IS IT AN OCTOPUS OR A WHALE?

This summer, a huge, gelatinous fragment of a strange organism washed ashore off the coast of Chile caused a stir among scientists. Elsa Cabrera, director of Cetacean Conservation in Santiago, whose team found, photographed, and preserved the find, suspects it may be an octopus or squid. The oddity was described immediately after its discovery as a 12-meter-long mass of decaying, gray tissue weighing 13 tons. DNA testing will determine its true nature.

European zoologists say the bizarre creature resembles an unusual specimen found in Florida in 1896 and then named the giant octopus ( Octopus giganteus ). "Considering the opinions of the time and old photographs, it is likely that they are from the same family: the skin color - gray with bits of pink - and the shape match very well," explains Cabrera.

A body washed up on the coast of Chile. Could this be the familiar Globester?

Some scientists, however, believe the Chilean giant is more likely a squid or calamari, which are larger than octopuses. The largest octopus specimen ever found, Octopus hongkongensis, had a wingspan of 10 meters, while among squid, a common squid ( Architeuthis princeps) measured 22 meters. Dr. James Mead, a zoologist from Washington, believes the Chilean find is simply... a fragment of a whale. He believes the enormous mass of slimy, rotting flesh is a piece of whale blubber.

Or maybe it's part of a shark? This has been the case with 90 percent of the unidentified animals that have washed ashore in recent years.