Walkers have spotters a number of bizarre items washed up on the shore over the years
A pile of gooseneck barnacles washed up in Blackpool(Image: Chevaun Hands/Facebook)
With over 80% of the ocean still unexplored, there are many bizarre and potentially terrifying things lurking beneath the water’s surface. But we don’t always need to search the depths of the sea to find these unusual objects; sometimes they wash up on the shore.
Most beach walkers will find nothing out of the ordinary along the shoreline. While seashells and seaweed often come in with the tide – along with occasional piece of driftwood – every so often, something strange is swept in by the water.
Many items have taken people by surprise – with some unusual finds even proving to be quite lucrative. Some pretty bizarre and rare things wash up on Merseyside’s beaches, so keep an eye out the next time you’re at the coast.
Remains of enormous creaNew Brighton
The remains of a basking shark washed up on New Brighton beach. The enormous carcass was found at around 9am on Friday, January 5 2024, on the sand close to Fort Perch Rock at the mouth of Liverpool Bay. The 15ft remains was discovered by New Brighton local Stephen Davies, 72, during his daily run.
He said: “I was running on the beach and thought ‘what’s that?’ because it looked quite big. I was talking to a fisherman who said it was a basking shark, which I don’t think are fairly common around here, but it could have been washed in by the tide. I have never come across anything like it before.”
The remains of the basking shark on New Brighton beach(Image: Stephen Davies)
The basking shark is the second largest fish found in UK seas. They move slowly, gathering minuscule zooplankton in their massive mouths, which measure up to a metre in width. According to the Wildlife Trust, the species is most commonly seen in the summer months, and are known to frequent the coasts of south-west England, Wales, the Isle of Man, and west Scotland.
Despite its size, the deceased shark found in New Brighton is likely to have been a youngster, as fully grown basking sharks can measure up to 40ft – 12 metres – in length, and can weigh up to six tonnes.
The Trust said: “The basking shark may be huge but we still know very little about this elusive giant. Satellite tracking has shown that they can migrate long distances in the winter, with some showing up off the Azores and even Newfoundland. However, some fishermen have reported seeing them in midwinter in the UK and they sometimes wash up dead in the winter after storms.” The carcass was removed from the beach using a forklift truck.
Woman has people puzzled by strange object found buried in sand
Back in 2021, a woman from Crosby left people stumped with a bizarre find on Crosby beach. Claire Burgess was walking along Crosby beach with her dog Luna when she found the item.
Luna dug up the strange looking item from the sand, leaving people bemused as to what it was and why it was found on Crosby beach. Claire took to Facebook to try and figure out what he pup had found. She wrote: “Has anyone ever found a tooth/ bone like this on the beach? My dog dug it up and it’s huge.”
A tooth/bone found on Crosby beach(Image: Claire Burgess)
People flocked to the comments to try to figure out what the mystery object is. Nathan commented: “It looks more like a tooth.” Marc was also quick to comment suggesting it “looks like a tusk.”
One person suggested taking it to the Liverpool Museum but Claire has now contacted Natural England in hope of finding out what the strange find is.
Dog walker in disbelief as ‘dozens of sharks’ wash up on Merseyside beach
A dog walker couldn’t believe his eyes when he came across dozens of sharks washed up on a Merseyside beach. Mick Preston, from Meols, Wirral, took a trip to Leasowe Beach on Wednesday night (May 17) 2024 after he saw a post on Facebook about dead sea creatures washed up on the sand.
Mick, 37, said he counted 25 smooth-hound sharks on a small stretch of the beach leading up to Leasowe Golf Club. However, the number of dead sea creatures on the beach is said to be much greater, with another man telling the ECHO he found over one hundred scattered across the sand.
Mick told the ECHO: “Me and the Mrs and dog went for a walk and it’s just not a nice sight. I’ve done this for a hobby for 22 years – I’ve fished the Mersey since I was 14. The gillnets are the main problem. The fish that are surplus to requirements or ones they can’t sell, they’re just bumping off.
The dead sea creatures were found washed up on Leasowe Beach
“By the time they’ve been dragged through water in the net and everything [they’re already dead]. They’re tossed overboard like garbage. Porpoises, seals, tope have all become quite regular in the Mersey and surrounding areas of Mersey. If we’re fighting against pollution and getting somewhere and these fish are moving back into Mersey…how long is it until numbers decrease dramatically and we don’t get them again?
“If a rod and line angler had caught it bringing it in they would take a photo and release it then.” Mick said while he understands gillnetting is not illegal, he feels how the nets are being used needs to be monitored properly. He would like the North Western Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authority (NWIFCA) to have a greater presence on beaches in the area to help monitor the situation.
An NWIFCA spokesperson said: “Under current local and national legislation, it is not illegal to fish using gill-nets on foot in the Mersey Estuary, nor discard unwanted by-catch from those nets. NWIFCA officers regularly patrol the area and conduct inspections of this fishery to ensure compliance with specific regulations regarding the physical make-up of the nets in use.
“As a modern regulator, we are keen to receive and review evidence which enables us to consider how best to manage and regulate inshore fishing activity in the future. We would ask that any members of the public who have concerns regarding any fishing activity in the area contact us via our email office@nw-ifca.gov.uk.”
Walker spots rare haul worth ‘£4,000’ washed up on beach
During a beach trip in Blackpool, a walker stumbled upon an unusual find. Over the weekend, Chevaun Hands captured a photo of the peculiar ‘roll’ of seaweed and shells and turned to Facebook for help in identifying her discovery.
Several responses confirmed that the shells were indeed gooseneck barnacles. These rare barnacles are considered a delicacy in countries like Portugal and Spain but have been known to wash up on UK shores following storms.
In 2022, a similar-sized roll of barnacles was found on a beach in Gwynedd, reportedly valued at £4,000. The Wildlife Trusts explain that barnacles are a type of crustacean, related to crabs and lobsters. Gooseneck barnacles filter feed on plankton and detritus, using their specially adapted legs to capture it from the water.
A pile of gooseneck barnacles washed up in Blackpool(Image: Chevaun Hands/Facebook)
These creatures can be purchased fresh online for approximately £80 to £90 per kilogram or cheaper if frozen, reports Lancs Live. Goose barnacles are unmistakable. They grow in dense clusters on flotsam, with delicate chalky white shells anchored to the object by a fleshy black stalk (or peduncle).
A similar species, the buoy barnacle (lepas fascicularis), floats attached to a spongy ‘buoy’ that it creates itself rather than being attached to an object. The buoy barnacle is a pale purple colour. Goose barnacles are often washed up on the west and south-west coasts of the UK, especially after storms.
Mysterious sea creature washed up on Merseyside beach
A man was perplexed after stumbling upon a unidentified creature washed up on a Merseyside beach. The decomposing specimen was discovered by the Lifeboat Road car park in Formby. It was found by Dominic Murphy while he was taking a walk along the beach with his cousin yesterday evening.
The creature had partially decomposed and is believed to be around two foot long. Dominic, who is from Crosby, has not been able to identify the species of sea bird and on initial inspection believed it was a penguin.
Speaking to the ECHO Dominic said: “I don’t know what it is, we saw it on the beach and I took a couple of photos of it. We were arguing amongst ourselves over what we thought it was.
Dead mammal that was discovered in Banks last week
“Initially I thought “is that a penguin?”, but obviously it’s not. It’s shaped like one but we are in Liverpool not the Antarctic. My cousin said it was a pigeon but it is definitely not a pigeon I haven’t got a clue what it is.”
After sharing a photograph of the creature with friends on WhatsApp, discussions grew about what the bird could be and where it may have come from. However none of Dominic’s friends were able to shed any light on the mystery.
Dominic, 26, said: “If you look at it it’s got feathers and a beak, so it is not a penguin. My cousin was laughing at me when I said it because he was wondering how something like that could end up in Formby.”
A spokesperson from Green Sefton said: “The bird is called a Guillemot, a member of the auk family. It is not a penguin. Guillemots breed on cliffs around North Wales and Anglesey and often feed in Liverpool Bay and in the inshore waters along the Sefton coast. Fatalities through disease, injury or hunger often wash up along our beaches.”
Bizarre and rare sea creatures ‘worth £50,000’ wash on on beach
Remarkable pictures show a rare sighting of thousands of bizarre and valuable sea creatures washed up on a beach. Martyn Green and his family, from New Brighton, were on a weekend away near Caernarfon in North Wales when they came across what appeared to be a large piece of driftwood.
Attached to the log were thousands of tentacled creatures in shells, which Martyn says is unlike anything he has seen before. He said: “My wife Gemma, she found it. We were walking on the beach and she called us and said ‘come back, look at this’. We went and had a look and it looked like something not of this world. It was quite an attraction for the locals.”
Martyn, 47, said his son Daniel searched on Google for answers and they soon realised the astonishing creatures were Goosenecked Barnacles, a rare specimen considered a delicacy, particularly in Portugal and Spain where they are known as percebes.
The valuable and rare sea creatures that washed up on a North Wales beach(Image: Martyn Green)
He said: “It turns out they are one of the most expensive sea creatures you can buy. From looking on Google I think it’s about £25 each they go for, and on the log there were probably about 2,000 of them.”
Martyn, who runs a marketing agency, said he did not want to reveal the exact location of the otherworldly sight to avoid opportunists flocking to the scene and destroying it.
Martyn’s fears are not unfounded, as there have been reports of fishermen in Galicia, northeastern Spain, risking death to harvest the creatures and illegal and violent groups muscling in. At prices reaching 360 euros a kilo in peak times, the barnacles are a lucrative find – despite their hideous appearance.