Peter and Isaac Baye found something quite unusual on Manchester Beach.

Peter wrote, “I have a quirky and very uncommon shore sighting for you. My visiting son, Isaac, and I walked down the storm-eroded beach and found five of these massive objects that look like a cross between a blubbery carcass and a giant, juicy, gnarly sea-turnip.

“It took me a while to recognize what they were and where they came from. They are a couple of feet across and were a strain to lift! They are the massive taproots of Marah, also called Man-root or Wild Cucumber. They erode from coastal bluffs when there is major erosion. During the drought, shorelines were stable or grew, and no roots eroded.”

You can see from the photo of Isaac how huge this taproot is. Here's a photo of one still embedded in the bluffs.

We have had a lot of erosion due to our big winter. And more rain is on the way.

Thanks to Peter for allowing me to share his photos with you here.