You will never believe what this terrifying looking Great Lakes rock has been identified as.

Rock hunting and picking have had a resurgence as many search for inexpensive activities that allow for social distancing. Not much is needed to get started in this hobby just a set of eyes, a location, and perhaps something to carry your finds in. One man living in the Great Lakes Region recently made what appeared to be a terrifying discovery. Dave Fletcher was recently walking the beaches at Chimney Bluffs State Park in northern New York when he found what appeared to be a fossilized mouth filled with tiny needle-like teeth. He shared his scary looking find to the group Great Lakes Rocks & Minerals to have it identified.

Courtesy of Dave Fletcher
Courtesy of Dave Fletcher
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You are probably thinking the same thing I did... "This is not the year to pull something like this up from depths of one of our Great Lakes. Please put it back." if you did, then you will be relieved to know that as ghoulish as this rock appears to be it's rather innocuous. Seasoned pro's in the group were able to quickly identify Dave's find as a water caltrop more commonly known as a water chestnut. A fossilized one. Perhaps it would not surprise you that this fossilized water caltrop also has a very fitting nickname of "devil pod".

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Looking at the photos of Dave Fletcher's Lake Ontario find you would never believe it could be such a seemingly harmless plant. The truth is though it is not completely harmless, in fact, it's an invasive species that experts warn is clogging waterways.

Courtesy of Dave Fletcher
Courtesy of Dave Fletcher
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Experts say the European water chestnut (scientific name Trapa natans, or T. natans),
an invasive aquatic plant released inadvertently into waters of the Northeast in the late 1800s is slowly but inexorably spreading throughout the Great Lakes Region, clogging waterways, lakes, and ponds and altering aquatic habitats.

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The Michigan Department of Natural Resources has even asked that residents report these DEQ Aquatic Invasive Species Program.

The website Herbmagic.com sells non-fossilized specimens that they recommend hanging in your home or carrying in a pocket to "ward off evil". Despite the recommendation, Dave says his peculiar find will not be hanging from his walls anytime soon as his better half has forbid it. I for one can't say I blame her.

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