Beach cleaners are stunned after discovering the truth behind the 6-foot-long ‘sea serpent’ that washed up on a Danish beach
Beach cleaners in Denmark were surprised to find a ‘large strange creature’ while collecting litter.
The intriguing object, which measured 1.5 meters in length, washed up at Dueodde, a beach on the southern tip of the Danish island of Bornholm.
After picking it up, they noticed how heavy it felt.
However, after taking it to experts, the discoverers discovered that the object was not some kind of ‘sea serpent’ as initially believed.
So can you guess what it actually is?
The long object – discovered in Bornholm, Denmark, on September 17 – can be seen flat on the ground
Beach cleaners René Vilsholm, Morten Gebhardt and Kenneth Nielsen had collected trash from their local beach. In the photo Gebhardt and Nielsen with their find
It’s a humpback whale’s penis!
Beach cleaners René Vilsholm, Morten Gebhardt and Kenneth Nielsen had collected trash from their local beach on Monday, September 16.
When they found the long-term member, they contacted local conservation group NaturBornholm, who confirmed its true nature.
“It was a different day at work,” NaturBornholm said in one Instagram post with pictures of the penis.
‘On Monday a large strange creature washed up on land near Snogebaek.
‘After some speculation it turned out to be a penis from the young humpback whale from earlier this year.’
The intriguing object washed up at Dueodde, a beach on the southernmost tip of the Danish island of Bornholm
The humpback whale’s penis is believed to belong to a whale that washed ashore earlier this year (pictured)
Experts believe the phallus once belonged to a whale that washed up at the site earlier this year – although it is unclear exactly how it became loose.
NaturBornholm, based in Aakirkeby, Denmark, plans further analysis of the meaty package, but is being kept in the freezer for now.
A humpback whale’s penis can be up to 3 meters long and is normally hidden in the animal’s genital cleft, close to the whale’s belly.
According to the Pacific Whale Foundation, a nonprofit organization based in Maui, Hawaii, it is rare to see the whale’s penis being squeezed out of this slit.
The foundation has already released images of a humpback whale swimming with its penis extended – which it says is ‘a rare and fascinating sight’.
As the video shows, the male humpback whale swims toward another whale, with his penis clearly visible.
But it is not known whether the humpback whale being approached is male or female.
Pacific Whale Foundation claims that men can point their penises at both men and women – possibly as a kind of threatening territorial display.
Adult humpback whales (photo) range in length from 11 to 16 meters. The males produce a complex song of 10 to 20 minutes, which they repeat for hours (archive photo)
Adult humpback whales (officially known as Megaptera novaeangliae) range in length from 39 to 16 meters and weigh approximately 36 tons.
The males produce a complex song lasting 10 to 20 minutes, which they repeat for hours, although both males and females use some form of vocalization.
Along with the blue whale, fin whale and others, humpback whales are a baleen or ‘filer feeder’.
Instead of teeth, baleen whales have a filter feeding system in their mouths, which they use to collect shrimp-like krill, plankton and small fish from the sea.
By comparison, toothed whales, such as beaked whales and sperm whales, bite their food or even swallow it whole.