An Australian discovered a giant herring king off the coast in northwestern Tasmania, reports The Guardian.
According to the publication, it was a hot sunny day when Tom Chisman, a resident of Penguin Town, took his dogs for a walk and saw something silver surrounded by seagulls. It turns out that this is a fish that lives at a depth of three meters, and it is called a "harbinger of disaster."
"When I reached it, I first saw a huge fish, then noticed its beautiful color, the fins protruding from its belly and head. "I've never seen anything like this," Chisman recalled.
This is the "King of Herring" or "Ordinary Ribbon Fish," which lives at depths of up to 1500 m. Coolam Brown, an ichthyologist at Macquarie University, noted that there are several species of such fish, and the three-meter ribbon-like body found by Chisman may be one of the largest among the found fish.
"They look very strange. They are very long and thin, like a ribbon, with a solid dorsal fin," says the scientist.
In Japanese folklore, belts are known as "ryugu-no-sukay" (translated as "ambassador from the court of the sea god"). In legends, their appearance was considered a sign of a catastrophe - an earthquake or tsunami. However, none of the studies have found any connection between the emergence of these marine creatures and catastrophes.
"They just appear by chance. They appear only when they are sick or when they die. We don't know much about them. Therefore, any specimen thrown ashore is truly valuable," the ichthyologist added.
Read “Zamin” on Telegram!
Users of Меҳмон are not allowed to comment this publication.
