King of herrings
Encyclopedia
The king of herrings or giant oarfish, an oarfish
of the family
Regalecidae, is the world's longest bony fish. Rarely sighted, it is found in all the world's oceans at depths of between 300 and 1000 meters. Most sightings have been in the north Atlantic, with most specimens found either dead or dying in shallow waters.
The king of herrings is neither a true herring
nor a close relative. According to the Great Book of Animals, its name comes from being sighted near shoals of herring, which fishermen thought were being guided by this fish. It is scaleless, ribbon-shaped and silvery with a long, red dorsal fin.
The king of herrings is the world's longest bony fish. Its total length has been documented to reach 17 m (56 ft), and it can weigh up to 300 kilogram. Its length and bizarre appearance are presumed to be responsible for some sea serpent
sightings.
. The last time one had been reported in Swedish waters was in 1879.
On December 10 2010, a live specimen of four meters was found on the south coast of Sinaloa
state in Mexico
. One of the fisherman who captured it said it might be the devil and feared it might swallow them.
On April 6 2011, a live specimen measuring 3.5 m was found off the east coast of Taiwan
, nearly a month after the devastating tsunami hit Japan in March. Taiwanese fishermen believed that it surfaced to the shallow water because of the earthquake in Japan
. They gave it the nickname: Earthquake Fish.
Oarfish
Oarfish are large, greatly elongated, pelagic Lampriform fishes comprising the small family Regalecidae. Found in all temperate to tropical oceans yet rarely seen, the oarfish family contains four species in two genera...
of the family
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
Regalecidae, is the world's longest bony fish. Rarely sighted, it is found in all the world's oceans at depths of between 300 and 1000 meters. Most sightings have been in the north Atlantic, with most specimens found either dead or dying in shallow waters.
The king of herrings is neither a true herring
Herring
Herring is an oily fish of the genus Clupea, found in the shallow, temperate waters of the North Pacific and the North Atlantic oceans, including the Baltic Sea. Three species of Clupea are recognized. The main taxa, the Atlantic herring and the Pacific herring may each be divided into subspecies...
nor a close relative. According to the Great Book of Animals, its name comes from being sighted near shoals of herring, which fishermen thought were being guided by this fish. It is scaleless, ribbon-shaped and silvery with a long, red dorsal fin.
Description
Sea serpent
A sea serpent or sea dragon is a type of sea monster either wholly or partly serpentine.Sightings of sea serpents have been reported for hundreds of years, and continue to be claimed today. Cryptozoologist Bruce Champagne identified more than 1,200 purported sea serpent sightings...
sightings.
Sightings
In May 2010, a dead 3 m specimen was found off the coast of SwedenSweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
. The last time one had been reported in Swedish waters was in 1879.
On December 10 2010, a live specimen of four meters was found on the south coast of Sinaloa
Sinaloa
Sinaloa officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sinaloa is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 18 municipalities and its capital city is Culiacán Rosales....
state in Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
. One of the fisherman who captured it said it might be the devil and feared it might swallow them.
On April 6 2011, a live specimen measuring 3.5 m was found off the east coast of Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
, nearly a month after the devastating tsunami hit Japan in March. Taiwanese fishermen believed that it surfaced to the shallow water because of the earthquake in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. They gave it the nickname: Earthquake Fish.
Further reading
- Glover, C.J.M. in Gomon, M.F, J.C.M. Glover & R.H. Kuiter (Eds). 1994. The Fishes of Australia's South Coast. State Print, Adelaide. Pp. 992.
- Olney, J.E. Ii Paxton, J.R. & W.N. Eschmeyer (Eds). 1994. Encyclopedia of Fishes. Sydney: New South Wales University Press; San Diego: Academic Press [1995]. Pp. 240.
- Bourton, J. Giant bizarre deep sea fish filmed in Gulf of Mexico BBC News 8 February 2010.
External links
- Regalecus glesne at FishBase
- Magazine picture
