A flat-headed creature was captured in the Qiandao Lake on Nov 26, where the sanitation staff had initially thought it was a trash bag.

They were quick to assume this one-meter thing was a “giant salamander”, but was ten times longer in length than a normal one could grow.

It was then brought into a moist bucket and released right after the check-up.

Giant salamanders usually look cute and small, and are called “baby fish”due to their sound which resembles a baby’s cry.

“This one still looks cute but in a weird way.”commented by a netizen.

Specialist called the giant salamanders “a key indicator of water quality”for their need in terms of a high-quality environment. “They were found many times in pure and highly-oxygenated streams, but are so rare to be seen in lakes, especially with this size.”

Since September this year, two types of endangered fish, the Chinese sturgeon and now the giant salamander, both of which are dubbed the “living fossils”, were found in Hangzhou.