Commonsense & Wonder

USB stick found in New Zealand seal poop somehow still works

Did you lose a USB stick while canoeing along the beaches of New Zealand? Well, you’re in luck.  Researchers at the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research have found it — inside a piece of seal poop.

Now, NIWA scientists have posted video from the still-working stick on social media, in the hopes of reuniting it with its owner.

According to NIWA’s website, the poo — or “scat” — was collected by a vet examining a sick leopard seal and sent to marine biologist Krista Hupman, for her study on these arctic predators. Hupman had stuck it in the freezer, where it stayed for over a year until just three weeks ago, when researchers defrosted it and discovered something large and hard inside.

“It is very worrying that these amazing Antarctic animals have plastic like this inside them,” Hupman tells NIWA.

But amazingly, the drive still works and features photos and videos of sea lions frolicking in the water — along with the nose of a blue kayak, from which the footage appears to have been shot.

Now scientists are hoping for a decidedly uncrappy ending. Though if the USB drive owner wants it back, they may have to exchange it for more seal scat.

As Hupman tells NIWA: “The more we can find out about these creatures, the more we can ensure they are looked after.”