What's this? An eerie 'Mermaid' spotted in Papua New Guinea leaves experts bewildered

A strange and eerie-looking "mermaid" washed up on the shores of Papua New Guinea, perplexing experts who are now in the quest for answers, media reports said. The locals on a remote island buried the enigmatic creature before a DNA sample could be collected. And so, this has left scientists to rely solely on images captured at the scene and initially shared on a Facebook post, reported the New York Post.

A Globster?

This unusual white mass appeared to be a globster, a term used for massive marine flesh masses that are occasionally discovered in various states of decay on beaches. However, the opinions of experts are of varying nature.Environmental scientist Helene Marsh believes that the lifeless lump is more likely a deceased animal than a human, media reports said.

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“After all it is anyone’s guess,” Marsh added.

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The photos of this creature which was spotted on the shores of Papua New Guinea have left the mystery wide open.

Decomposed cetacean theory

Marine mammal specialist Sascha Hooker reportedly speculated that it appears to be a highly decomposed cetacean, such as a whale or dolphin, known to turn ghostly white after death.

Another researcher called this a potential dugong.

Erich Hoyt from Whale and Dolphin Conservation in the UK does not discount the possibility of the globster being a dugong, also known as a sea cow, but he is confident that the creature has been dead for several weeks.

Clues

Marine biologist Gregory Skomal made an anatomical discovery, ruling out his initial suspicion of a large shark.

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“At first, I was leaning toward a large shark, but now that I’ve spent a bunch of time looking at this, I am more confident it is a cetacean due o the shape of the tail and location of the flippers," he reportedly said. The blubber seen is now pointing to a marine mammal, as perJens Currie, the chief scientist of Hawaii's Pacific Whale Foundation.

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“The amount of blubber also indicates a marine mammal and not a shark," he reportedly said.

(With inputs from agencies)

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