The almost intact carcass of an Oarfish has been found near Catalina Island, which is located off the coast of the US state of California.
A researcher from the Catalina Island Marine Institute (CIMI) was snorkelling when she discovered an enormous dead fish on the sea bed.
She grabbed it by the tail and dragged it in towards the shore where it took 16 people to help get it out of the water and onto land. Its identity was later confirmed by her co-workers as an Oarfish, and described as the 'discovery of a lifetime' by the local TV station KTLA.
You can watch the KTLA news report below:
Oarfish are deep sea fish, and are rarely ever seen unless they are dead or dying. Their slender shape, bizarre red finnage and 'crest', together with their undulating way of swimming spawned myths of sea serpents and sea monsters among ancient mariners.
It's thought that they are capable of reaching lengths of 17m/56', although the largest recorded specimen was 7.8m/26'.
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