On April 25, 1977, a major event occurred in Japan.
In the process of fishing, a fishing boat unexpectedly fished out a highly decomposed monster corpse.
In appearance, the corpse is 10 meters long, with a very small head and four fin limbs, which does not look like any living known sea creature, like the legendary "sea monster".
Japanese fishing boats fish out "sea monsters"
The discovery of this "sea monster" corpse soon caused a huge sensation in the scientific community.
Some experts and scholars even say that it may be an extinct plesiosaur.
Plesiosaur fossils
If true, the discovery could revolutionize the way humans understand marine life.
So, what is the context of the whole incident? Is this "sea monster" corpse really an extinct plesiosaur?
Japanese fishing boats fished out the carcasses of "sea monsters"
Back in 1977, Japan's fishing industry was already very developed, and the Japan Ocean Fishery Company was the leader in this industry.
On April 25, 1977, the distant-water fishing vessel "Mizuyo Maru" of Japan's Ocean Fishery Company was conducting deep-sea fishing in the Pacific Ocean.
"Zuiyo Maru"
I thought that the day would be the same as usual, another day full of fatty mackerel, but when the fishing net was slowly pulled up from the 300-meter deep sea, everyone present was dumbfounded by the scene in front of them.
What was picked up in the net was not mackerel, but a corpse that had decomposed only bones and a lot of rotten flesh.
The length of this corpse is about 10 meters, and the weight reaches several tons, and not long after it was picked up, its body began to emit an unpleasant stench, and meat fat continued to drip on the deck.
The corpse of the "sea monster" that was fished up
The captain was already surprised by this situation, believing that it was just the skeleton of a dead whale caught by mistake, and then ordered the crew to quickly throw the foul-smelling corpse back into the sea.
However, Michihiko Yano, the assistant production manager accompanying the ship, seemed to realize something and rushed to stop the crew who were about to throw the body back into the sea.
He began to make mapping records while looking around it, and also took some precious video materials, and removed 42 fibers from the fins of the corpse for specimens.
Specimens culled from the "sea monster"
It turned out that Michihiko Yano was a senior student who graduated from Yamaguchi Ocean High School, and the first time he saw this corpse, he keenly felt that this corpse was not simple.
In appearance, it does not resemble any living known sea creature, with a very small head and four fin limbs that are huge, more like the long-extinct plesiosaur.
Suddenly, a crew member exclaimed, to the effect that:
This "sea monster" looks like the Loch Ness monster.
Immediately afterwards, the other crew members began to echo, saying that this "sea monster" really resembled the Loch Ness monster...
Loch Ness Monster
Unfortunately, after the assistant production manager finished recording, the crew complied with the captain and eventually threw the "sea monster" body back into the sea.
After all, they are ocean-going fishing vessels, not ocean-going research vessels, and they have to catch fish and sell them for money, not get a monster that is already highly decayed back to exhibition...
Sensational "sea monster"
After this distant-water fishing work, Michihiko Yano quickly went to the headquarters of the Japan Ocean Fisheries Company.
After seeing the video data he took and the specimens he brought back, the senior management of the company's headquarters also showed great interest in the "sea monster" salvaged by the "Zuiyo Maru".
Photo taken by Michihiko Yano
They recruited many old sailors who were often involved in fishing work, so that these old sailors could identify the identity of the "sea monster".
Unsurprisingly, these old sailors, although they boast of half a lifetime of fishing experience, have never seen this thing.
Realizing that the origin of this "monster" is indeed not simple, the company's top management feels that it must be profitable, and can make a big fuss with this matter and make the company "fire".
Therefore, the company's top management invited a large number of experts and scholars, as well as reporters, to carry out in-depth research and investigation on the discovery of the "sea monster".
Relevant reports published by journalists
For the true identity of this "sea monster", many experts and scholars agree that it is really possible that the plesiosaur has been extinct.
Because according to the plesiosaur fossils found in the past, the plesiosaur is consistent with the "sea monster" found this time, both in size and appearance.
plesiosaur
The conclusion of this conclusion undoubtedly caused a huge sensation.
You know, plesiosaurs were extinct more than 60 million years ago.
Now it has reappeared in the deep sea, which can only mean one thing, that is, the depths of the ocean are really full of mystery and unknowns, and perhaps there are more ancient creatures that have long been extinct, all hidden in a corner of the deep sea...
What is the true identity of the "sea monster"?
As the "sea monster" incident became more and more serious, British scientists also paid attention to the matter.
Owayne Wheeler from the Natural History Museum in London, England, was the first to put forward his own views on the identity of the "sea monster".
Related news reports
Wheeler said the so-called "sea monster" couldn't be a plesiosaur at all, it should have been a highly decaying shark, nothing more.
Because as early as 1934, a similar "sea monster" corpse appeared on Henley Island, Colombia, but after many studies by scientists, it was finally proved that it was not a so-called "sea monster", but a decaying shark.
The corpse of a "sea monster" on the island of Henry, Colombia
Sharks have a lot of cartilage, and these cartilages also decay along with the flesh and skin of the body.
In the end, even the chin and so on fell off, and the remaining body looked like a "sea monster" plesiosaur.
After the shark's jaw fell off, the remaining body looked like a "sea monster"
Similarly, in Vendi, France, in 1961, and in Massachusetts, in 1970, the same "sea monster" corpses have been found.
And in the end, these "sea monsters", without exception, turned out to be rotten sharks ...
Write at the end
But then again, although the "sea monster" was eventually confirmed to be a rotting shark, there are several points that the "shark said" seems to be inexplicable.
The first is that sharks have a lot of cartilage, and these cartilages also decay.
In this way, if it were hoisted as in the photo, the decaying shark carcass weighed several tons, and it should have been strangled due to the decay of the cartilage, but in fact it was not.
"Shark Says" restoration
In addition, the fat on sharks is generally distributed in the internal organs.
However, the "sea monster" caught by the "Ruiyo Maru" is covered with eroded meat fat, which indicates that the fat on its body should be under the skin or distributed all over the body, which is very doubtful.
The "sea monster" is covered in rotten meat fat
Finally, the meat on sharks is generally white in color.
Shark meat
But looking at the corpse of the "sea monster" in the photo, you will find that its flesh is clearly more like the color of pork, which is obviously unreasonable ...
Therefore, Okawa believes that perhaps the "sea monster" caught by the "Zuiyo Maru" may not be a shark.
But as for what its true identity is, this Oikawa is unknown...