Monday November 18, 2024
WKRN —
Another oarfish has made its way from the deep sea to the coast of San Diego County in Southern California.
Scripps Institution of Oceanography researchers stumbled upon the rare fish, considered the largest vertebrate in the world’s oceans, at Grandview Beach in Encinitas last week.
It marks the second time this year an oarfish has been discovered — dead — within San Diego County: The first was back in August near the La Jolla Shores. The one recovered in Encinitas was a little smaller than the first, measuring about 9 to 10 feet long.
As they did with the earlier specimen, Scripps Oceanography researchers helped transport the newly found oarfish to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Southwest Fisheries Science Center for preservation and study.
“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,” Ben Frable, manager of the Scripps Oceanography Marine Vertebrate Collection, said.