Over the weekend, a peculiar discovery was made near California’s La Jolla Shores – an oarfish found floating in the water.
A spokesperson from Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego reported that a team of science kayakers and snorkelers discovered a deceased oarfish during their expedition in La Jolla Cove on Saturday afternoon.
A group of individuals collaborated to transport the marine creature from the ocean onto a truck bed, utilizing a paddleboard. Experts at the institute were then entrusted with the oarfish.
“Thanks to the work from these locals, scientists will be able to further study this mysterious species as it will become part of the Marine Vertebrate Collection at Scripps, one of the largest collections of deep-sea fish in the world,” said Brittany Hook, assistant director of communications for Scripps.
Scientists from NOAA Southwest Fisheries Science Center and Scripps will be conducting a necropsy on Friday in order to investigate the cause of death.
Hook confirmed that this oarfish measured 12 feet long, which is within the typical range for most oarfish.
In certain regions, this particular type of fish is seen as a harbinger of unfortunate events, such as earthquakes or tsunamis. According to Hook, there is no solid evidence to support this correlation, although there have been occasional reports of them washing up prior to such events.
Back in 2011, over 20 oarfish were found on the shores of Japan, shortly before a powerful 9.1 earthquake hit.
A few days after the oarfish sighting in La Jolla, Southern California experienced a 4.4 magnitude earthquake near Los Angeles, about 2.5 miles south, southeast of Highland Park. It’s unclear if these events are related, but they certainly pique interest.
“Experts don’t have any evidence to theorize why these fish are washing ashore in Southern California, but learn more from each specimen that is collected,” said Hook.
Ocean Conservancy reports that this sea creature is sometimes referred to as the “Doomsday Fish” and is rarely encountered by humans due to its preference for deep-sea habitats.