Out of all the mysteries of the oceans, none is perhaps as disgusting as the globster. Throughout history, unidentifiable reeking masses of sea animal flesh have been discovered along seashores around the world, grossing out beachgoers and generally stinking up the joint. While these blobs of rotting meat are often cited as proof of unknown sea monsters hiding in the inky blank depths, in most cases they turn out to be nothing more than the decomposing remains of whales and other large aquatic animals.
The St. Augustine Monster, a globster which washed up in Florida in 1896 and was originally thought to be the remains of an unknown giant octopus species. 100 years later, DNA analysis revealed the “monster” to be whale blubber.
Still, that doesn’t stop globsters from frequently attracting the attention of cryptozoologists and mystery seekers. These masses of malodorous marine meat are often described as “hairy” due to the way animal collagen breaks down into long strands as it decomposes, and this hairy appearance frequently has led to their misidentification as monsters throughout the years. Case in point: this week, a massive hairy globster washed up in the Philippines, piquing the curiosity of onlookers and creating a social media sensation. Of particular note was this globster’s “otherwordly smell.” Fishery Law Enforcement Officer Vox Krusada told The Sun that despite his decades of working around marine animals, he’s never encountered a stench like this one:
Today we just gathered a samples of it for further analysis. The local government of Gloria will now bury the carcass. And damn it smells awful. it smells like something from another planet. I really experienced the full power of its smell because I’m the one who took the tissue samples. I almost puked. I felt better after taking a bath but the stench still lingers in my nose.
More curiously, this particular globster has also been cited as an ill omen from below, possibly foreshadowing that a catastrophic natural disaster is on the way in the Philippines. Is this globster a warning sign, or just a reeking dead whale?
Dead sea creatures, particularly rare ones, are often believed to be omens of impending natural disasters. Dead oarfish, for example, often wash up shortly before earthquakes, and marine biologists still don’t know why. In the case of this recent globster, some Filipinos believe the globster is “is a sign of something bad coming.” Could natural disasters and dead mysterious sea creatures be related?
While there are many cases of the two incidents coinciding, there are also many cases of strange carcasses washing up without accompanying disasters and plenty of disasters which occur without any foreshadowing dead sea creatures. Time will tell though – with all of the volcanic activity occurring around the world, are the Philippines a ticking time bomb? They do sit squarely on the Pacific Ring of Fire, after all. It’s never too early to buy volcano insurance, globsters or no globsters.