperature There is a time frame that these animals are mostly active and when most sightings occur, I refer to this as "Champ Season". During my field studies on Lake Champlain, I have taken temperature readings at prime sighting locations and it has supported the idea of these animals being Ectothermic thus being active or torpid during certain times of the year. Below is a graph of examples of reported Champ sighting totals in correlation to monthly water temperatures. 32.2 F 32.4 34.6 38.2 47.0 59.8 67.8 70.8 66.2 55.2 47.4 41.0 Bottom= Average Lake Champlain Water Temperature Fahrenheit Lake Champlain Monthly Average Water Temperatures Apr 38.2 F, May 47.0 F, June 59.8 F, July 67.8 F, Aug 70.8 F, Sept 66.2 F, Oct 55.2 F, Nov 47.4 F, Dec 41.0 F, Jan 32.2 F, Feb 32.4 F, March 34.6 F. To be continued America's Loch Ness Monster: Champ Part II Resources Gular and paracloacal gland secretions of crocodilians: A comparative analysis by thin-layer chromatography Paul J.Weldon∗Michael J.Tanner https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/ HYPERLINK "https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/07/13/pictures-day -13-july2017/demonic-eye-shine-alligator-shallow-florida-river-jaw-dropping/" HYPERLINK "https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/07/13/pictures-day-13-july-2017/demonic-eye-shine-alligatorshallow-florida-river-jaw- dropping/ www.lochnessmystery.blogspot.com (Newspaper article: Official Watchers Amazing Story) http://archives.evergreen.edu/webpages/curricular/ HYPERLINK "http://archives.evergreen.edu/webpages/ curricular/2011- 2012/m2o1112/web/reptiles.html" HYPERLINK "http://archives.evergreen.edu/webpages/ curricular/20112012/m2o1112/web/reptiles.html" HYPERLINK "http://archives.evergreen.edu/webpages/curricular/20112012/m2o1112/web/reptiles.html" HYPERLINK HYPERLINK "http://archives.evergreen.edu/webpages/ curricular/20112012/m2o1112/web/reptiles.html" HYPERLINK "http://www.lszooduluth.org/wpcontent/uploads/2015/08/NocturnalAnimalsPreVisitLesson.pdf" HYPERLINK "http://archives.evergreen.edu/webpages/curricular/2011-2012/m2o1112/web/reptiles.html"/ NocturnalAnimalsPreVisitLesson.pdf "https://www.academia.edu/ HYPERLINK "https://www.academia.edu/ 445654/Thermoregulation_and_activity_pattern_of_the_high- mountain_lizard_Phymaturus_palluma_ Tropiduridae_in_Chile"445654 HYPERLINK "https://www.academia.edu/445654/Thermoregulation_and_activity_pattern_of_the_highmountain_lizard_Phymaturus_palluma_Tropiduridae_in_Chile"/Thermoregulation_and_activity_pattern_of_ the_highmountain_lizard_Phymaturus_palluma_Tropiduridae_in_Chile" HYPERLINK "https://www.academia.edu/445654/Thermoregulation_and_activity_pattern_of_the_highmountain_lizard_Phymaturus_palluma_Tropiduridae_in_Chile" HYPERLINK "https://www.academia.edu/445654/Thermoregulation_and_activity_pattern_of_the_highmountain_lizard_Phymaturus_palluma_Tropiduridae_in_Chile" HYPERLINK "https://www.academia.edu/445654/Thermoregulation_and_activity_pattern_of_the_highmountain_lizard_Phymaturus_palluma_Tropiduridae_in_Chile"445654 https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/tetrapod-zoology/plesiosaur-peril-the-lifestyles-and-behaviours-ofancient-marine-reptiles/ Hearing_and_Sound_Production_in_the_Aquatic_Salamander_Amphiuma_means https://allyouneedisbiology.wordpress.com/ HYPERLINK "https://allyouneedisbiology.wordpress.com/2016/ 07/24/amphibian- hybrids-kleptons/" HYPERLINK "https://allyouneedisbiology.wordpress.com/2016/07/24/ amphibian-hybrids-kleptons Hearing and Sound Production in the Aquatic Salamander, Amphiuma means Author(s): Jenna A. Crovo , Jeffrey N. Zeyl , and Carol E. Johnston Source: Herpetologica, 72(3):167-173. Published By: The Herpetologists' League http://www.northcountrypublicradio.org/news/story/12101/20171123/shy-and-rare-the-softshell-turtles-oflake-champlain https://www.transceltic.com/scottish/kelpie-mythical-water-horse-folklore-scotland http://canadianherpetology.ca/species/biology/amphibians.html https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Countershading https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marine_mammals_and_sonar https://prehistoric-fauna.com/Basilosaurus" https://killerwhale.vanaqua.org/ http://www.prehistoric-wildlife.com/species/p/prionosuchus.html https://sciencing.com/examples-evolutionary-adaptation Charles Pogan : http://aquaticandaerialanomolyassociation.blogspot.com https://www.thoughtco.com/prehistoric-amphibian-pictures-and-profiles- HYPERLINK "https://www. thoughtco.com/prehistoric- amphibian-pictures-and-profiles-4043339" HYPERLINK "https://www.thoughtco. com/prehistoric-amphibian-pictures-and-profiles- 4043339 Jigme Tshelthrim Wangyal 1 & Dhan Bahadhur Gurung 2