Mysterious sea creature washes ashore

[oldrover]

I'd agree. I did think of a frilled shark when I first saw it as an outsider, but the pectoral fin kills it. The chicken wire like pattern under the surface of the tail is a bit suspect too mind. 

[ChrLzs]

I've seen more than a fair share of decomposed sea animals and often fins are missing or misshapen, skin can be stretched/twisted in weird ways - without a higher resolution image, it's hard to be certain what's there and what isn't.

But your points are valid, OR and Carn.  Let's wait and see what transpires with a bit more time...

Note that there is video footage (but way too short and no context).  I think it unlikely to be faked imagery, although the blurring of the guts does show at least some basic skills at editing... but we don't even know who did that - could have been the media outlet...

[Carnoferox]

11 minutes ago, ChrLzs said:

I've seen more than a fair share of decomposed sea animals and often fins are missing or misshapen, skin can be stretched/twisted in weird ways - without a higher resolution image, it's hard to be certain what's there and what isn't.

But your points are valid, OR and Carn.  Let's wait and see what transpires with a bit more time...

Note that there is video footage (but way too short and no context).  I think it unlikely to be faked imagery, although the blurring of the guts does show at least some basic skills at editing... but we don't even know who did that - could have been the media outlet...

The problem I have with the identification as a decomposed marine animal is that it doesn't look decomposed at all. Cetacean and shark carcasses typically look "shaggy" because of decaying collagen fibers; the Zuiyo-Maru creature (basking shark) and globsters (whales) are a prime examples. In comparison the flesh on the creature looks intact except for the abdominal wound, indicating that this was its life appearance and that it didn't decompose into this shape. The two pectoral fins, curved caudal fin, and rounded head are too reminiscent of artwork of the Altamaha-ha. These factors lead to my suspicion that it's a model of some sort.

[Nnicolette]

On 3/18/2018 at 2:00 PM, Carnoferox said:

Kronosaurus, like all other prehistoric marine reptiles (pliosaurs, plesiosaurs, ichthyosaurus, mosasaurs, etc.), would have had four functional limbs at all stages of its life.

What about no limbs? Surely there may be an in between?

It could explain why the fin is so immense and the body so snakelike minus the bloating.

Edited March 22, 2018 by Nnicolette

[Nnicolette]

6 hours ago, Carnoferox said:

The problem I have with the identification as a decomposed marine animal is that it doesn't look decomposed at all. Cetacean and shark carcasses typically look "shaggy" because of decaying collagen fibers; the Zuiyo-Maru creature (basking shark) and globsters (whales) are a prime examples. In comparison the flesh on the creature looks intact except for the abdominal wound, indicating that this was its life appearance and that it didn't decompose into this shape. The two pectoral fins, curved caudal fin, and rounded head are too reminiscent of artwork of the Altamaha-ha. These factors lead to my suspicion that it's a model of some sort.

Or real. It seems everyone is so set on fitting tradition that they don't account for how little we can be sure of. When you zoom in a great deal it looks real to me. And it definitely is obvious that the authorities are aware of that by how pressed they are to get the body.  If they just wanted to call it a lie they would proclaim it as such with the absence. But they didn't do that they proclaimed that it was a rotting shark. When it is clearly not decomposed or a shark.

[oldrover]

8 hours ago, ChrLzs said:

I've seen more than a fair share of decomposed sea animals and often fins are missing or misshapen, skin can be stretched/twisted in weird ways - without a higher resolution image, it's hard to be certain what's there and what isn't.

But your points are valid, OR and Carn.  Let's wait and see what transpires with a bit more time...

Note that there is video footage (but way too short and no context).  I think it unlikely to be faked imagery, although the blurring of the guts does show at least some basic skills at editing... but we don't even know who did that - could have been the media outlet...

Yes, I know what you mean, I've always lived by the sea and I've seen a fair few too. But in this case there are reasons to be highly suspicious. Firstly is the anatomy and yes while thibgs can distort as they decomoise there's no precedant or mechanism I'm aware of that'd cause the fin to expand. And the size of it in relation to the body is unlike anything I can think if excrpt a turtle, but then we hit the problem of the hind flippers/fins. And of course a lack of carapace. But, if you zoom in you can see the surface derail quite well and thers's no sign of devomposition or scavening, and there's no sign of injury to account for therest of the fins being removed. What you do see is signs of a suspicious looked structure under the surface of the tail, whjch looks like a reinforcing armature.

Plus, the video is suspect. Never gets to close to it, never shoots it from a different angle, just a quick little segment and done. Very suspect. The killer though is that thing looks like nothing ever known to have existed, but an awful lot like that local tourist mascot. 

Lastly every pro that I've seen comment on it directly is calling it a gaff. As far as I'm aware though, although they're all pointing to this being a model basedon the almaha the first person to come up with this was our own Carnoferox. 

[Carnoferox]

4 hours ago, NicoletteS said:

What about no limbs? Surely there may be an in between?

It could explain why the fin is so immense and the body so snakelike minus the bloating.

I'm not sure what you're getting at here, as the creature in the photo clearly has flippers and is not limbless.

4 hours ago, NicoletteS said:

Or real. It seems everyone is so set on fitting tradition that they don't account for how little we can be sure of. When you zoom in a great deal it looks real to me. And it definitely is obvious that the authorities are aware of that by how pressed they are to get the body.  If they just wanted to call it a lie they would proclaim it as such with the absence. But they didn't do that they proclaimed that it was a rotting shark. When it is clearly not decomposed or a shark.

Quite a few experts are already calling this a hoax, especially due to the suspicious resemblances between the creature and the Altamaha-ha:

Quote

"That could easily be faked. We think someone's playing a joke on us," says marine biologist Quinton White from Jacksonville University. White says he and his colleagues deliberated on what the remains might be. "We've never seen anything like it. There aren't really signs of decomposition, and it looks remarkably intact."

Quote

"I am convinced the 'sea creature' is a constructed model of a baby Altamaha-ha Monster," says John "Crawfish" Crawford, a naturalist at the University of Georgia Marine Extension and Georgia Sea Grant. Crawford notes that the remains were found, "near the ground zero 'habitat' of that mythical creature."

https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2018/03/mysterious-sea-creature-washes-ashore-georgia-monster-spd/

[Nnicolette]

On 3/19/2018 at 4:43 PM, Sundew said:

I'm fairly familiar with mollusks on the S.E. Coast and the sea shells pictured are about 2-4" in diameter, so this is a fairly large animal, I believe they said five feet in length or so. That seems right from the shells near it. 

I've also seen enough "globsters" on line to be fairly sure it's not the decomposing body of a Basking Shark as suggested. They tail seems reminiscent of a Thresher Shark, but not the rest of the animal. If this was a marine reptile along the lines of a Plesiosaur, it seems to be missing hind flippers. 

Of course there have been artists before who have made fake creatures, going back at least as far as the infamous "Fiji Mermaid" so there is always the possibility of a hoax. 

It is unfortunate when people find strange things they do not take multiple photos, tissue samples, or in this case get the entire animal to a lab for analysis. I once was fishing with a friend and we were pretty well versed in common local fish and he pulled up something neither of us could identify: a deep see Cutlass Fish which looked like a cross between an eel and a Barracuda. I was so impressed I took the thing home and put it in a jar of alcohol and send drawings to a marine research facility so they could I.D. the thing. So if I came upon something that resembled an extinct marine reptile, I think I would be inclined to do better than just snap a photo and leave it at that. 

The body is missing, so either it' a hoax or they took it home and kept it which wouldn't be surprising if it was real. Maybe they are well aware that it will be taken and want to hang on to it.

[Nnicolette]

2 minutes ago, Carnoferox said:

I'm not sure what you're getting at here, as the creature in the photo clearly has flippers and is not limbless.

Quite a few experts are already calling this a hoax, especially due to the suspicious resemblances between the creature and the Altamaha-ha:

https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2018/03/mysterious-sea-creature-washes-ashore-georgia-monster-spd/

That is pretty shotty reasoning. Resembling a legendary animal that was known to the area doesnt exactly prove it's not there, more the adverse.

And yes. Yes it does have flippers. I was responding to the quote made, which deduced this is not anatomically possible. It' quite feeble reasoning considering seals, whales and various other marine animals with two flippers flourish today.

[Carnoferox]

20 minutes ago, NicoletteS said:

That is pretty shotty reasoning. Resembling a legendary animal that was known to the area doesnt exactly prove it's not there, more the adverse.

And yes. Yes it does have flippers. I was responding to the quote made, which deduced this is not anatomically possible. It' quite feeble reasoning considering seals, whales and various other marine animals with two flippers flourish today.

Pinnipeds still have four limbs, and while the hindlimbs of cetaceans are vestigial they have a large tail fluke. This is unlike the body plan of the Altamaha-ha, which has only two pectoral fins and a minimal tail fluke. This combination of features is biologically implausible for a large marine reptile. All large marine reptiles (ichthyosaurus, plesiosaurs, pliosaurs, mosasaurs) have four flippers and a sizable tail fluke for both propulsion and steering. A creature with the body plan of the Altamaha-ha would be poorly suited to aquatic locomotion, which is not surprising considering that it is derived from pure fantasy. The fact that the recent creature matches this mythical and improbable form is highly suspect.

[oldrover]

Oh dear. 

[+DieChecker]

I took a hard look at it. It doesn't look like any known animal to me.

What it really looks like is KELP. The flippers are leaves, and the mouth is the busted off trunk of the kelp.

[oldrover]

3 hours ago, DieChecker said:

I took a hard look at it. It doesn't look like any known animal to me.

What it really looks like is KELP. The flippers are leaves, and the mouth is the busted off trunk of the kelp.

It does vaguely look like kelp. But it's got intestines hanging out if it. 

[Commander CMG]

4 hours ago, DieChecker said:

I took a hard look at it. It doesn't look like any known animal to me.

What it really looks like is KELP. The flippers are leaves, and the mouth is the busted off trunk of the kelp.

I did think Kelp, I seen lots of it scouring the beaches in Scotland and from a distance it can look like an eel or snake like, especially when the sun glints off the surface skin like texture... and when you see some just under the surface moving around in a light current, it is almost serpent like and many times made me look twice.

[Jon the frog]

Why in the world people would not bring back the beast or put it in a safe place higher on the beach to came back later ?

Answer: When someone take a picture of a dead creature and doesn't bring back the beast it's a hoax...

[oldrover]

2 hours ago, Ohelemapit said:

I did think Kelp, I seen lots of it scouring the beaches in Scotland and from a distance it can look like an eel or snake like, especially when the sun glints off the surface skin like texture... and when you see some just under the surface moving around in a light current, it is almost serpent like and many times made me look twice.

Me too. I find kelp very beautiful. 

[Commander CMG]

1 hour ago, oldrover said:

Me too. I find kelp very beautiful. 

Highly nutritional also, some not so palatable but others can be quite tasty, the brown ones, Blue kelp and giant kelp are literally all carbs and can not be digested, a massive stomach upset will follow with that stuff.. 

[oldrover]

3 hours ago, Ohelemapit said:

Highly nutritional also, some not so palatable but others can be quite tasty, the brown ones, Blue kelp and giant kelp are literally all carbs and can not be digested, a massive stomach upset will follow with that stuff.. 

Seawèed, but not kelp, is a local speciality here, it's my favourite food. Plus we have plenty of brown kelp, we dob't eat it though. Perhaps we should. 

[Commander CMG]

43 minutes ago, oldrover said:

Seawèed, but not kelp, is a local speciality here, it's my favourite food. Plus we have plenty of brown kelp, we dob't eat it though. Perhaps we should. 

We are quite fortunate that the UK have no poisonous sea weeds around our coastal waters, we used to bring it in from Japan and I think Scotland are a big producer now, however you can't beat foraging for your own as long as you prepare it properly... Kelpis great to add flavour to soups and casseroles, then remove it before eating. The Welsh have some great recipes using seaweed, even with bacon. (Not tried that yet)..  

[oldrover]

33 minutes ago, Ohelemapit said:

We are quite fortunate that the UK have no poisonous sea weeds around our coastal waters, we used to bring it in from Japan and I think Scotland are a big producer now, however you can't beat foraging for your own as long as you prepare it properly... Kelpis great to add flavour to soups and casseroles, then remove it before eating. The Welsh have some great recipes using seaweed, even with bacon. (Not tried that yet)..  

That's the local specialty I was talking about, lava bread, it's fantastic. I urge you to try it as soon as you get a chance. 

Can you actually eat brown kelp though, or is it just a seasoning? In any case it sounds great and I'd be very keen to try it. 

[Commander CMG]

3 minutes ago, oldrover said:

That's the local specialty I was talking about, lava bread, it's fantastic. I urge you to try it as soon as you get a chance. 

Can you actually eat brown kelp though, or is it just a seasoning? In any case it sounds great and I'd be very keen to try it. 

I would avoid the brown ones, Blue kelp and giant kelp and another one I can't spell.. they are a great seasoning with practice and incredibly not salty, but knowing when to remove it from the stew, casserole or soup takes practice.. it is all carbs and will run the hell out of your stomach and rear end. I need to look at the lava bread?  

[oldrover]

8 minutes ago, Ohelemapit said:

I would avoid the brown ones, Blue kelp and giant kelp and another one I can't spell.. they are a great seasoning with practice and incredibly not salty, but knowing when to remove it from the stew, casserole or soup takes practice.. it is all carbs and will run the hell out of your stomach and rear end. I need to look at the lava bread?  

Thanks for the tips, I'll look into this. And yes lava bread is unbelievable. I've known a lot of people reluctant to try it based on its looks, but I've never known anyone whose tried it not to love it. 

[MysteryMike]

I doubt it's the case as much as I want it to be but it definitely looks like it could be some plesiosaurid. 

Edited March 31, 2018 by MysteryMike

[Carnoferox]

2 hours ago, MysteryMike said:

I doubt it's the case as much as I want it to be but it definitely looks like it could be some plesiosaurid. 

That is true, if you have a faulty pop-culture image of a plesiosaur in your head. If you know what plesiosaurs actually look like then this corpse isn't so similar.

Edited March 31, 2018 by Carnoferox

[Still Waters]

Update: 

Quote

This Washed-Up Sea Creature Was the Work of Viral Hoaxer Zardulu

the unidentifiable corpse was apparently a taxidermied shark with added papier-mâché elements, left on the shore at the order of Zardulu, the mysterious New York–based artist and self-identified "myth-maker" 

But like much of Zardulu's handiwork, the sea creature wasn't justan attempt to shock people. She explained to me over Twitter that the piece, "Ketos Troias," is actually based on an Ancient Greek myth, a recreation of the sea creature Ketos, who Heracles slices open with a fish hook.

https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/59apnx/this-washed-up-sea-creature-was-the-work-of-viral-hoaxer-zardulu