A Northland local and her friend couldn't believe their eyes when they spotted a "massive" sunfish in the middle of the beach.
Maree and her friend Kim drove on Tuesday morning to look for shells near Mahuta Gap in Northland.
The local told Newshub she "actually thought it was a kayak stuck in the sand" but upon closer inspection, Maree and Kim couldn't believe what they saw.
"Unfathomable. We thought it was a swollen-up shark at first."
But as Maree and Kim took a closer look they soon realised the "massive white lump" was a sunfish.
"Never seen something like that before. In prehistoric story books maybe."
The pair were "majorly in shock because of how huge it is".
The locals believe the massive fish may have just recently washed up because "it didn't smell and hadn't decayed".
In pictures shared with Newshub, the massive fish is seen beached on its side, with its large mouth wide open.
One picture shows Kim's hand next to the sunfish showing the scale of the creature.
The ocean sunfish is believed to be the largest bony fish on the planet, with adults typically tipping the scales between 247 and 1000kgs.
Maree told Newshub she reported their discovery to NIWA and the Department on Conservation (DoC).
Newshub has approached DoC for comment.
