Paul Vanwyck

OWEN SOUND, - A local diver says he's made a major discovery. Jacob Autumn D'Wellor says he found a tooth that he believes belongs to the Owen Sound Serpent.
D'Wellor says he made the find while diving near the Owen Sound Waste Water Treatment Plant a few years ago.
"It was July of 2013," D'Wellor said. "It wasall covered in zebra mussels and stuff, but I knew right away that it was something pretty awesome."
D'Wellor says it took him until 2016 to get the money to have the tooth properly analyzed. He sent the tooth to Dr. Phib at the Leamington Institute of Engineering Sciences.
"The tooth appears to be between 60 and 90 years old, which is just astounding," Dr. Phib said over the phone from his office at L.I.E.S. "Frankly, we have no explanation for why such a large tooth would be found in Georgian Bay or anywhere on the Great Lakes."
Phib then sent a sample off to Oxford to have the DNA analyzed. The results from Oxford were conclusive but unbelievable.
"They initially discovered DNA strands at Oxford, so they take this testing very seriously," Dr. Phibs explained. "They did the testing three times before concluding that the DNA was similar to that of large lizards like the Komodo dragon."
"It's gotta be Ossie," D'Wellor said, referring to local legendary lake monster the Owen Sound Serpent by its common nickname.
Dr. Phib says he's consulting with renowned New York Paleontologist Dr. Ross Schwimmer to see if the tooth is related to any known dinosaur family.
D'Wellor says he intends to sell the tooth at auction in New York next month.