This morning, I went out into the garden—just to water the flowers and check if the cats had done their business yet, as they often do. But as soon as I opened the gate, a horrible smell hit me. It was so strong that my chest tightened and I tasted a metallic odor in my mouth.

This morning, I went out into the garden, just to water the flowers and check if the cats had relieved themselves again, as they often do. But as soon as I opened the gate, a horrible smell hit me. It was so strong that my chest tightened and a metallic taste appeared in my mouth.

I took a few steps and froze. On the ground, near the flowerbed, something was moving. 🫣 Before me lay a strange, reddish, slimy, almost upside-down formation. It smelled of rotting meat, as if someone had hidden a dead animal nearby. I stepped back, my heart pounding, and terrible thoughts flooded my mind.

“What is it? A larva? A strange creature? Or… the remains of an alien?” — I didn’t understand. 😲

I took out my phone, took a picture and, holding my breath because of the stench, went to look for answers on the Internet.

I typed “red, slimy, smelling rotten” into the search engine, and the first result made me shudder. It said:

“Anthur Archera – an extraterrestrial mushroom, also known as Devil’s Fingers.

It turned out to be a completely real fungus, native to Australia and Tasmania, but over time it has spread all over the world.

At first glance, it looks like a white egg, but then red tentacles emerge from it, like claws or devil’s fingers.