Fisherman Catches 16-Foot Oarfish Long Thought to be a Mythical Fish, Residents Fear of Impending Earthquake

Oarfish are known for their elongated and large body, rarely seen in the world's oceans. It is for this reason that some communities thought they are sea creatures from myths and legends.

This is the case for the city of Arica, Chile, after a group of fishermen returned with a 16-foot oarfish long thought to be a mythical fish.

The giant oarfish, also called the "King of the Herrings," measures over five meters long and has been a subject before of stories.

For instance, dozens of oarfish appeared in Japan before the 2011 earthquake and tsunami that struck the East Asian country, leaving approximately over 50,000 dead people.

In addition, the deep-sea fish also made an appearance in Mexico in 2020, 10 days before the Central American country was hit by a major earthquake.

The said surface appearances are surprisingly unique since the sea creatures are known to be deep-sea dwellers. This means the rare fish spends most of their living in the depths of the oceans.

However, the marine animals reportedly only return to the surface when they are in danger, dying, or breeding, as well as allegedly due to an incoming natural disaster, as claimed by some.

Images and videos of the catch circulated online and across social media platforms.

The content was originally published on TikTok.

Giant Oarfish Caught

In a YouTube video uploaded by the Tetova News channel on Tuesday, July 12, the aftermath of the rare oarfish catch incident can be seen in the port of Arica.

The YouTube upload showed a crane that seemed to be pulling up the 16-foot sea creature into the air.

There was also a segment in the footage where the fish was laid on the ground, where a number of bystanders were present.

The massive oarfish was already dead during the start of the video.

However, various reports claimed that Arica residents have fears that the catch entails a looming danger, including a potential earthquake as the massive fish attempted to move away from the movement of tectonic plates.

In 2019, Nippon news reported that a Japanese research team debunked the earthquake myth surrounding sightings of the oarfish.

The team behind the study clarified the commonly held belief that of the rare deep-sea fish are signals that an imminent earthquake is about to happen.

Deep-Sea Habitat

It has been mentioned earlier those members of the Regalecidae species resident in extremely deep levels of the world's seas and oceans, including in the Pacific Ocean.

Last week, a massive oarfish was spotted on the Great Barrier Reef, situated in the eastern seaboard of Australia.

Marine biologist Jorja Gilmore, who was on a snorkel tour, saw a peculiar figure in front of her and confirmed with the master reef guide about its identity, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), as cited by the Smithsonian Magazine.