It was a regular day for marine instructor Jasmine Santana. At least that is what she thought when she was as usual snorkeling along the coast of Catalina island in Southern California. Suddenly she spotted something lying still on the bed of  the sea with eyes as big as the size of half dollars. As she neared the creature, Jasmine could not believe her eyes. She had discovered about 18 feet long oarfish that had died due to some natural causes.

What is so surprising about the discovery?

First of all, Oar fishes live in open oceans or seas rather than waters adjacent to land or inland waters ( Such creatures are called Pelagic). Secondly, these gigantic creatures that are found thousands of feet deep under the sea. That is why they are hardly seen and little is known about them.

Thrilled and not scared, Jasmine called in her troop to help her. It took 15 adults to drag the creature to the shore. Phew! The remains of the oarfish will be buried in the sand until the carcass decomposes. The skeleton will then be put together and put up for display at Catalina Island Marine Institute.

Did you know?
The giant oarfish (Regalecus glesne), is the longest bony fish alive, at up to 56 Feet in length.