Nessie - 8 Facts About Loch Ness' Most Elusive Resident

Sir Peter Scott was a man with a great number of strings to his bow. He was a veteran of the Second World War, a television presenter, an author, a noted ornothologist, the son of famed Antarctic explorer Robert Falcon Scott... and the man who helped found the Loch Ness Phenomena Investigation Bureau.

For such a well-renowned and respected man to take an interest was seen as a validation to many who had pushed their belief that the monster existed for so long. It seemed to add an air of legitimacy to what was perceived by many as a fanciful and ultimately pointless endeavour.

When a photo emerged of what could be seen as a flipper taken from a fixed underwater camera, Sir Scott suggested that the Loch Ness Monster be given a proper scientific name - Nessiteras rhombopteryx - and declared an endangered species.

How serious he was about the entire affair seems to be a matter of debate. There was a newspaper at the time which pointed out the the scientific name he suggested could be rearranged to spell "Monster Hoax by Sir Peter S".

It remains difficult to say for sure how much of what he did was sincere, but even his attachment to the whole idea, the scientific name and the creation of the Bureau were all seen as legitimising the search in a big way. It should be noted that a painting he created of the monster as well as his founding of the organisation mentioned above hurt his credibility in a very tangible way amongst his peers, so it is more than likely that he was fairly sincere in his intentions.