Thousands of "penis fish" has been washed up on Drakes Beach, 50 miles north of San Francisco. Urechis caupo is actually not a fish but a kind of marine worm also known as the fat innkeeper worm. It does have certain visual likenesses to a penis though. The worms are almost exclusive to California and dates back at least 300 million years.
Otters, flounders, sharks, rays, gulls, and humans eat them, and they are considered a culinary delicacy in South Korea where they reputedly has an aphrodisiac effect. This belief might have something to do with their phallic looks, but You don't know untill You've tried it, right?
The worms usually lives in u-shaped tunnels under the sand and it's rare to see them in large numbers. The reason for the "invasion" is probably strong storms and heavy rain destroying their burrows and flushing them away and ashore.
- Thousands of exposed 'penis fish' washed up on a beach in California
- Thousands of 'penis fish' wash up on Northern California beach
- 'Penis fish' flood California beach and, yeah, that's messed up
- Thousands of 'penis fish' exposed on California beach
