What in the World?

What do you think this is? Have you ever seen anything like this before? This is its first appearance in my flower bed.

I believe it is the flower for the hen and chicks. I thinned out the ever growing hen and chicks patch to make room for more pansies and violas this spring. By thinning out, I mean I just pulled out and off all the extra plants until I got down to the lower layer. All the activity must have spurned the plant into action to go to seed. We transplanted the ones I pulled out to a rock wall in the back, and two of those are also now showing this strange growth. I thought it was worthy of being shared.