Lariosauro
Encyclopedia
Lariosauro is a cryptid
reported to live in Lake Como
in Italy
, about 30 miles north of Milan
. Como is one of the deepest European lakes, at about 410 metres (1200 feet) at the deepest location
In 1946, eye witnesses allegedly reported seeing a reptile-like animal swimming in the waters of the lake. It was called lariosauro, the same name used a century before to name a prehistoric reptile whose fossilized remains were found by the lake (Lariosaurus
balsami). A weekly of Como
, a week after the first article, wrote it was a sturgeon
, but the sturgeon as well as the monster appear to be more simply a hoax invented by the press.
There were other sightings, or alleged sightings, in Lake Como.
Skeptic researcher Giorgio Castiglioni, who studied these cases, thinks that the animal of 1954 was an otter
, the monster of August 1957 a hoax, the beast of September 1957 possibly a pike and the 2003 eel actually a group of fish swimming together.
Cryptid
In cryptozoology and sometimes in cryptobotany, a cryptid is a creature or plant whose existence has been suggested but is unrecognized by scientific consensus and often regarded as highly unlikely. Famous examples include the Yeti in the Himalayas and the Loch Ness Monster in...
reported to live in Lake Como
Lake Como
Lake Como is a lake of glacial origin in Lombardy, Italy. It has an area of 146 km², making it the third largest lake in Italy, after Lake Garda and Lake Maggiore...
in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, about 30 miles north of Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
. Como is one of the deepest European lakes, at about 410 metres (1200 feet) at the deepest location
In 1946, eye witnesses allegedly reported seeing a reptile-like animal swimming in the waters of the lake. It was called lariosauro, the same name used a century before to name a prehistoric reptile whose fossilized remains were found by the lake (Lariosaurus
Lariosaurus
Lariosaurus is an extinct genus of nothosaur from the Triassic period of northern Italy. With a length of just , it was one of the smallest known nothosaurs...
balsami). A weekly of Como
Como
Como is a city and comune in Lombardy, Italy.It is the administrative capital of the Province of Como....
, a week after the first article, wrote it was a sturgeon
Sturgeon
Sturgeon is the common name used for some 26 species of fish in the family Acipenseridae, including the genera Acipenser, Huso, Scaphirhynchus and Pseudoscaphirhynchus. The term includes over 20 species commonly referred to as sturgeon and several closely related species that have distinct common...
, but the sturgeon as well as the monster appear to be more simply a hoax invented by the press.
There were other sightings, or alleged sightings, in Lake Como.
- In 1954 in ArgegnoArgegnoArgegno is a comune in the Province of Como in the Italian region Lombardy, located about 50 km north of Milan and about 15 km north of Como...
a creature with round muzzle and back and webbed paws. - In August 1957 an enormous monster in the waters between DongoDongoDongo is a comune in the Province of Como in the Italian region Lombardy. It lies on the northwestern shore of Lake Como between Gravedona and Musso at the mouth of the Albano...
and MussoMusso (CO)Musso is a small town in the Province of Como in the Italian region Lombardy. It lies on the western shore of the northern branch of Lake Como about northeast of the city of Como...
. - In September 1957 a strange animal whose head was described as similar to a crocodileCrocodileA crocodile is any species belonging to the family Crocodylidae . The term can also be used more loosely to include all extant members of the order Crocodilia: i.e...
head. - In 2003 a giant eelEelEels are an order of fish, which consists of four suborders, 20 families, 111 genera and approximately 800 species. Most eels are predators...
, 10–12 m long, in LeccoLeccoLecco is a town of c. 47,760 inhabitants in Lombardy, northern Italy, north of Milan, the capital of the province of Lecco. It lies at the end of the south-eastern branch of Lake Como...
.
Skeptic researcher Giorgio Castiglioni, who studied these cases, thinks that the animal of 1954 was an otter
Otter
The Otters are twelve species of semi-aquatic mammals which feed on fish and shellfish, and also other invertebrates, amphibians, birds and small mammals....
, the monster of August 1957 a hoax, the beast of September 1957 possibly a pike and the 2003 eel actually a group of fish swimming together.