An ‘alien fish’ caught on a small Caribbean island has left experts baffled, as they struggle to determine its species.
The creature reportedly has ‘feet’ which allows it to walk across the seabed, a ‘ perfect human nose’, and scales like a fish.
The sea creature was caught in the port of Windward on the tiny island of Carriacou, a few miles from Grenada.
One islander said ‘Everyone crowded round to look – nobody had ever seen anything like it.
‘Quite a few people were pretty scared and thought it looked like something out of a sci-fi horror film.’ Veteran fisherman Hope McLawrence, 74, who found himself staring into the eyes of the ‘alien’ creature when he hauled in his nets, admitted he was astounded and baffled.
The foot-long beast had two feet with toes, no fin, a long bone on its back and ‘a perfect human nose immediately above its mouth’ according to Mr McLawrence ‘I have never discovered anything like this before.
The wings and tail looks extremely complicated.’ Mr McLawrence, who has more than fifty years experience in the fishing industry added ‘By the look of the creature it cannot swim but apparently walks on the sea bed.
‘This has shocked me to a considerable extent since I never thought that a creature like this even existed, much less in the harbour of these shallow, friendly waters. ‘This is like a mystery and breathes a chill with this discovery’ he added.
The fish is believed to be a frogfish, an ambush predator that can eat almost anything that will fit into their large mouths. This includes other fish as well as crabs and shrimp.