Is this the latest Nessie sighting? Hunter spots ’18ft-long’ black shape in Loch Ness as searches for the mythical monster continue

Is it a bird? Is it a fish? Could it even be Nessie’s last sighting?

A monster hunter from County Donegal spotted a dark black shape in the world-famous lake – and he believes it is the mythical Nessie.

Eoin O’Faodhagain, 59, said his ‘heart skipped a beat’ when he saw a mysterious blob of ‘6.5 meters rising to the surface of the water.

The Irishman, who regularly goes online to look at the loch via a webcam near Urquhart Castle, thinks he has seen the Loch Ness Monster.

“I noticed a spot in the water that was causing a disturbance at the edge of the webcam screen on the right,” he said.

“My heart skipped a beat because I thought this disruption was not the norm.”

The 59-year-old said his ‘heart skipped a beat’ when he saw the dark shape – which he says is 5.5 meters long – rising to the surface (Picture: Loch Ness)

When Eoin examined the footage further, he explained that the mysterious object in the water was only getting ‘bigger and longer’.

The monster hunter estimated the disturbance on the water’s surface to be approximately 5.5 meters long and added:

‘I have reviewed the footage and am convinced it is not a single surface vessel as it keeps changing appearance.

‘The observation of the object in the water is very clear, because the surrounding surface water is calm.’

“That in itself puts it in Nessie’s realm, but it needs further analysis.”

He described the find as ‘unusual’ and continued: ‘There are no known creatures of that size in Loch Ness. It could be the Loch Ness Monster.”

The first sighting of the alleged Loch Ness Monster was recorded in November 1933.

However, the Nessie mystery could date back to 565 AD, when the Irish missionary Saint Columba was reported to have encountered a strange water monster in the River Ness, which feeds the famous lake.

According to his ancient biography, the water beast had killed one man and attacked another when it fled in panic after Saint Columba made the sign of the cross and ordered him back.

These days, however, Mr O’Faodhagain isn’t so afraid of the rumored beast.

He regularly logs into a webcam maintained by Mikko Takala van Ness on the Internet to get a sharp look at the lake from his home in Ireland.

Over the years he has collected several entries in the official Loch Ness Monster Sightings Register.

However, due to recent restrictions on webcam observations, his most recent findings are unofficial.

Upon further examination of the clip, the Irishman said the dark shape only grew longer and larger

The Irishman will cross the sea to the Scottish coast in August in an attempt to even see the Loch Ness Monster in person during The Quest weekend 2024.

The latest comes shortly after the Loch Ness Center in the Highlands asked NASA to lend its expertise to a new hunt for the alleged creature.

“We hope NASA experts will have advanced imaging technology to scan the lake,” said Aimee Todd, marketing manager of the Loch Ness Centre.

“We should sit down with them and talk about how we can get it here.”

The final search will take place on the 90th anniversary of the first organized surface watch of Loch Ness: the Sir Edward Mountain Expedition, from May 30 to June 2.

Since that first expedition in 1934, the Watchers of the Monster, more than 1,156 sightings of the beast have been recorded in the official Loch Ness Monster Sightings Register.

Last year, the newly revamped Loch Ness Center teamed up with Loch Ness Exploration (LNE), an independent and volunteer research team, along with hundreds of in-person and virtual volunteers to search the famous waters of Loch Ness.

The search ended with a hydrophone picking up loud underwater noises and several possible sightings.