Sea serpent
There were legends about sea serpents on Earth among humans; the Fourth Doctor theorised they may have grown from sightings of late-surviving Plesiosaurs. (PROSE: The Doctor Who Dinosaur Book [+]Loading...["The Doctor Who Dinosaur Book (novel)",""])
However, at some point prior to his eighth incarnation, the Doctor encountered a very real species of intelligent sea serpents living on a different planet than Earth. (PROSE: Vampire Science [+]Loading...["Vampire Science (novel)"])
Culture
The sea serpents worshipped beings from their planet (whom the Doctor likened to Earth's whales) as gods. The whales in question were not sapient beings, and the serpents were aware of this by the time the Doctor encountered them; however, they rationalised that the whales were so "enlightened" that they did not need any kind of superior intelligence. (PROSE: Vampire Science [+]Loading...["Vampire Science (novel)"])
History
In 1872, (PROSE: A History of Humankind [+]Loading...["A History of Humankind (novel)"]) after the crew of the Marie Celeste had been abducted, a sea serpent attacked an Arcturian near the Earth's surface and dragged it down to the bottom of the ocean. The Second Doctor was astounded that he had discovered the mystery of both the Marie Celeste and the sea serpent, which the captain had referred to as a "Kraken", in one day. (PROSE: The Mystery of the Marie Celeste [+]Loading...["The Mystery of the Marie Celeste (short story)"])
In the 20th century, the sea serpents existed on the fourth planet from a red star that was easily visible in Earth's night sky. To prove that he was truly a proficient interstellar traveller, the Eighth Doctor pointed it out to Carolyn McConnell and told him what he knew of its inhabitants. (PROSE: Vampire Science [+]Loading...["Vampire Science (novel)"])
