Kayakers and snorkelers exploring the Southern California coast spotted an extremely rare oarfish, nicknamed a “doomsday fish” since they are seen in some parts of the world as harbingers of imminent disasters. It’s one of less than two dozen confirmed sightings of an oarfish in the state in over 120 years, according to UC  San Diego’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography.

The oarfish is a “strikingly large, odd-looking fish” with a long, silvery, ribbon-shaped body, according to the Ocean Conservatory. The fish can grow to more than 30 feet long, and have large eyes and “foreboding” red spines in a crown-like cluster. Typically, these fish are deep-sea dwellers and thrive in waters that are the least explored by scientists.

    • leisesprecher@feddit.org
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      63
      arrow-down
      1
      ·
      3 months ago

      It’s clearly the other way around. These animals leave, causing plates to slip because of reduced weight.

      • dhtseany@lemmy.ml
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        14
        arrow-down
        1
        ·
        3 months ago

        I don’t know enough about oarfish to refute this claim so I’ll assume it’s likely accurate.

    • CheeseNoodle@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      3
      ·
      3 months ago

      My understanding was that fault lines create low pressure waves that animals can detect before an earthquake occurs. I think these days we have equipment that can generally detect them before animals do.