The head of a peculiar creature resembled that of a dog, while its downturned nose bore similarities to a camel’s, and its reptilian body ended with a horse-like tail. Eyewitnesses reported that the creature was enveloped in a thin white film. When the remains of this enigmatic being were extracted from the stomach of a sperm whale, those present unanimously agreed that it could be categorized as a sea monster—or at the very least, an unidentified organism inhabiting the depths off the west coast of Canada.
At a whaling station located in the archipelago of Haida Gwaii, workers constructed a platform using wooden crates to display the 3-meter (10-foot) carcass, draping it with a white sheet to showcase this puzzling find that left even seasoned whalers bewildered.
A photograph of the creature, dubbed “Cadborosaurus” by local residents, was featured prominently on the front page of a local newspaper on October 31, 1937. This event contributed to the growing mythos surrounding a marine cryptid—an animal that remains unrecognized by science and is occasionally reported to reach lengths three times that of the displayed specimen.
Unfortunately, samples from this unusual find have long since vanished, leaving only a few black-and-white photographs as a record of its existence.
John Kirk, the president of the British Columbia Scientific Cryptozoology Club, strongly believes that the remains belonged to an undiscovered species lurking at the fringes of human knowledge within the emerald waters of the Salish Sea. He references firsthand accounts of the find, including insights from a flenser who assisted in retrieving the carcass.
“The scientific community tends to seek reasons to dismiss the inclusion of new species in their catalogs. Frankly, I find this attitude utterly absurd,” he asserts.
One of the few samples sent for identification was forwarded to a museum in Victoria, situated 400 nautical miles (740 km) southeast of Haida Gwaii. However, it was discarded after the museum director, who lacked zoological training, suggested it was a fetal baleen whale.
“We lost a monumental discovery due to misidentification,” Kirk laments. “This reflects a troubling tendency among scientists to be dismissive regarding such matters.”
Nearly nine decades later, many experts contend that the images simply depict a decomposing basking shark—a massive, ancient fish that once thrived around Vancouver Island but has since been driven to near extinction. Nowadays, the basking shark faces a similar fate to that of the cryptid, often misidentified and seldom seen by those familiar with the ocean.
Since sharks are devoid of bones, the transformation from a living organism to a carcass is striking. As basking sharks decompose, their sizable gill structures—the defining feature of the sluggish fish—collapse. What remains resembles a long neck with a small head. The decay of muscle tissue and cartilage can give the fins a fuzzy, feather-like look.
“With a long spinal column and a small head at one end, it indeed resembles a mythical sea serpent,” notes Ben Speers-Roesch, a marine biology professor at the University of New Brunswick. “Unless one has familiarity with such creatures, it can be challenging to determine what this specimen might have been.”
In 1977, the Japanese fishing trawler Zuiyō Maru discovered a creature off the coast of New Zealand that appeared to be a long-lost dinosaur. This find sparked excitement among scientists who initially believed it to be a new species, until further analysis of its amino acids revealed it was a basking shark.
Speers-Roesch refers to this occurrence as the “pseudo-plesiosaur carcass” phenomenon, where decomposed basking sharks take on the features of long necks, small heads, and large fins—characteristics reminiscent of the prehistoric plesiosaur.
He acknowledges that the 1937 image from Canada stands out from typical carcasses due to its presentation.
“The mystery has lingered because it contains elements that do not conform to the conventional appearance of a basking shark. There are some differences that make it intriguing,” he explains, adding that on rare occasions, young basking sharks have been discovered in the stomachs of sperm whales. “However, much of the carcass aligns with what is understood about basking sharks and their decomposition. Even well-informed individuals can misinterpret what they observe.”
With no surviving samples and only a limited number of photographs, the true identity of the enigmatic creature may never be conclusively determined. Yet scientists argue that the real narrative lies not in uncovering a potentially existing species, but rather in the tragic fate of one that once did. Amid ongoing efforts to safeguard the Pacific waters and the vulnerable species that inhabit them, a rare sighting of a basking shark in 2024 has reignited interest in both the species and the long-forgotten campaign that nearly eradicated them from coastal ecosystems.
In 1955, the federal government initiated a plan to eliminate the sharks, employing a large blade affixed to the bow of a patrol vessel, which local media humorously dubbed the “razor-billed shark slasher.”
“Since basking sharks fed near the water’s surface, crews could lower the blade and run over them,” explains Scott Wallace, a former fisheries scientist who authored a 2007 federal report that classified the basking shark as endangered and largely extinct in British Columbia. “They simply sliced them in half.”
The only offense of the sharks was inadvertently entering nets set by anglers targeting salmon.
“Anything that interfered with salmon or the salmon fishing industry was deemed expendable in an effort to manage the ocean,” Wallace states. He co-authored the book *Basking Sharks: The Slaughter of BC’s Gentle Giants*. “Before long, basking sharks found themselves on the official ‘nuisance list’ and became targets.”
Simultaneously, officials were culling seals and sea lions in areas around fishing grounds and river mouths. In the early 1960s, Canada’s fisheries ministry even mounted a .50-caliber machine gun on an island, a weapon usually reserved for armored vehicles and low-flying aircraft, solely for the purpose of killing orcas. However, this powerful weapon was never used.
