The fish that may have inspired the Old-Mariner myth of the Sea Serpent has been caught on film for probably the first time, swimming, literally, back and forth.
The oarfish, with a potential of becoming more than 17 metres long, was filmed on a depth of more than 1,500 metres below an oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico. Earlier findings of the species have been dead fish that have been floating on the surface or have been washed ashore.
The film was taken in a collaborative project where oil and gas companies allow scientists access to their deep sea technologies and infrastructure in a bid to aid their research. Using remotely operated vehicles (ROV), scientists could now follow the fish for about five minutes.
“What was interesting about the fish was its swimming behaviour,” said Professor Mark Benfield of Louisiana State University.
“It moved by undulating its dorsal fin in waves that propelled it backwards at quite a good speed.”
The oarfish (Regalecus glesne), noted by the Guinness Book of Records as the longest bony fish in the world, is sometimes referred to as “The king of Herrings”, according to Wikipedia.