- A person named Will Miles encountered a giant marine sandworm on the beach.
- Miles, He described it as resembling a massive leech with a sucker full of sharp, inward-pointing teeth, similar to the sandworms depicted in the Dune series.
- Marine biologist Jarco Havermans explained the life cycle of “sea lampreys,” in which they filter waste for five years, then become adults at sea to parasitize larger fish and whales, then return to rivers to reproduce.
A man named Will Miles, 26, came across the “sea lamprey” fish, often called “vampire fish” due to its blood-sucking nature, on a beach at Exmouth Marina in Devon. Miles described it as resembling a massive leech with a sucker full of sharp, inward-pointing teeth, similar to the sandworms depicted in the Dune series. The “sea lamprey” was once common in Britain but is now rare due to factors such as poor water quality and man-made obstructions in breeding rivers.
Mr Miles, a warehouse worker from Bovey Tracey, said the creature was about 80cm long. He shared a photo of this creature on a Facebook page for naturalists; here some described it correctly, while others compared it to the sandworms from Dune.
Marine biologist Jarco Havermans explained that sea lampreys live in the soil by filtering waste for five years, become adults that parasitize larger fish and whales in the sea, and then return to the river to reproduce, often causing the death of their hosts.
Some people found the sea lamprey fascinating, likening it to creatures from science fiction, while others were horrified and said they would never swim in the sea again. The encounter sparked discussion of the Dune series, with references to the fictional world of Arrakis and the sandworms the Fremen people call “Shai-Hulud.” The sea lamprey’s appearance and behavior have earned it descriptions such as “nightmare fish” and “scary-looking creature.”
Encountering the sea lamprey left an impression on those who saw it, highlighting the variety of reactions humans have when encountering unfamiliar and sometimes disturbing creatures from the natural world.
Compiled by: Eliz Canyurt