We don’t want to start any Loch Ness monster type rumours about the River Ancholme in Brigg. Or lead people to think there might be a crocodile on the loose.
But this is the view we got from the towpath, near the new Lidl store, as we took a stroll.
Closer inspection revealed the item in the water to be a sizeable tree trunk.
But how did it get there?
Presumably the tree was growing by the riverside some distance away, collapsed and was then carried down to this location.
However, the flow of the Ancholme generally being of a very gentle nature make us wonder about that. Any ideas?
A few years ago we went on an autumn coach holiday from Brigg to Torquay. One night there was a howling gale and we saw what appeared to be a tropical tree washed up on the beach. Had it come all the way from the West Indies, carried by a strong current?
No similar run-off exists on the Ancholme, of course.
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Anyone with one iota of knowledge of marine biology will recognise the creature as the European Pachoderm Manatee..more commonly called River Cow.
It tends to be indigenous to the warmer rivers of southern England and of the west coast of Southern Europe.
It can be easily identified by it rough skin, its slender dorsal fins and its small tail. It has small eyes.
The photo shows it basking in the Ancholme during the weak spring sunshine.
Its main diet is riverine shrimps and discarded chips...and can achieve a weight in excess of 7 tonnes - (male)...mostly blubber..at the end of the summer.
It is a rare sight in the local river, although they tend to mate for life....and, therefore,there is likely to be another nearby.
Life span is normally 60+ years ..and the rear offspring every 4 years after they reach maturity at about 6 years. The young are called, mantas, which needs suckling for around 3 years.
In the past, they have given rise to the legend of river-maids in rustic locations.
The are on the list of England's list of Endangered Species.
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