This is the sight that has got traditional believers quaking in their boots over fears that a huge seismic shock could be coming.
A two-metre-long deep sea oarfish (Regalecus glense) caught in the shallows off the Mexican coast wriggles through its last seconds of life in the back of a pick-up truck in Sinaloa on 5th October.
The silvery, snake-like fish has a crimson dorsal fin that runs along its entire body and moves like a ribbon in water.
Oarfish are usually found between 656 feet (200 metres) and 3,280 feet (1000 metres) below sea level.
(CEN)
(CEN)
This is why the appearance of these fish in shallow waters is considered a harbinger of bad news in Mexican traditional belief.
Followers believe the fish have been disturbed by deep seismic shocks which will then trigger an enormous quake.
In Japanese folklore, the oarfish is known as “Ryugo No Tsukai” (The Messenger from the Sea God’s Palace) while ‘Namazu’ was a giant sea snake that lived underneath Japan and caused earthquakes every time it surfaced.
Despite the legends, a study by the Geophysical Institute in Ecuador in 2019 ruled out the possibility that the appearance of these fish is a reliable indicator of an upcoming seismic event.
This was after researchers concluded that only one analysed earthquake seemed to be related to the appearance of giant oarfish in coastal waters.
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Story By: Alice Amelia Thomas, Sub-Editor: Marija Stojkoska, Agency: Central European News
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