More Mysterious "Monster Fish" Comes To Surface

While the mysterious cod, caught by Norwegian fishermen is still being investigated by the police, a numerous other  “monster fish” has surfaced around the world. In Japan a dozen rare giant Oar fish have been caught or washed ashore. In Sweden an 11,4 feet herring has been discovered, and a mysterious fish washed ashore on the Isle of Mull sparked detective work by conservationists.

“In ancient times Japanese people believed that fish warned of coming earthquakes.”

Hiroshi Tajihi

The latest findings of strange looking sea creatures seem to have appeared after a series of earthquakes around the Pacific “Rim of Fire.” They are all identified as rare species who lives below 3.000 feet in the ocean and are almost never seen.

According to traditional Japanese lore, the fish rise to the surface and beach themselves to warn of an impending earthquake – and there are scientific theories that bottom-dwelling fish may very well be susceptible to movements in seismic fault lines and act in uncharacteristic ways in advance of an earthquake, the telegraph.co.uk writes.

But today’s experts are placing more faith in their constant high-tech monitoring of the tectonic plates beneath the surface.

“In ancient times Japanese people believed that fish warned of coming earthquakes, particularly catfish,” Hiroshi Tajihi, deputy director of the Kobe Earthquake Centre, says to the Daily Telegraph.

“But these are just old superstitions and there is no scientific relationship between these sightings and an earthquake,” he says.

At least 10 specimens have been found either washed ashore or in fishing nets off Ishikawa Prefecture and half-a-dozen have been caught in nets off Toyama Prefecture, Kyoto, Shimane and Nagasaki prefectures, all on the northern coast of Japan.

The giant Oar Fish can grow up to five meters in length and is usually to be found at depths of 1,000 meters and very rarely above 200 meters from the surface.

Long and slender with a dorsal fin the length of its body, the Oar Fish resembles a snake and are suspected to be one of the origins of sea monster myths like the Lock Ness Monster.

This video, uploaded on YouTube in March 2008 shows unique footage of a living Oar Fish, caught by fishermen:

Not Seen In 130 Years

Last week it was reported that a giant herring, measuring 11.4 feet ( 3.5 meters) had been discovered on the west coast of Sweden.

The Regalecus glesne, known as the “King of Herrings” or “Giant Oar Fish,” was found dead in the small fishing village of Bovallstrand on Sweden’s west coast, about 56 miles  (90 kilometers) from the Norwegian border.

The rarely seen regalecus, the world’s longest bony fish, can reach up to 12 meters.

“The last time we saw a King of Herrings in Sweden was in 1879,” the House of the Sea museum in Lysekil, Sweden, says in a statement.

“We don’t know much about the species,but believe it lives in deep waters, at least 1000 meters (3280 feet) deep, and many believe it’s at the origin of the sea serpent myth, or stories of mythological sea creatures like the Loch Ness Monster.”

Sparking Investigations

Earlier this year, a mysterious fish washed ashore on the Isle of Mull sparked detective work by conservationists.

A couple on holiday from England reported the unusual specimen to the Hebridean Whale and Dolphin Trust (HWDT) on the isle.

The Richardsons had found the fish washed ashore near the hamlet of Ulva Ferry on the west coast of Mull.

But after involving a number of experts, the trust identified the species as a Deal-fish.

A spokesman for the Hebridean Whale and Dolphin Trust( HWDT) says: “Nobody could identify the fish so we decided to make some inquiries which revealed that the fish is a Deal-fish. Found at depths during the day, the fish ascends at nigh time to the surface.”

According to STV News, specimens are sometimes seem, usually driven to the shore by gales in winter or left by the tide.

As I wrote in February; the Norwegian National Authority for Investigation and Prosecution of Economic and Environmental Crime are investigating a large amount of deformed cod fish, caught by fishermen in northern Norway.

The Norwegian Directorate of Fisheries still refuse to disclose the results of the DNA testing.

h/t The Collector

Related by the Econotwist:

Norway: Police To Investigate “Monster Fish”

Earthquake May Have Shortened Days on Earth

Low-Oxygen Zones In Oceans Worry Scientists

Grape-eating Moth Disclose Dirty Secrets of U.S. Top Vineyards

Mother Earth On Crack

As Climate War Intensifies, So Does Extreme Weather

“Mini Ice Age” Underway?

Coldest January In Norwegian History

Volcano Ash Can Send The Earth Into “Deep Freeze”

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