One beachgoer found a translucent creature on a beach in West Cork, Ireland. While it may have looked like an alien from outer space, it turned out to be a cat shark embryo anchored to seaweed. The original poster shared a video of the egg on the subreddit r/marinebiology.
"I wasn't sure what to do with this lively specimen," the OP wrote. They shared that they put some seaweed over it to hide it from the sun and birds. (Click here to view footage if embed does not appear.)
"I got a message from a much more knowledgable friend of mine after I sent the video to a group chat that I should put it back in the sea, so I put it in a little pond that the tide would eventually reach. This all happened yesterday, and after checking the beach again today I couldnt find the egg, so hopefully it was washed away to safety," they continued.
Cat shark embryos, sometimes referred to as a mermaid's purse, naturally anchor themselves to seaweed or algae to avoid being swept away with the current. However, wind and currents can wash algae ashore with embryos in tow.
The marine biology community shared its thoughts on the embryo and how others should react if they find themselves in a similar situation.
"100% a cat shark," one user wrote. "Hopefully it was able to re-anchor itself after you moved it," they shared.
"I don't know how well cat shark embryos handle intermittent periods exposed to air (or how effectively the egg case would retain water during those periods), but I imagine it's not great for them," the user followed up.
"The best move if you ever see them again is to leave them attached to the seaweed and cover them as you said, but I dont think youve done anything wrong by placing him in a small pool," one marine biologist recommended.
If you do find an empty shark egg case on shore, take a picture and send it to the Great Eggcase Hunt. This data helps researchers learn more about egg-laying species in the oceans.
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