Bizarre Sea Creatures Washed Up On UK Beach Could Be Worth Thousands

A bizarre bundle of sea creatures washed up on a UK beach and could be worth an awful lot of money.

Martyn Green and his family, from New Brighton, were on a weekend away near Caernarfon in North Wales when they stumbled upon what they at initially was a massive piece of driftwood.

However, on closer inspection they noticed the log was absolutely covered in tentacled creatures in shells, with Martyn saying it's unlike anything he's ever seen before.

He told the Liverpool Echo: "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."

Now, to me this looks like pure nightmare fuel, but Martyn was able to do a quick Google search to find out a little bit more about the creatures and it turns out they've pretty valuable.

Liverpool Echo

Martyn says the creatures are called Goosenecked Barnacles and are a rare specimen that is considered a delicacy, particularly in Portugal and Spain, where they're known as percebes.

Martyn added: "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, says he didn't want to disclose the exact location to try and ensure opportunists couldn't flock to the scene and destroy it.

And he has reason to be cautious, as there have been reports of fishermen risking their lives to harvest these rare creatures, with illegal and violent groups muscling in.

Prices can hit as high as €360 (£322) per kilo, meaning despite their creepy-looking appearance, the creatures are a very special find.

Elsewhere in unusual stuff washing up on beaches, earlier this month a mystery creature was found in Merseyside, prompting speculation about what it could be.

The man who found it - who wanted to remain anonymous - said he was out on Ainsdale beach when he came across the carcass of animal.

He told LADbible: "It had four flippers which made it look most weird. And it was furry.

Facebook/Ainsdale Community Group

"Approximately 15ft long and bones sticking out everywhere, approx 4ft long some of them. Stunk too.

"It looked like it had an extra thing attached to it, maybe it was giving birth and died."

Answers on a postcard, please.

Topics: UK News, Interesting, Weird

Claire Reid

Claire is a journalist at LADbible who, after dossing around for a few years, went to Liverpool John Moores University. She graduated with a degree in Journalism and a whole load of debt. When not writing words in exchange for money she is usually at home watching serial killer documentaries surrounded by cats. You can contact Claire at [email protected]

@ClaireReid19