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Writer's pictureFATE Magazine

More Blobs And Globsters




Sometimes something washes ashore that requires a little more investigation — and even then may remain unexplained.

The term for these creatures is, believe it or not, “globster”, which is a technical term used by cryptozoologists and defined as “an unidentified organic mass that washes up on the shoreline of an ocean or other body of water”.

The term was coined by Ivan T. Sanderson in 1962 to describe a marine carcass found on a Tasmanian beach in 1960, which was said to have “no visible eyes, no defined head, and no apparent bone structure.”The Four Mile Globster was not named for its size but the Tasmanian beach it was found on in 1997.

It was 4.6 metres in length and weighed in at about four tons — that’s 3,600kg — and sported paddle-shaped flippers, strands of white hair, and six fleshy lobes along each side.

The Four Mile Globster is not to be confused with the unidentified carcass found in Tasmania in 1960 that saw the term “globster” used for the first time by zoologist Ivan T Sanderson.





The Canvey Island Monster is the name given to an unusual creature whose carcass washed up on the shores of Canvey Island, Britain in November 1953. A second, more intact, carcass was discovered in August, 1954.

The 1953 specimen was described as being 76cm long with thick reddish brown skin, bulging eyes and gills. It was also described as having hind legs with five-toed, horseshoe shaped feet with concave arches — suggesting it walked on two legs — but no forelimbs.

Its remains were cremated after a cursory inspection by zoologists who said that it posed no danger to the public. The 1954 specimen was much larger (120cm) and weighed just over 11.3kg. It was fresh enough for samples to be taken from its eyes, nostrils and teeth, though no official explanation was given at the time as to what it was or what happened to the carcass.

Some have speculated that the creatures may have been a type of anglerfish, whose fins had been mistaken for feet. Others say they are more likely to have been frogfish, which do in fact walk on leg-like fins, have bulging eyes, and take on a variety of colours including reddish brown.



Trunko is the nickname given to the enormous white mass that washed ashore in Margate, South Africa in 1924.

The story appeared in the local paper at the time under the intriguing headline “Fish Like A Polar Bear”.

According to the report, witnesses earlier reported seeing the blob engaged in a three-hour battle with two killer whales.



Trunko rotted on the beach for 10 days before it was washed away by the tide. Incredibly, it was never examined by scientists in that time. It was thought all evidence of the blob had been lost until 2010, when this photograph, the only one known to exist, emerged.





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