Rare 'Doomsday' Oarfish Surfaces in California, Just the 20th Discovered in the State Since 1901

Rare 'Doomsday' Oarfish Surfaces in California, Just the 20th Discovered in the State Since 1901.Agroup of kayakers and snorkelers were enjoying a relaxing day in California’s La Jolla Cove earlier this month when they spotted something unusual floating atop the water: the body of an enormous fish that usually lives as far as 3,280 feet below the surface. The out-of-place creature was an oarfish (Regalecus glesne), a long, slender, serpent-like fish that typically inhabits deep-sea, open-ocean environments. This particular oarfish measured 12 feet long—though the biggest of the species can grow up to 36 feet long.