A deep-sea ‘earthquake fish’ has been rescued while under attack by five sharks.
The boat crew was fishing for marlin when they saw the sharks munching on the oarfish’s long tail.
The oarfish, considered a harbinger of natural disasters by some cultures around the world, was still alive when it was dragged onboard the vessel.
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The rare fish died shortly afterwards.
Tony Frasconi and his friends, Ken and Gary, were on a boat trip in the Sea of Cortez off the coast of Baja California Sur in Mexico when they encountered the oarfish.
Images were shared on social media by the Pisces Sportfishing Fleet on 29 May.
In the clip, the three men, who all sound American, introduce themselves on camera.
Tony and Gary state that they live in Cabo San Lucas in Mexico, while Ken says he comes from San Diego in the US.
Tony says: “The sharks had bitten the tail off it, and were biting the tail.
“So we grabbed it and put it on the boat.
“When we put it on the boat, it was still alive.”
He adds: “These are very rare, I don’t think there’s ever been one brought into Cabo San Lucas that I know of.”
The crew said the oarfish was taken to a team of marine biologists in La Paz for analysis.
They said the fish measured around 9.8 feet (3 metres) in length and weighed 141lb.
One local commented: “The harbinger of doom.”
Cruz said: “Hah! Sharks finally got taxed.”
David remarked: “Earthquakes.”
Due to their size and shape, oarfish resemble ‘sea serpents’ and are considered harbingers of earthquakes and misfortune in mythology.
They are considered one of the longest fish in the ocean and can measure up to 55 feet in length and weigh over 440 lbs.
They live at depths of between 200 and 1,000 metres (656 and 3,280 feet) and sightings are not very common.
Sometimes they wash up on beaches after a storm or when they suffer a serious injury.
When they do appear, many locals take it as a sign that a natural disaster is about to strike, as reported by What’s The Jam.
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