Mysterious white droplets are washing up on the beaches of Newfoundland, prompting Canadian authorities to investigate. BBC Informed. Stan Tobin, a local resident, described the drops as “doughy, like poorly baked bread” with a strong odor similar to vegetable oil. Since the beginning of September, beachgoers at the southern tip of the Canadian province have been reporting sightings of the unusual substance, leaving authorities struggling to determine its origin and composition.
Environment and Climate Change Canada ruled out petroleum-based sources, while marine ecologists from Fisheries and Oceans Canada confirmed no biological or marine sponge origins.
Last month, Philip Grace was the first to post a photo of the lumpy gelatinous blob. He shared a photo on the Facebook page of Beachcombers of Newfoundland and Labrador, asking, “Does anyone know what these drops are?” They’re like Taunton flour and are all over the beach.” The photo sparked intense speculation online, with theories ranging from fungus to ambergris, a rare whale-derived substance valued in perfumes.
Several other people reported seeing similar drops at Shoal Cove The Beach, Barrasway Beach, Gooseberry Cove Beach, Southern Harbor and Arnold’s Cove.
Stan Tobin, a local environmentalist who regularly walks the beaches near his Ship Cove Village home, said he had no knowledge of it. “It’s like someone tried to bake bread and did a lousy job,” he said.
Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) launched an investigation into the mysterious globs after receiving reports on September 7, spokeswoman Samantha Byrd confirmed. Federal researchers, with assistance from the Canadian Coast Guard, collected beach samples near St. John’s. Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) experts analyzed the substances, considering the possibility that the drops could be aquatic invasive species or whale blubber.
However, Nadine Wells, section head of the Marine Ecology Research Group at DFO’s Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Center in St. John’s, ruled out both possibilities.
”We are confident that the mysterious substance receiving media attention is not a sea sponge, nor does it contain any biological material. The glob or goo or whatever it is, we don’t think it’s a sponge because many people set it on fire and it burns. We think there must be some kind of oil in there,” he said. Meanwhile, DFO plans to expand field research to determine the source and composition of the mysterious drops.
