These are close to the top of the list when it comes to unusual objects that one might find washed up on the beach.
The objects are sometimes known as “mermaids’ purses.”
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Sometimes, they’re called “devil’s purses.”
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But they’re not a bag, a purse, or even something man-made.
Instead, they’re shark eggs.
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The pouches often baffle those who find them.
When one looks closely, a tiny shark pup can sometimes be seen.
My first shark egg!! @_sharky_77 @La3titia_9 how cool?? pic.twitter.com/WlnVcfaS8N
— Danielle Campbell (@dani_b77) June 16, 2015
A shark egg from the beach! @BurnettsVodka #MoreSummerFun#Contest pic.twitter.com/ybyGxCJpai
— cathleen clark (@ladyoflarkspur) June 10, 2015
The “purses” are made of collagen protein and are soft and somewhat leathery to the touch.
Typically, they have exits where the shark pups have swum out. If not, the pups didn’t survive.
Some have different shapes, including spirals.
View this post on InstagramNever saw #seaweed like this before #unusual #beachtreasures #beach #spiral
Among the 9 orders of sharks, egg-laying can be found only in three varieties of shark.
“About 43 percent of sharks and rays—including skates, most cat sharks, and the nine species of horn shark—lay eggs rather than give birth to live young. California horn sharks lay about two every 10-14 days or so during the spring and summer (the stat is based primarily on aquarium research), and each contains one little embryo,” according to Science Daily in a writeup.
“It’s unclear how that shape actually develops,” said Christopher Lowe, a marine biology professor who is in charge of the Shark Lab at California State University in Long Beach.
The report elaborated that the “packaging” of the egg is of a material similar to fingernails or hair.
