Mystery surrounds the skeleton of a mysterious creature that washed up on a Scottish beach during Storm Ciara.
The intriguing beast was found on the Aberdeenshire coastline on Sunday as the country endured 90mph winds and torrential rain.
A photograph of the creature was shared on a Facebook page prompting hundreds of suggestions as to what it might be.
Some thought it a whale or a dolphin, while others rubbished this suggestion saying the ‘horns’ of the creature make it a thresher sharks – which have been known to enter British waters during the summer.
But even marine biologists are baffled, with Professor David Lusseau from the University of Aberdeen, saying he would need more information.
He told MailOnline: ‘Unfortunately from just this photo we can’t tell much other than it is a whale of some form. We would need shots of the front end (and probably a bit of poking around) to get an ID.’
Confusion surrounding the creature hasn’t stopped people from sharing their suggestions however.
James Trippington said: ‘Very similar to Orca or Dolphin. But the caudal vertebrate looks rather slim. Not a shark for sure though.’
But Andrew Mowat rubbished the idea, saying: ‘Spine looks like it’s designed for side to side movement? Whales move up and down.’
Others joked it could be the Loch Ness monster, suggesting the beast could have escaped from its alleged watery home around 100 miles away.
Brian Ingram said: ‘Nessie! Escaped to the sea but then came to a sticky end.’ And Emma-Louise Bolland said: ‘Nessie. Could not adapt to salt water.’
Another joked: ‘It’s a very very rarely seen deep sea Haggis.’
The Loch Ness monster has long been Scottish legend, with dozens of supposed sightings being claimed each year.
There were a large number of alleged sightings of the Loch Ness Monster last year – 18 in total – than at any time since 1983, when ‘Nessie-mania’ was at its peak.
The sighting of the mysterious creature in Aberdeen came amid the gales and downpours of Storm Ciara this weekend.
Ciara brought 97mph winds, up to seven inches of rain, flooding and left more than 20,000 people without power.
And now Britain is set to be hit by ‘blizzard conditions’ and heavy rain today as flood-hit Britain braces itself for a 72-hour deluge, with Storm Dennis on the way this weekend.
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