Decomposing globster washes ashore in Malaysia, drawing crowds

The decomposed body of a mysterious marine creature recently washed ashore on a beach in Malaysia, captivating onlookers.

Officials spotted the swollen carcass Friday (April 5) while doing surveillance along Teluk (also spelled Telok) Melano Beach in Lundu, Malaysia. They notified the Sarawak Civil Defence Force (APM), a local disaster agency, which announced the unusual encounter via a Facebook post.

The strange mass has drawn crowds of onlookers, since sightings of beached marine mammals are rare in this area, the New Sarawak Tribune, a local newspaper, reported.

Related: 10 creatures that washed up on the world's beaches in 2023

While experts think the mysterious blob is likely the remnants of a whale, the marine beast is somewhat similar to other strange creatures that have washed up on beaches around the world. These include a "mermaid globster" that was found on an island in Papua New Guinea in October and attracted thousands of onlookers.

Discoveries of globsters, which are unidentified masses of marine flesh, are nothing new. Throughout history, mariners have claimed to experience ghastly encounters with oddities big and small, from kraken (a legendary sea monster with octopus-like features) to mermaids. 

In modern times, people have reported seeing their own share of weird sea creatures, including sharks with missing livers, a hairy monster and a sea blob.