A stunning fish recently washed ashore in the Pacific Northwest, and experts say it belongs to a newly discovered species.
The unusual aquatic creature was spotted on a beach in Gearhart on June 3, the Oregon Seaside Aquarium announced in a June 6 Facebook post. — 7.3 feet long.
The hooded sunfish was only recognized as a distinct species in the past decade. Its appearance is so unusual that the Seaside Aquarium says locals are flocking to see the fish for themselves.
“Initially, the huge and strange fish caused quite a stir on social media, with people flocking to the beach to see the unusual fish despite the storm,” the aquarium wrote. “Soon after, New Zealand’s Researcher Marianne Nygaard received the news about the fish.”
Ultra-rare fish almost never seen by humans washes up on Oregon coast for first time
A species of sunfish was recently discovered in Oregon, and it may be the largest of its kind. (Tiffany Booth/Seaside Aquarium)
The aquarium said Nygard determined the fish was not an ocean sunfish, or common sunfish, but a masked sunfish, or Mola tecta.
“She discovered and described this new species of sunfish through research and published it in 2017,” the post added. “Described as a new species hiding in plain sight, genetic sampling and eventual observations led to its discovery. “
“It was initially thought that they lived only in the temperate waters of the Southern Hemisphere, but this theory will be challenged as some have recently washed up on the coast of California and one as far north as Alaska,” officials wrote. “This fish hides In plain sight, most likely previously found/washed ashore in the Pacific Northwest but mistaken for the more common sunfish.”
The aquarium assisted experts by taking photos of the creatures and collecting tissue samples. Nygard analyzed the image and determined it was a hooded sunfish.
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The hooded sunfish was only recognized as a distinct species in the past decade. (Tiffany Booth/Seaside Aquarium)
“This may be the largest sample ever sampled,” the post added.
The fish carcass was not collected by the aquarium. As of Thursday, the dead fish was still lying in the same spot on Gearhart Beach.
“The fish are still on Gearhart Beach and may remain there for days, or even weeks, as their tough skin makes them difficult for scavengers to pierce,” the Seaside Aquarium wrote. “This is an extraordinary sight. fish, the aquarium encourages people to see it in person.”
In the comments section of the Facebook post, locals expressed surprise at the fish’s appearance.
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Aquatic experts say the stunning fish is 7 feet long. (Tiffany Booth/Seaside Aquarium)
“There are 199,999,789 reasons why I won’t swim in the ocean,” one surprised Facebook user wrote. “Can you imagine that thing coming out of you?! That’s a no-no for me…”
“Sorry it died as it was a rare species!!” wrote another.
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Seaside Aquarium in Oregon collects no dead fish. (Google Maps)
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The Seaside Aquarium told Fox Digital News it cannot comment on the species’ underwater life because it was only recently discovered.
