VICE · The ‘doomsday fish’ is so rare that, before this discovery, only 20 have washed ashore since 1901.

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A ‘Doomsday Fish’ Washed Ashore for the Third Time This Year​

The ‘doomsday fish’ is so rare that, before this discovery, only 20 have been found washed up on beaches since 1901.
By Paige Gawley
November 20, 2024, 12:00pm

Photo via Scripps Institution of Oceanography
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A typically rare fish has been spotted three times this year. This month, PhD candidate Alison Laferriere spotted an oarfish—better known as a “doomsday fish”—on a California beach. The discovery marked the third time the eel-like animal has washed ashore this year.
The Scripps Institution of Oceanography revealed the find on Facebook, quipping, “Just when you thought the oarfish hype had died down… Look what decided to make another appearance!”

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The discovery was made on Grandview Beach in Encinitas, California. It came three months after a slightly larger oarfish was found in La Jolla.
After locating the most recent oarfish, which was between nine and 10 feet long, Ben Frable, the manager of the Scripps Oceanography Marine Vertebrate Collection, contacted the NOAA Fisheries Service team to recover the specimen and transport it to the Southwest Fisheries Science Center.
“We took samples and froze the specimen awaiting further study and final preservation in the Marine Vertebrate Collection,” Frable said. “Like with the previous oarfish, this specimen and the samples taken from it will be able to tell us much about the biology, anatomy, genomics and life history of oarfishes.”

Only 21 Doomsday Fish Have washed ashore Since 1901​

This is the 21st oarfish to wash ashore since 1901. When the doomsday fish does make its way to shore it’s thought to do so because of injury, illness, and disorientation.
As for why the typically rare find was made two times this year, Frable said “it may have to do with changes in ocean conditions and increased numbers of oarfish off our coast.”
“Many researchers have suggested this as to why deep-water fish strand on beaches,” he said. “Sometimes it may be linked to broader shifts such as the El Niño and La Niña cycle but this is not always the case. There was a weak El Niño earlier this year. This wash-up coincided with the recent red tide and Santa Ana winds last week but many variables could lead to these strandings.”
Often described as sea serpents, oarfish can grow to 30 feet and are the longest bony fish in the world. The deep-sea dwellers are known as “doomsday fish” due to lore that considers them to be being harbingers of bad news, according to the Ocean Conservancy.
Their appearance doesn’t help to dispel that line of thinking. The doomsday fish has a ribbon-shaped body with large eyes and foreboding red spines, the organization explained.

 

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Deep-Sea ‘Doomsday Fish’ Spotted Off the Coast of San Diego​

In Japanese folklore, the oarfish is associated with natural disasters like earthquakes and tsunamis.
By Luis Prada
August 20, 2024, 10:49am

Photo by Michael Wang / Scripps Institution of Oceanography.
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You’re much more likely to encounter an oarfish while fishing in Animal Crossing than you are in real life. Yet, some lucky folks paddling along the coast of La Jolla Cove in San Diego just spotted the rare deep-sea fish. It was dead, but it still counts!
The rarity of an oarfish sighting can’t be stressed enough. Measuring around 12 feet in length, this silver, ribbon-like fish is usually impossible to spot: only 20 oarfish have washed ashore in California since 1901. This particular oarfish was discovered by a group of snorkelers and kayakers who happened to be oceanographers—it was an already unusual sighting by the exact group of people who would appreciate it most.

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Photo by Michael Wang / Scripps Institution of Oceanography.
The oarfish’s official cause of death will be determined at a NOAA facility. Eventually, it will be preserved in foul-smelling preservation liquids at the Scripps Marine Vertebrate Collection, home to the largest collection of deep-sea fish in the world, where researchers can continue to study one of the most enigmatic sea creatures on earth.
When they’re not dead, oarfish are usually found in the ocean’s mesopelagic zone, at depths of 656 to 3,280 feet below the surface—way too deep to be spotted by humans. This particular fish was probably injured or ill when it died.
In Japanese folklore, the oarfish is associated with natural disasters like earthquakes and tsunamis. Thus, its nickname: the Doomsday fish. Coincidentally, California was just hit by a 4.4-magnitude earthquake two days after the fish was found. Spooky! Or maybe not at all, as scientific studies have debunked the connection between oarfish sightings and earthquakes. In any case, the finding presents an excellent opportunity for researchers to study a breed of fish they rarely get the chance to meet in person.