Dead Monster Washes Ashore

By Carol Bengle Gilbert, published Jul 30, 2008

Weird-looking creature is discovered in Montauk, Long Island, which is apparently near a government animal testing facility called Plum Island. Is it real, or just some belated viral marketing scheme for The X-Files movie. An unknown creature that washed up on the beach in Montauk, New York, has been dubbed the "Montauk Monster" and captivated the American imagination.

Speculation about the identity of the Montauk Monster is rampant. Many skeptical Americans believe that the Montauk Monster is a publicity stunt. The most conspiracy-minded are sure the Montauk monster is detritus from a sinister government operation. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)-operated Plum Island animal testing facility is nearby, fueling the belief that the USDA is responsible; some would see the Montauk Monster as a hideous USDA experiment gone wrong while others might consider it a not -so-unexpected byproduct of animal experimentation. The simplest explanation might be that the Montauk Monster is a natural mutation of some sort of ordinary Earth animal, but which one?

Is the Montauk Monster a sea turtle without a shell? A skinned pig? The descriptions and guesses as to the Montauk Monster's identity are so variant as to be mindboggling.

Could the Montauk Monster Be Property of the USDA?

USDA's Plum Island Animal Disease Center is described as a level 4 bioresearch facility established to investigate zoonotic diseases such as Ebola, West Nile and Avian Flu. Some of these diseases are potentially deadly to humans but the facility was originally established after World War II for the purpose of protecting the nation's livestock. On the USDA website under the heading "USDA and DHS Working Together," the mission of the Plum Island Animal Disease Center is described simply as "We work to protect farm animals, farmers and ranchers, the nation's farm economy and export markets... and your food supply."

Since 2003, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the DHS has had a hand in Plum Island's activities, though its exact role is unclear. The USDA website indicates that DHS provides for the safety and security of the facility.

Mysterious 'Monster of Montauk'

The Director of the Plum Island Animal Disease Center today uttered an unequivocal denial that the Monster of Montauk came from the facility.

With the Monster of Montauk the hottest topic on Google Trends for the second day running, Associated Content called the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) which jointly operate the facility, for a response to persistent speculation that the Montauk Monster is USDA property. As reported yesterday on Associated Content, the USDA's Plum Island Animal Disease Center is located not far from where the Montauk Monster washed ashore.

The close proximity of the Plum Island facility and the site of the Montauk Monster's discovery had fueled speculation that the Monster of Montauk is property of the USDA and may have been an experiment gone wrong or a byproduct of improper disposal.

Dr. Larry Barrett, Plum Island Animal Disease Center (PIADC) Director, responded to a flood of media inquiries on the Montauk Monster by issuing the following statement:

"It is impossible to accurately identify the species of animal from the photo. There is no scale from which to judge its size. Additionally, when a body has had prolonged exposure to water and predators, it can be altered or appear different from its normal form. If we had the actual body, we could tell you what it is; however, from viewing a canine tooth in the picture, we could guess it may be acat or raccoon. I can state categorically that it is not associated with the workperformed at Plum Island Animal Disease Center (PIADC). PIADC serves as the nation's first line of defense against foreign animal diseases of livestock by identifying such diseases through diagnostic testing and by developing vaccines to protect livestock from those diseases."