Modern Mysteries

Strange 'blobs' have been washing up on Newfoundland's beaches

By T.K. Randall
October 14, 2024 ·  7 comments

The coast of Newfoundland. Image Credit: CC BY-SA 4.0 Ryan Hodnett Something strange has been lurking on the pebble-strewn beaches of Newfoundland, Canada in recent weeks and nobody seems to be able to figure out what they are or where they are coming from.

Some have likened the mysterious blobs to solid lumps of vegetable oil, while others believe they more closely resemble a type of cooking dough used to create a regional dish known as Toutons.

Numerous possible explanations have been put forward ranging from fungus or mold to paraffin wax, but so far the mysterious substance has managed to evade definitive identification.

It has even been suggested that they could be pieces of ambergris - a rare and valuable substance produced by whales - but it seems unlikely that so much of it would show up in the same place.So far, an investigation by Environment and Climate Change Canada has ruled out the possibility that the blobs are any sort of biofuel, petroleum hydrocarbon or petroleum lubricant.

Marine biologists also seem to have ruled out that they are sea sponges or anything similar.

The appearance of the blobs isn't an isolated incident, either, as for weeks now, beachgoers have been finding hundreds of them strewn over a considerable area.

As things stand, no definitive explanation for the phenomenon has been forthcoming.

Mysterious 'blobs' are washing up on Newfoundland shore https://t.co/Yo4W8zmecQ

- Chris Athayde (@ephemera88) October 12, 2024

Source: BBC News | Comments (7)

Tags: Blob, Beach