What could be a dolphin, or possibly a small pilot whale, was found beached at Taylor's Lane over the weekend.

The decomposing animal, about nine feet long, was found by a John Dyer Road resident who contacted the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) afterwqrds. Though  a positive ID couldn't be made with photographs, NOAA officials suspected it was likely a bottlenose dolphin based on the teeth, the resident said.

It's also possible that the animal was the victim of an attack, as it had a large chunk taken from its dorsal ridge. But whether the attack occurred pre- or post-death is not yet clear.

Experts at NOAA and Mystic Aquarium, who typically respond to beached dolphins and whales for research, did not immediately respond — the cetacean was between the devil and the deep blue sea, still rotting on the coast Monday evening.