Final Friday Top Five!

Top Five Mythical Sea Beasts

1. Bloop

The bloop. Photo: Wikipedia

Ok, so this first one is not an actual beast, but for a time it was believed it could be. In 1997, NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) discovered an ultra-low frequency. It was powerful and mysterious. No one knew where it came from or what could have caused it. It could be a beast! It was a modern mystery, which I think is fab. It is brilliant that there is still so much we haven't discovered about our oceans. Having a little mystery and fantasy alive in the world is fun.

This mystery may have been solved though. While the low frequency bloop may be consistent with a  marine creature, it is more likely to have been an icequake inside an iceberg. Still, it was interesting enough to include in my list.

4. Cetus

The Cetus constellation. Photo: Wikipedia

Cetus is a sea monster from Greek Mythology. The word "cetus" could mean big fish, shark or just general sea beast. It is often depicted as a "dragon fish" or as something whale-like. In Greek Mythology it is a beast slain by Perseus while he was saving Andromeda from Posiedon's wrath.

As well as being a mythical sea beast, Cetus lives in our skies as a constellation. It is located in a reigon of the sky called "The Sea", which houses other water themed constellations like Aquarius and Pisces.

3. Nessie

The classic Nessie photo. Photo:

I know she technically lives in a lake, but no mythical beast list is complete without Nessie! The Loch Ness Monster is a classic Scottish Myth and part of this small island's folklore. We had a holiday to Loch Ness, and yes we definitely spent a good portion of the holiday searching for her.

My favourite thing about Nessie is that she's depicted as a plesiosaur. 

2. Godzilla

Godzilla. Photo: Villains Wiki

I know this seems like an odd inclusion as Godzilla is mostly depicted as being on land but he lives in the sea and only goes on a land-based destructive rampage because of nuclear testing. So he is a sea beast. By my books anyway.

As a kid I loved the 1999 Godzilla movie and I enjoyed the beast in the 2014 remake. (I stress the beast rather than the actual film, the rest of it was neither here nor there. A distinct lack of Matthew Broderick for me.) We used to have a toy Godzilla with a button on the back of his head which made the roar. It did also shoot missiles out of its mouth, so not entirely accurate. But you have to admit, that Godzilla roar is iconic.

Honourable mentions:

Grindylows - I am convinced Lake Dearnford has those!

Sirens - According to Qi (which we all know I take as gospel) Sirens were originally depicted as half woman, half bird.

1. The Kraken

The Kraken. Photo: YoWorldForum

RELEASE THE KRAKEN!!

What is there not to love about this beastie? It is a giant, ship eating cephalapod.

Norweigan in origin, its first depictions were more crab like but evolved into the beast we know and love today. Some traits associated with the Kraken - bubbles of water, sudden dangerous currents and new islets - are actually tied to volanic activity.

I love the Kraken for a couple reasons. One, Kraken rum is my favourite. And two, in my favourite book Wild Magic by Tamora Pierce when surrounded by pirates and all seems lost a Kraken saves the day. Sort of. He eats all the pirates and causes a little trouble afterwards, but who doesn't love a sassy Kraken?