A huge mass of marine mucilage - also called 'sea snot' - has bloomed in Turkey's Marmara Sea as well as in the adjoining Black and Aegean seas.
The 'snot' is a thick, slimy substance made up of compounds released by marine organisms and is visible above the water as a slimy gray sheet along the shores of Istanbul and neighbouring provinces.
Turkey's President Erdogan has vowed to rescue the Marmara from the outbreak that is alarming marine biologists and environmentalists.