Woodland Trust claim recent Loch Ness monster sightings are driftwoodÂ Loch Ness monster sightings may actually be logs, Woodland Trust say Driftwood could be to blame for all Loch Ness sightings, the charity saidÂ Several people claim to have seen the creature in the last few weeks The mystery of the Loch Ness monster has drawn millions to the Highlands in the search of the mythical beast.Â More than 80 years since she was first photographed, a recent spate of Nessie sightings has added weight to the claims that there really is something lurking in the depths of the loch. But the numerous sightings of the so-called beast over the last weeks could be something far more mundane, with experts at the Woodland Trust suggesting people could just be seeing logs floating on the water. Earlier this year Richard Collis captured footage of Nessie's head and neck emerging from Loch Ness, but was it just a log? Branch or beast? Another taken on the loch this year showed a strange shape emerging from rough waters Comparison: Monster photographer Jonathan Bright believes his photo (left) resembles the gargoyle head drawn by Dr Bob Rhines (right), an esteemed scientist who spent years investigating the Loch Ness Monster in the 1970s Several Nessie spotters have come forward in the last few weeks, but the environmental charity claim people could be mistaking driftwood for the mythical creature. The Woodland Trust say 'deadfall' washed out by rivers from nearby Urquhart Bay Wood could explain the vast number of sightings since the Loch Ness Monster was first photographed in 1934. 'Large amounts of wood flows out of the woodland through the two winding rivers that flow into Loch Ness each year, peaking when water is high in late autumn and spring,' a spokesman for the trust told the Independent. 'I think that some of that debris explains the long thin, sometimes stick-like, shapes seen.'Â The spokesman added that the wood was effectively a 'Nessie spawning ground'. Sightings of the Loch Ness Monster date back to the 6th century, but became more common from the 1930s after George Spicer and his wife claimed to see 'a most extraordinary form of animal' cross the road in front of their car. This underwater photograph from 1972 is said to have been taken during an expedition usingÂ sophisticated underwater cameras and sonar equipment This picture, taken in 1934, sparked a surge in visits to Loch Ness by people desperate to photograph the beast The Spicers' story led thousands of people to visit Loch Ness to try to take a photograph of the creature. After sonar searches, countless hoaxes and dozens of weird and wonderful explanations for the sightings, no one has taken a clear picture of Nessie. In 2006, palaeontologist Neil Clark, from Glasgow University's Hunterian Museum, put forward an intriguing explanation linking the Loch Ness monster sightings to elephants. He said circuses used to visit Inverness often and would stop on the banks of Loch Ness to give the animals a rest. There are similarities between trunks and some of the most famous Nessie photographs, he said. 'The circuses used to take the road up to Inverness and allow their animals to have a rest, swim about in the Loch and refresh themselves,' Dr Clark said at the time. More recently, images have emerged allegedly showing Nessie poking her head out of the water, but the blurry images and video are not clear cut. Last year a satellite picture from an Apple map app appeared to show a large, mysterious creature swimming through the loch. The Official Loch Ness Monster Fan Club said the sighting was 'likely' to be a true image of the beast. In 2013, this shadowy form measuring around 100ft long and seemingly having two giant flippers powering it through the waters of Loch Ness was photographed by an Apple map app A poll conducted in 2012 found that 24 per cent of people professed belief in the Loch Ness monster Following Nessie's first modern sightings in the 1930s, which were often printed in newspapers, thousands took to Loch Ness to try to take their own picture of the mysterious creature. Dozens of blurry images emerged, with some taking to creating elaborate hoaxes of the hidden beast. Here are some of the most famous sightings of the Loch Ness Monster.Â This blurred picture, said to show the Loch Ness Monster, was taken by Hugh Gray in 1933 and published in the Daily Express A close-up of what could be the Loch Ness Monster. The photo was taken by William Jobes in 2011 In 2001 semi-retired photographer James Gray and friend Peter Levings took this while they were out fishing