真•“大”闸蟹 英国惊现15米巨蟹

The seaside town might be famed for its oysters, but this incredible image could soon have visitors flocking to Whistable in the hope of catching Britain's biggest crab.

惠特斯特布尔小镇或许一直因牡蛎而闻名，但最近因为一张不可思议的照片，大批游客蜂拥而至，却是希望能捕到英国最大的螃蟹。

The photograph, which has been shared online, appears to show a crustacean that is at least 50ft-wide lurking in shallow water.

在这张被上传至网络的照片上，一只至少50英尺（约15米）宽的蟹状生物潜伏在码头附近的潜水水域里。

While some insist it is proof of 'Crabzilla', others argue that the shadowy figure is nothing more than an unusually-shaped sandbank - or is simply a playful hoax.

虽然有些人坚称这就是“巨型蜘蛛蟹”，可另一些人确认为这团模糊的影子只是一处形状比较怪异的沙洲而已，或者仅仅就是一个恶作剧。

The image shows the outline of a crab in the mouth of the Kent harbour - dwarfing the fishing boats resting on the nearby pier.

这只出现在肯特港口入海处的巨型蟹，轮廓巨大，令旁边停在码头上的渔船相形见绌。

It is shaped like an edible crab, a species that is commonly found in British water and grows to an average of five inches.

它的形状就像是平时常吃的那种螃蟹，在英国水域中也经常能见到，一般长到5英寸（约0.13米）大小。

The photograph was posted on a website called Weird Whitstable - an online collection of strange and unusual sightings in the town.

这张照片是被人上传到了一个叫做“惠特斯特布尔奇闻异事”的网站，这个网站上搜罗的都是一些发生在这个小镇里的奇闻异事。

Its curator, Quinton Winter, said that at first he thought the image - sent to him by a follower - showed an unusual sand formation, but that he is now convinced it is a monster of the deep.

该网站的管理者昆顿·温特说他刚收到网友发来的这张图片时，以为是一种不常见的沙洲形状，但是现在他确信这就是深海里的怪物。

Speaking to the Daily Express, he claimed that he saw the giant creature close to the shore when he took his son crabbing last summer.

昆顿称他去年夏天带着儿子去海边捕蟹的时候就看到了这个巨型生物。

He said: 'At first all I could see was some faint movement, then as it rose from the water I thought, "that’s a funny looking bit of driftwood".

他说：“开始我只看到一些轻微的移动，之后它慢慢从水里显露出来时，我还以为是块儿浮木，就是样子有点奇怪。”

'It had glazed blank eyes on stalks, swivelling wildly and it clearly was a massive crab with crushing claws.

“它的触角上有光亮乌黑的眼睛，粗野地打着转，显然是一只有着破坏力很强的蟹钳的大家伙。”

'Before this incident I thought the aerial photo showed an odd-shaped sand bank. Now I know better.'

“如果没有这样的经历，我一定以为这张航拍的照片就是一处形状怪异的沙洲，但是现在我知道不是这样子的。”

The largest known species of crab is the Japanese spider crab, which can measure more than 12ft.

目前世界上已知的最大的螃蟹种类是日本的蜘蛛蟹，据说其身长超过12英尺（约3.66米）。