Rarely seen creature appears off CA coast, school says. Some think it’s a bad omen
A rarely seen deep-sea fish with large eyes and a ribbon-like body surfaced off a Southern California coastline, a school said.
The discovery has been exciting for researchers but has caused concern for those who believe it’s a bad omen.
Kayakers and snorkelers spotted the dead 12-foot oarfish in La Jolla Cove, the Scripps Institution of Oceanography said in an Aug. 14 Facebook post.
The group contacted lifeguards and got help from researchers to move the fish to a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration facility, the University of California, San Diego department said.
This rare discovery marks the 20th time an oarfish has been found in California since 1901, the school said.
What to know about oarfish
Oarfish dwell deep in the ocean where sunlight faintly reaches, according to the Ocean Conservancy, a nonprofit advocacy group.
They have long ribbon-like bodies with silver coloring, red spines, large eyes and small mouths with no teeth.
It’s uncommon for the strange-looking fish to make its way to the ocean’s surface, according to Oceana, an advocacy organization.
If it does, the fish may be dying or disoriented, the group said.
Oarfish have also been nicknamed the “doomsday” fish.
Some believe seeing the fish is a sign for a disaster. In Japanese folklore, it’s a sign of an approaching earthquake.
However, Japanese researchers said they found no link between seeing the fish and major earthquakes happening, according to an article published in the Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America.
What happened to the oarfish found in California?
A necropsy will be done on the oarfish that was found in La Jolla Cove in hopes of finding out what caused its death, the school said.
Until then, researchers won’t have an answer.
The dead fish will be added to the Scripps Marine Vertebrate Collection, a large collection of deep-sea fish found from around the world.
Once in the collection, it can be used by scientists to study further.
Anyone who comes across a dead fish can contact the lifeguard and Scripps Oceanography by emailing scrippsnews@ucsd.edu or calling 858-534-3624.
The group of people who found the fish include Emily Miller of California Sea Grant, Michael Wang, Natalia Erazo, Alejandro Cano-Lasso Carretero and Gabriella Costa Machado da Cruz of Scripps Oceanography, and Luis Erazo.
This story was originally published August 15, 2024 at 2:46 PM with the headline "Rarely seen creature appears off CA coast, school says. Some think it’s a bad omen."
