A French oyster farmer has discovered this “extremely rare” huge oyster which measures 10 inches in length and weighs a whopping 3.2 lbs.
Mathieu Naslin, an employee of the Viviers de la Guittiere oyster supplier, stumbled upon the live megamollusc when working on the oyster reef in Talmont-Saint-Hilaire, western France.
Naslin and co-workers measured its weight at a whopping 3.2 lbs, whereas typical oysters range from one to three ozs.
And the oyster measured almost 10 inches, whereas the smallest oysters measures around three inches in length.
Naslin told a local press agency it was “extremely rare”, adding he had never seen anything like it in his eight years in the job.
He and the rest of the team named the oyster “Georgette” after a recently-retired popular colleague.
They estimated Georgette was 13 to 15 years old. The lifespan of an average oyster in captivity is up to 20 years, though Naslin suggests they can live up to 65.
Georgette is edible and the boss, Francois Dewalles, joked that he would not let it go for under 2,000 EUR (1,849 GBP).
Naslin, who, with his team, placed Georgette on display in a tank, said: “But we would not sell it, even for 30,000 EUR.”
Netizens were impressed at the pictures the oyster farm uploaded to its Facebook page.
Some also reacted with humour. “Fukushima?” asked one, whereas some commented on its perceived resemblance to a groundhog.
The team will return Georgette to the Atlantic today (15th August).
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Story By: William McGee, Sub-Editor: Joseph Golder, Agency: Central European News
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