The biggest search in decades for the Loch Ness monster has ended with several reports of possible sightings - but still no proof the famous beast of Scottish folklore is real.
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Project leader Alan McKenna said he had received a number of videos and tips via people watching live streaming cameras aimed at the lake in the Scottish Highlands.
But he said a lot of time would be needed to pour over the data, to sort fact from wishful thinking.
Drones equipped with thermal imaging cameras were still due to soar over Loch Ness, a 230-metre-deep lake, on Sunday evening.
According to the organisers - the Loch Ness Centre for visitors and enthusiasts from the volunteer group Loch Ness Exploration - the two-day hunt was the most systematic search since 1972 for the elusive, or imagined, monster affectionately named Nessie.
Dozens of volunteers from all over the world positioned themselves at 17 observation posts around the lake, with hundreds of fans of the creature watching Loch Ness via webcams.
Scott Kelly and his wife persevered for hours despite foul weather that at times hampered search efforts.
"There are so many reports from local people," said Kelly.
"I'm sure there is indeed something unknown living in the lake."
Kelly's T-shirt reads: "Nessie. I believe."
Nessie has been the subject of speculation for decades, including whether it is a big fish, a family of otters, a floating branch or a prehistoric animal.
World record holder in Nessie searches, Steve Feltham, who has lived on the lakeshore for 32 years, believes it is a particularly large catfish.
McKenna and his team went out on the lake several times and lowered an underwater microphone called a hydrophone hoping to solve the mystery.
During a test on Friday, "bizarre sounds" were heard, he said.
A check at the same spot on Sunday, however, revealed nothing.
It was therefore unclear whether the noises were caused by gases or an animal.
Legends of the Loch Ness monster date from at least the time of St Columba, who is said to have tamed the beast after it snatched a servant in 565 AD.
Visit Scotland, the country's official tourist agency, has said there had been more than "1000 eyewitness accounts and lots of unexplained evidence" in the lake.
A 1934 photograph appearing to show a plesiosaur-like head above the waves sparked huge interest, inspiring several "monster hunts" and scientific surveys over the following decades.
Most now believe the photo to have been a hoax.
Australian Associated Press
WEEKLY
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