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14th July 2023
12:08pm BST
Skeletal remains washed up at a popular beach in Australia have sent locals and the internet into overdrive trying to identify what kind of creature they belong to.
Bobbi-Lee Oates came across what the Mail dubbed "alien-like remains" while walking a beach at Keppel Sands on Queensland's Capricornia Coast last week, then posted the images on a marine biology Facebook group hoping someone could solve the mystery.
"We came across this on longbeach Keppel Sands Queensland, wondering if anyone has any idea what it is or who I could possibly get to find out exactly what it is," her post reads.
The photos sparked wild speculation, with hundreds of people suggesting it could be anything from a mermaid to a dugong.
"The long part tail or leg looks like it's got additional joint areas where another bone would attach, like a foot. The skull is round, the ribs are consistently human-shaped. Wow,' one man commented.
Another added: "Contact local police, man that looks human."
James Cook University Environmental Science Emeritus Professor Helene Marsh believed it was decomposed marine mammal, most likely a seal, and told The Courier Mail: 'The most likely marine mammals of that size would be dugongs, dolphins and the very occasional seal.
"The shape of the presumed head and the robustness of the ribs suggests a seal, as does the posterior long bone."
People were less convinced, with one writing: "Doesn't look like a marine animal. It's got a leg. It's also very hairy."
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