Mystery sea creature dubbed ‘forbidden churro’ washes up on Irish beach

‘Can anyone help me identify this sea creature?’ Reddit user asks

A Reddit user appealed for help identifying a creature found on an Irish beach (@guesswhat_corgibutt / Reddit)

A mystery sea creature has been found washed up on a beach in Ireland, with social media users saying it looked like a “forbidden churro”.

An image of a thin bendy creature was shared on Reddit as the founder appealed for help identifying it.

“Can anyone help me identify this sea creature? Just found it washed up on a beach in Ireland,” they said.

Users replied with a number of options, including a needle fish or a cornet fish.

One joked it was a “forbidden churro”. Reddit has a section called “forbidden snacks” where users share items the same shape as food - such as churros - but which are not edible.

The sea creature has been compared to a churro (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

Another said the mystery sea creature - which is long and an earthy colour - looked like it could be Snorkel Snake, a character from Super Mario.

Several suggested it could be a pipefish. The British Sea Fishing group says these animals are closely related to seahorses, and in fact look like these creatures straightened out.

The person who posted the image appeared to agree with someone who suggested it was a greater pipefish.

It comes after a mystery sea creature washed up on a beach on the other side of the world attracted attention earlier this year.

An Australian man shared an image of an “alien-like” animal he had stumbled across on the Sunshine Coast, saying “I’ve stumbled across something weird”.

Last year, a series of strange creatures were also discovered on beaches across the US.