The rare find in La Jolla Cove will help inform researchers about this hardly-seen creature.
A little more than a week after a group of friends serendipitously came upon a rare oarfish in La Jolla Cove, a necropsy of the animal turned up no clear answers about its death but still left scientists with plenty of information to study.
The dead oarfish appeared to the snorkelers and kayakers Aug. 10 like a dragon from the deep, in a story that has captured international attention, mainly for this being only the 20th oarfish to have washed up in California since 1901.
The group worked together, after calling in the discovery to UC San Diego’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography, to deliver the oarfish for examination.
Photo by Emily Miller.
Photo by Erik Jepsen.
Scientists from SIO, California State University Fullerton and NOAA’s Southwest Fisheries Science Center found during the Aug. 16 necropsy the oarfish was an adult male, measuring 12.25 feet in length, 1.14 feet in depth and weighed 74.3 pounds.
A long red dorsal fin crest, measuring 2.17 feet in length extended from the top of the head. Scientists speculate that it could have washed up due to injury, illness or disorientation.
The deep-water fish was in good condition and it is not clear why the fish died, according to a press release.Â
La Jolla Shores is situated next to two underwater canyons that funnel deep water close to shore, researchers noted.
Scientists obtained samples of the oarfish that will be used to learn more about this unusual, deep-sea fish, including generating the first high-quality, chromosome-level genome for the longest bony fish in the world; understanding what the fish is eating and its role in the marine food web; describing the oarfish’s reproductive status; analyzing organs and tissues for the potential presence of contaminants such as microplastics; and more.
The oarfish is now being preserved and will be part of the Marine Vertebrate Collection at Scripps, which houses one of the largest collections of deep-sea fish in the world.
Photo by Erik Jepsen.
This week, Birch Aquarium at Scripps opened a special temporary exhibit with more information on this mysterious fish. The display in the main galleria at Birch Aquarium now includes a life-size gyotaku art print of the oarfish done by artist Dwight Hwang after the necropsy was completed.
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