Jon Solo Sebastian 03/17/2025:

Happy St. Patrick’s Day! Last year was my first year writing about cryptids, and when St. Patty’s Day came up, I knew I had to write about Leprechauns. You can check that one out by clicking here. This year, I wanted to do something either related to the holiday, or at least Irish related. I stumbled across Muckie the Sea Monster. I’ve written about a few other sea monsters so far, like the Hydra and Bessie (Nessie is coming soon), but today was the first time I’ve ever heard of Muckie and I also learned it’s a fairly newer beast of the sea. Here is a short and sweet story about a creature that may or may not be short and sweet!

Welcome to the Monster of the Week:

Muckie the Monster of Muckross Lake

In 2003, the Irish Char Conservation Group might have discovered Nessie’s Irish cousin, Muckie, while conducting scans to calculate local fish populations. They were running sonar scans of Muckross Lake, which is Ireland’s deepest lake (246 feet in some parts), when they came across a mass said to be longer than twenty-five feet. They weren’t able to identify what it was, but they ensured all their equipment worked flawlessly, so it wasn’t just a glitch with their tech. The world is filled with stories of creatures dwelling in the lakes, so when scans pick up a large mass in a fairly deep lake, folks tend to get excited. Before this ‘discovery,’ there had been no mention, or folktale of a sea creature in Muckross Lake despite the fact the nearby mountain peak is named Cnoc na Peiste (Peak of the Serpent), which could allude to a sighting of the monster in the past.

That said, “On foot of this large mass captured on the sonar scan, researchers looked into the history of the lake and found that there was a legend associated with Muckross lake of a gargantuan sea serpent that was supposed to exist in the lake’s depths.”

It’s too soon, or there just haven’t been enough sightings to compile more details like what it looks like, or if it has attacked anyone or any boats. Some folks downplay the few sightings there have been as being two seals rising and diving back into the water, which can give the illusion of a longer sea creature popping in and out of the lake. Some claim it to be a Monitor Lizard which can be around ten feet in length.

The discovery and possible sightings haven’t jolted the area into embracing their possible hometown sea creature like other creatures throughout the world, but let’s see where things are with Muckie in five to ten years. If sightings pick up, I imagine we’ll see festivals, merchandise, and the locals creating beers and food named after the Monster of Muckross Lake.