HUNDREDS of bizarre looking creatures worth a fortune have washed up on a UK beach.
The large collection of alien-looking crustaceans were snapped on a beach in Sussex last week.
Hundreds of bizarre looking creatures worth a fortune have washed up on a Sussex beach[/caption]
A collection of rare goose barnacles were spotted[/caption]
The marine animals were seen on a beach between Pagham and Aldwick[/caption]
The unusual snaps captured what are confirmed to be rare goose barncales on a beach between Pagham and Aldwick.
They shared their find on a popular local Facebook group, alongside the caption: “Goose barnacles yes, I remember in north Spain I had them a long time ago, it’s expensive food.
“Washed up on the beach near Pagham after strong winds and waves, they’re alive.”
Goose, or gooseneck, barnacles are marine animals that attach themselves to hard surfaces like rocks, boat hulls, ropes or debris floating out at sea.
A type of crustacean, they belong to the same family as crabs and lobsters and are described as “unmistakeable”.
They can be identified by their “long fleshy stem that looks like a black neck” which is topped by a chalky white shell, according to The Wildlife Trust.
They’re often washed up on the shores of the UK’s western and south-western coastlines, especially after strong weather such as storms.
The barnacles are a delicacy in many parts of the world, including Portugal and Spain, and can be bought for £80-£90 per kilo – one of the world’s most expensive seafoods.
A spokeswoman for the Sussex Wildlife Trust confirmed the sighting to The Argus.
“It’s usually unlikely they will still be alive, depending on how long they’ve been washed up in the beach – the longer washed up, the longer they will have had to dry up and die,” she said.
“With a piece of flotsam that large, it wouldn’t be sensible to try and get it back in the sea – too dangerous from a health and safety perspective.
“If they seem to be alive, you can sometimes still see them moving, and they’re on a small piece and it’s safe to move them back into the sea, there is a small chance they could survive, but it’s very likely they will just end up washed back up on the beach again, so likelihood of survival would be very small.”
Back in times when people were unaware of birds migrating, people thought a certain species of goose hatched from goose barnacles.
They catch their food with their specially adapted legs and filter feed on plankton and detritus.
Goose barnacles aren’t the only thing to appear on the shores of the UK either.
A mysterious massive object washed up on a popular UK beach earlier this month leaving locals and visitors shocked.
It was initially unknown what the creature was but it was solved two days later.
Another alien-like sea creature that can devour prey three times its size was also found in June.
The “sea mice” have a furry appearance that are unlike anything else in the sea and can grow up to six inches long
Goose barnacles are a delicacy in many parts of the world[/caption]
They attach themselves to hard surfaces like rocks, boat hulls, ropes or debris floating on the sea[/caption]
