FRUIT-BAT-PHOENIX

This not very scary sea monster is the juvenile stage of a large ocean-dwelling species thought to be responsible for the myth of the Loch Ness Monster. Like a salmon, an adult nessie will return to the river in which she was born in order to lay her eggs. Unlike a salmon, nessies are large (typically similar in size to an orca whale) and thus will choose a large, slow moving estuary rather than attempting to go far upstream.

Young nessilets prefer a diet high in jellyfish (yes, jellyfish can be found in estuaries!). Depending on the type of jellyfish consumed, this imparts the nessilet with a spicy flavor which deters some predators. Nessilets will often come ashore to sun themselves like sea lions, but they are very wary of humans and thus will not be seen on popular beaches.

When the nessilet reaches approximately the size of a medium-large dog, they will leave the estuary to continue their life in the ocean proper, and will become a mature nessie in 35-45 years.

Aqua Nessilet is sewn from cotton batik fabric, with hand embroidered texture and acrylic plushie eyes. They are stuffed with polyfil and contain no wire.