We have grown up reading about many fairies and monsters from tales and legends, but these are just  One such monster that is thought to exist is the Loch Ness Monster or Nessie from the Scottish folklore. The existence of this monster apparently residing in the lake of Scotland highlands is very much doubted. The monster is said to be large in size, with long necks and its hump protruding from the water. The belief in this creature goes back to many decades. There are disputed pictures about this monster which looks like a giant catfish. Now scientists have decided to actually track the mystery and try to find its DNA samples.

Professor Neil Gemmell, a scientist from New Zealand, will lead an international team more like a search mission of the Loch Ness with the help of DNA sampling techniques to uncover its secrets. Gemmell is no believer but is ready to take people on this adventure and discuss some science on the way. It is going to be a two-week exploration and the team with collect water samples from different spots and of different depths and then analyse the species that could be residing within. "This DNA can be captured, sequenced and then used to identify that creature by comparing the sequence obtained to large databases of known genetic sequences from hundreds of thousands of different organisms," said Neil Gemmell. The team comprises scientists from Britain, Denmark, the United States, Australia and France.

According to the professor when creatures reside in the water they leave behind their skin, feathers, scales and urine. This will have fragments of the DNA. The team will collect 300 samples to ensure they do not miss out on the vastness of the lake. They will then extract DNA away from the organic material. They will then compare it to the database of the known species and find the answers in the existence of unusual creatures if any. The findings will come out by the end of this year. The team will get a nice survey of the biodiversity in the lake. Well, all we can do is wait to see if the Loch Ness Monster exists for real.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 23, 2018 05:09 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).