Any New Tappie Sightings?
Posted by: Loren Coleman on August 8th, 2006
Has the manatee reached Poughkeepsie yet?
The Amherst Times reported on August 8:
Eleven years ago today, The Times ran a little piece about a male manatee who decided, for reasons unknown, to swim up the East River. Now, the manatee nation appears to have sent another emissary northward, though the sex of this one is unspecified so far. It was sighted several times in the Hudson River last weekend, along the piers in Manhattan and as far north as Sleepy Hollow.
The northernmost location in New York, thusfar, for any sightings is 100 miles upstate from the Manhattan views.
In the New York Times, on August 8, their article, “Was That a Manatee in the Hudson, or Just a ‘Fat Log’?,” actually somewhat skeptically considered if what was being seen was some other kind of animal. The “fat log” in the headline was not part of the theories under consideration, but look at what they did list:
1) Manatee?
Ian Heller, 15, and Jeff Samalot, 16, said they saw the manatee while in their 17-foot power boat heading from Haverstraw to the Shattemuc Yacht Club in Ossining, where they teach sailing.
“We were just off Croton Point and we saw what looked like a fat log in front of us, but then it rolled and swam away,” Ian said. “I’ve never seen a log do that.”
“It was too big to be a seal, and we kind of dismissed it until we heard later that there’s a manatee around,” Jeff added.
2) Tappie?
Mr. Earle, 43, of Croton, and David, his 12-year-old son, heard about the manatee sightings Monday morning and were watching for it while sailing in Ossining.
“We think he’s here because the water is fresher this year, compared to last year,” Mr. Earle said. “It’s not as salty, because of the rain.
“They called the Loch Ness monster Nessie, and the manatee that swam up the Chesapeake Chessie, so I’m calling this one Tappie, because it seems to like it around the Tappan Zee area.”
3) Seal?
At the Croton Yacht Club a week ago Sunday, Joe Consula, 49, and the Buck twins, Larry and Don, 59, saw some kind of large mammal break the glassy surface of the river about 20 feet from shore and then submerge and continue quickly upriver. They don’t agree on what it was.
“I just don’t think it could be a manatee. If anything, I’d say it was a seal,” Larry Buck said.
“I’m going with seal,” Larry Buck said. “Manatee’s too far-fetched for me.”
4) Manatee? Sturgeon? Small Pilot Whale?
“Well, it was blackish, grayish brown,” Mr. Consula countered. “It was too big to be a seal….I saw its face and it’s much bigger than that. I’m going with manatee,” Mr. Consula said.
Mr. Consula said: “It could have been a sturgeon. We get them up to 600 pounds around here. It could be a small pilot whale for all we know. But no, this looked prehistoric and had barnacles. I didn’t say nothing because I didn’t want people to think I was crazy.”
Has anyone heard of any new sightings?
About Loren Coleman
Loren Coleman is one of the world’s leading cryptozoologists, some say “the” leading living cryptozoologist. Certainly, he is acknowledged as the current living American researcher and writer who has most popularized cryptozoology in the late 20th and early 21st centuries.
Starting his fieldwork and investigations in 1960, after traveling and trekking extensively in pursuit of cryptozoological mysteries, Coleman began writing to share his experiences in 1969. An honorary member of Ivan T. Sanderson’s Society for the Investigation of the Unexplained in the 1970s, Coleman has been bestowed with similar honorary memberships of the North Idaho College Cryptozoology Club in 1983, and in subsequent years, that of the British Columbia Scientific Cryptozoology Club, CryptoSafari International, and other international organizations. He was also a Life Member and Benefactor of the International Society of Cryptozoology (now-defunct).
Loren Coleman’s daily blog, as a member of the Cryptomundo Team, served as an ongoing avenue of communication for the ever-growing body of cryptozoo news from 2005 through 2013. He returned as an infrequent contributor beginning Halloween week of 2015.
Coleman is the founder in 2003, and current director of the International Cryptozoology Museum in Portland, Maine.
I’m going for “manatee”, as opposed to “fat log”; experienced sailors should be preferred over novices. Anyday.
A good buddy of mine is an environmental engineer. A project of his company’s was to provide a gentle barrier for a paper mill located along Boston Harbor to keep out, of all things, manatees. They apparently liked the warmer waters immediately surrounding it.
Seals are fairly common farther north, but manatees are known for their preference to warmer climates. I spent a week this past spring researching the Altamaha River, along coastal Georgia, south of Savannah. Although I didn’t see one, Manatees are considered very common there.
I’m also a firm believer of Heuvalman’s Megaloteria longicollis, the long neck seal. Hudson Bay is along the Boreal Forest latitudinal band associated with Nessis, Champ and Ogopogo.
So, what if the antarctic leopard seal has a northern cousin? It’s 12 feet in length already. What’s another 5-10 feet and a darker color?
Great post, Loren. Always good to be reminded that cryptozoology is the study of animals out of place or time.
D.L.Tanner
Why hasn’t anyone been sent out to check? Manatees are slow critters, therefore boaters need to be warned to slow down. Even if it were any other type of creature that size, officials should be investigating just enough to warn boaters to watch out. Whatever it is, this is special. 1987 we had a humpback whale swim up the main river ways here in northern california. He was named humphrey and I do believe he made it up to sacramento, maybe a little further. Of course that year I think we had really good run-off.
Pretty interesting, Mr.Coleman. I don’t have a clue as to what it might be but I’m going for Manatee. I just love this site it’s so darn cool! Keep up the awesome work and make mine CRYPTOMUNDO!!!
Everyone loves to mention the manatee called “Chessie”, but not the other cryptid with the same name.
– The one that is snake-like or plesiosaur-like.
– The one that counts CIA, FBI, and other law enforcement personnel among the eyewitnesses.
– The one that had video footage taken of it that experts at the Smithsonian confirmed was authentic footage of an unknown animal.
I sense a little prejudice….
The biggest clue to choose betweeen manatee and seal — to me anyway — is the flat manatee face versus the seals’ ‘dog’ face
Manatees overwinter in North and Central Florida in the warmest waters they can find. So any warm water spots there?
shovethenos,
I don’t see any prejudice here. No one is reporting anything that looks like a long-necked seal or plesiosaur.
What they are reporting looks like a manatee, so folks are talking about manatees.
If someone reports something in the Chesapeake that has a long neck, I’m sure we’ll hear all about it on Cryptomundo.
If you want another possiblility try a walrus. they used to breed on Sable Island off Nova Scotia and the odd one still shows up in these waters .They have been photograhed on Sable, and off shore islands. In 2004 One 800 lbs appeared in Cape Breton and was well documented. If no one noticed the tusks,which would be underwater, when swiming the face is very much like a manatee.In a straight line the area in question is not that much further south of Sable.
Oh yeah, if the tusk are missed, a walrus would be a good possibility.
Somebody needs to check though
Could be a manatee trying to swim north to escape some of the intense heat this year. Sure they like the warmer water but it’s been hot and it’s been non stop.
Jeremy_Wells-
I realize people are reporting a Manatee, I just mentioned Chessie to remind that there are other cryptids that have been called by that name. Skeptics have a tendency to fixate on one possible explanation as long as it agrees with their worldview, even if it doesn’t address or agree with the bulk of the information and analysis.
Lake Cryptids is my favorite study it such an opinionated subject but i agree with shovethenos, lets not forget the other mysterious things below the lakes and rivers. River Dinos and Lake Dinos may still be roaming our waters. There is alot of hidden caves and many lakes are cold.
Manatees are nice thought thats good for NATIONAL geograpic, but the real subject is Lake Dinos because they do exist. I’e read many books and seen many documentaries. All science need is a little more research. I think their are MOSAUR– USES out there, just look at Lake Okanagan.
Looks like my cousin !
shovethenos:
Agreed… but so do “believers” at times.