Community in fear after fisherman's strange catch: 'Never seen anything like it'
The bizarre looking creatures can grow up to 17m long and weigh as much as 200kg.
A single fisherman has reeled in an incredible 50 rarely-sighted oarfish – considered a deep-sea ‘harbinger of doom’ – with a rod.
Due to their size and shape, they resemble ‘sea serpents’ and are considered predictors of earthquakes and misfortune in Japanese mythology.
The myth was rekindled in 2011 after the Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami.
The huge number of oarfish were caught by Wang Yuwen off the coast of Taiwan, sparking fears in the country.
After so many were caught at the same time, many local residents were concerned that it would lead to a natural disaster.
Others said the oarfish could have been disturbed by the Chinese military carrying out submarine drills in the area amid growing fears they will invade the island state soon.
The oarfish were hooked by Mr Yuwen of the Achun Fresh Fish Shop at the Taitung Chenggong Fish Farm on April 11.
He said he caught the oarfish in a small boat by longline fishing and not by using a fixed net, making the haul even more incredible.
He said the largest oarfish weighed 19kg and the smallest 7kg. In total, the oarfish haul weighed over 400kg.
"In the past, it was considered good for a fishing boat to catch one oarfish every time they went out to sea, and it was very rare to see two or three," Mr Yuwen said. "I never expected to catch nearly 50.
"Even my 80-year-old father said ‘I have never seen anything like it before’."
A spokesperson for Achun Fresh Fish said they only just sold out of the oarfish on Thursday.
“Their meat is white and tender with a unique taste. The best way to prepare oarfish is steamed with ginger and spring onion to set off the delicious original flavour.”
After catching the haul, some Taiwanese locals speculated that the presence of oarfish may have been related to the 4.7 magnitude earthquake that hit Taiwan's Hualien City on April 7.
Despite their links to natural disasters, the Ecuadoran Geophysical Institute said the myth has no validity in any scientific study carried out as of August 2022.
Oarfish are considered one of the longest fish in the ocean and can measure up to 17m in length and weigh over 200kg.
Their body is scaleless and the skin has a slimy, silvery protective coating known as guanine. Their dorsal fin starts between its eyes and reaches its tail.
Due to its ability to adapt to different temperatures, oarfish are found in most of the world's oceans with the exception of the poles.
They live at depths of between 200 and 1,000m and sightings are not very common.
Sometimes they wash up on beaches after a storm or when they suffer a serious injury.
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