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Brits shocked after spotting ‘unusually’ large fin patrolling UK beach

Home> Community

Published 09:45 20 Feb 2023 GMT

Brits shocked after spotting ‘unusually’ large fin patrolling UK beach

People were warned against going in the ocean as the creature lurked beneath the waves

Emily Brown

Emily Brown

Brits have been left concerned after a sea creature with an 'unusually' large fin was spotted lurking near the shore in Cornwall.

Though February definitely isn't the warmest time to go for a splash in the ocean, a warning was issued for surfers and others brave enough to take a winter dip after the fin was seen protruding from the water near Porthleven on Sunday (19 February).

A woman in Gunwalloe snapped a picture of the intimidating fin at about 11am, showing the creature lurking just beyond where the waves were crashing to shore.

It's unclear exactly what kind of creature the fin belonged to, but one local said that even from 30 metres away the fin seemed to be too large for 'the average basking shark', which are typically between 6.7 and 8.8. metres long.

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The fin was spotted near Gunwalloe.
CornwallLive/BPM

"I can't say what type of shark it is but doesn't look like the average basking shark so thought I would just mention its presence just in case," the local said as they shared the photo.

"Either way, dangerous or not, it's unusual to see any type of shark inshore this time of year and with a fin that size."

The image was shared with another warning on a Facebook page for Porthleven, where the poster suggested the fin belonged to a shark and said it had been spotted 'at the other end of the beach at Gunwalloe'.

"Any winter swimmers might want to proceed with extreme caution as it looks rather large," they added.

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The post led to a lot of speculation from locals attempting to guess what kind of creature could have been patrolling the water, with one commenting: "Too early for basking sharks, blue sharks ect [sic] although if sick they do tend to come closer. It could be a whale, a few have been spotted already."

Other Facebook users suggested the image could actually show the head of a seal rather than a fin, while one said whatever was protruding from the water looked similar to a 'great white dorsal fin'.

The fin was spotted in the water on 19 February.
ian woolcock / Alamy Stock Photo

A variety of sharks can be found in the waters around Cornwall at various times of year, including the predatory blue shark, porbeagle, thresher shark and mako shark, as well as basking sharks and the endangered Porbeagle.

Just last summer, a blue shark was spotted near Trelissick beach in a sighting described by Dan Jarvis, of the charity British Divers Marine Life Rescue, as 'worrying'.

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Jarvis noted at the time that sharks don't typically come that close to beaches and feared that someone could become injured.

Featured Image Credit: CornwallLive/BPM

Topics: UK News, Animals, Viral

Emily Brown
Emily Brown

Emily Brown is the Community Desk Lead at LADbible Group. Emily first began delivering news when she was just 11 years old - with a paper route. She went on to graduate with a BA Hons in English Language in the Media from Lancaster University before contributing to The Sunday Times Travel Magazine and Student Problems. She joined UNILAD in 2018 to cover breaking news, trending stories and longer form features, and now works as Community Desk Lead to commission and write human interest stories from across the globe.

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