Mysterious Sea Creature Washes Up On Shore, Its Huge Size Startles Beachgoer

A beachgoer in the U.K. was shocked after she came across a mysterious sea creature that washed up on the shore Monday. Holly Asargiotakis said she was "startled" after seeing the enormous animal.

Asargiotakis was walking with a friend on Ferring Beach in Sussex when she spotted the huge creature. She said the beach was full of dead crabs and her friend's dog ran toward an eel-like creature lying on the shore. The 29-year-old hairdresser said the creature was 4-6 feet long.

"Dash went up to it at first, probably thinking the same as us, then we kept him away from it. He was very interested," Asargiotakis told the Argus. "We didn't know what it was at first. A lot of people have been saying it's normal, but I'm really not a fan of the sea."

"I don't like swimming in the sea, and this proves why," she added.

Sarah Ward, living seas officer at Sussex Wildlife Trust, identified the creature as a European conger eel – one of the biggest eel species in the world.

"They do live in the Channel although they are not very often seen. They are nocturnal and hide away in rocky reefs or wrecks during the day, emerging at night to hunt," Ward told the outlet. "Conger eels live for many years, and don't usually reach maturity until at least five years of age. Females are much larger than males, usually around two meters in length once mature. However, individuals up to three meters long have been recorded... There have been recent reports of congers being washed up in Worthing, Rustington and Brighton."

Ward said it was likely that the creature washed up on the shore following the recent stormy weather and would wash out to sea at the next high tide.

According to Britannica, Conger eels are scaleless with large heads, large gill slits, wide mouths and strong teeth. They are usually found along the European and North American Atlantic coasts. They feed mostly at night on crustaceans and small fish.