Tuesday, February 18

The Mysterious Shell Creatures On Cornish Beach

Strange shell on Cornish Beach

I snapped the above photo on Sunday and I'm wondering what it is - erm, not what it might look like as Karin has already made one suggestion, which I'll ignore!

We went to Pentewan Beach, Cornwall to see if there had been any storm damage. It's been pretty bad in the UK with lots of flooding, gales and high tides. It's said to be an effect of the USA's bad weather, which has altered the normal position of the jet stream - a fast flowing air current that girdles the globe.

The high tides and gales have caused some damage to the Pentewan beach defences, as can be seen from the photo below. Though this is nothing compared to some of the damage and problems in other parts of Cornwall and England. Sunday, however, was a sunny, crisp winter's day.

Storm damage at Pentewan Beach, Cornwall
Pentewan Beach , Cornwall storm damage
We saw the strange shells with their growths or innards exposed along the beach and in rock pools. The photo below shows such a pool. The photo at the top of the post is of a - whatever it is - that was marooned on a concrete rock.

Rock pool on Pentewan Beach, Cornwall

On our way back from Pentewan Beach we walked through Kings Wood which was quite waterlogged. As the sun was shining though, the reflections in the saturated ground were quite impressive.

Reflections in KIngs Wood, Pentewan, Cornwall

Photos © Mike Perry

Click on the photos to make them larger.

Other Posts Based On Pentewan Beach
Magical Release At The Mouth Of The White River
Are Mutilated Horses Part Of A Satanic Or Black Magic Ritual
Observing What Is Often Missed

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10 comments:

  1. Suzie08:35

    Well, yes, but have no idea what they really are. You always find interesting things. I think I must go around with my eyes closed.

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    1. I'm sure they only sound more interesting because I blog about them.

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  2. What an odd-looking creature! Love the photos, especially the last one...

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    1. Thanks - even flooded areas have their beauty (providing it's not your home being flooded of course)

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  3. It looks like some kind of Mussel to me...not the bit sticking out of it,but the whole thing.Mussels have an oblong shell in a dark blue/black color. Mussel meat is of an orange color but has a heavier taste than clams.

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    1. It probably is some sort of mussel - though a much larger shell than I've seen before. We walked along the beach again yesterday (Tues) and the seagulls were having a feast on them. Most of the shells are now empty.

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  4. Anonymous16:21

    Why, that creature looks awfully familiar to those of us in the Pacific Northwest (Seattle) area of the U.S. It's likely a close relative to the geoduck clam (pronounced "gooey-duck"). It's the largest bivalve along Puget Sound and the largest burrowing clam in the world. How very interesting to see it in your "neck" of the world! - Christin, Seattle, WA, USA

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    1. Thank you Christin. I have never seen them on our beaches previously - the seagulls had a feast on them. I'll have a look on Google for the geoduck clam - thanks again.

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    2. Just read this entry and the minute I saw your picture the first that crossed my mind was the same as
      Christin's! We lived in the same area as her, but across Puget Sound in Port Orchard (basically a bedroom community for Seattle). They actually eat the nasty looking things there! Blurrgh, some people will eat anything. I have a lot of the shells from the beaches, though, as they are quite large, about six inches.

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    3. Thanks for that. I did another post about them Mysterious Slither-Like Geoduck Clams Stranded On Cornish Beach Following Storms - but I still don't know how they got to Cornwall in England!

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