- STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - Sweden's
Great Lake Monster, the mythical inhabitant of Storsjon lake, will soon
be fair game for hunters and curio seekers as its protected status is about
to be lifted, local authorities said Wednesday.
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- Named after the stretch of water it inhabits ("Storsjon"
means Great Lake), the monster is Sweden's answer to Scotland's Loch Ness
Monster, Norway's "Selma" and Argentina's "Nahuelito."
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- The legend dates back at least to the 1600s and tells
of a huge black serpent with a cat-like head. But a snake-like beast is
also depicted on a Viking rune-stone from hundreds of years earlier on
an island in the middle of the lake.
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- Now the law protecting the beast, in place since 1986,
is to be lifted after a request from a local man for permission to collect
its eggs forced local authorities to acknowledge they lack scientific evidence
that it is a valid species.
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- "We do not question the Great Lake Monster's existence
-- of course we believe it exists," Peter Lif, head of legal affairs
for the region of Jamtland told Reuters. "But we find ourselves forced
to lift its protection."
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- He encouraged believers in the monster, who run a fan
Web site www.storsjoodjuret.com, to use take advantage of the change in
the law to catch the beast humanely and prove its existence.
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- "We encourage everyone to come here and search for
the monster so that we can establish valid protection," he said.
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