'What the heck is this?': Faceless creature found on Texas beach after Hurricane Harvey

The decomposed body of an unusual faceless creature with fangs has washed up on a Texas beach following Hurricane Harvey.

A mysterious creature washed up on a Texas city beach that left social media stumped.

A mysterious creature washed up on a Texas city beach that left social media stumped. Source: Twitter: @preetalina

Preeti Desai of the Audubon Society posted the mysterious images of the creature on social media asking the science community to help identify the fanged animal.

"Okay, biology twitter, what the heck is this?? Found on a beach in Texas City, TX. ," Ms Desai wrote.
The eel-like creature was found by Preet Desai who was asessing the damage of Hurricane Harvey a Texas beach.
The eel-like creature was found by Preet Desai who was asessing the damage of Hurricane Harvey a Texas beach. Source: Twitter: @preetalina
The thick, serpent-like body and sharp teeth had social media stumped with some suggesting it looked like a creature out of a horror movie.

After many comments suggesting it was some species of eel, a biologist suggested it was a fangtooth snake-eel, according to the .
Dr Kenneth Tighe, a biologist and eel specialist, told the BBC it could be a conger or garden eel as "all three of these species occur off Texas and have large fang-like teeth".

Ms Desai told the BBC she was assessing the damage of Hurricane Harvey when she stumbled upon the eel.
The eel-like creature was found by Preet Desai who was asessing the damage of Hurricane Harvey a Texas beach.
The eel-like creature was found by Preet Desai who was asessing the damage of Hurricane Harvey a Texas beach. Source: Twitter: @preetalina
"It was completely unexpected, it's not something that you'd typically see on a beach. I thought it could be something from the deep sea that might have washed on to shore," she said.

Fangtooth eels originate off the coast of the East Atlantic and Mediterranean. The eels can grow as long as 120cm and feed of small fish or crustaceans.

Hurricane Harvey devastated Houston causing severe flooding. The damage is expected to cost between $150 to $180 billion.

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2 min read
Published 14 September 2017 7:12am
Updated 14 September 2017 10:09am
By Riley Morgan

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