The discovery of a 12-foot oarfish in La Jolla Cove has elicited excitement from researchers and concern from some who see it as a bad omen.
Oarfish dwell deep in the ocean, rarely surfacing. If they do, it's often a sign they are dying or disoriented—a phenomenon leading to folklore around disaster.
Japanese folklore associates sightings of the oarfish with impending earthquakes; however, research shows no correlation between the fish's appearance and seismic activity.
A necropsy will be performed on the La Jolla Cove oarfish to determine the cause of death, while the specimen will be added to a scientific collection.
[
Collection
]
[
|
...
]