Have you visited the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County? Have you heard of the Catalina Island Oarfish? No, that’s not its real name and no, the shores of Catalina Island are not its home. The Oarfish, Regalecus russelii (Cuvier, 1816) (Actinopterygii: Regalecidae) is oceanic, living hundreds of feet deep, and is the longest bony fish in the world! There have only been a total of nineteen verified oarfish strandings and sightings along the California coast, since 1901. In most of these cases, the fish washed ashore dead.

But on August 16th, 2006, while doing field research at Big Fisherman’s Cove, Catalina Island, my husband, Tom, and I got to see one ALIVE, up close and personal. In fact, we were up so early that morning (we were fishing for Barred Sand Bass to acoustically tag and track), that we were the first ones to witness it that day. From Dr. Chris Lowe’s whaler, we weren’t quite sure what the tuft of brilliant red was moving through the water. Was it a roosterfish? As we got closer, Tom knew right away. “It’s an oarfish!!”, he called out to me. And what a beauty! Such gorgeous, blueish-purplish, iridescent colors. And eyes so big and seemingly curious about this strange bright world it had made its way into. It didn’t take long for us to sound the alarm…this was big news!! Just as we were doing that, Todd Anderson (San Diego State University) and his divers were getting in the water. He and his team were also fortunate to witness the beautiful creature in all its glory; when it was still very active and inquisitive. Throughout the day, other groups of folks came to visit the oarfish, until it finally came to rest in the shallows of the cove on the northeast side of the pier. Today, that same oarfish is displayed at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County in a stainless steel tank built especially for it.

Of course, all of these details were somehow lost in future recountings of this particular day. But alas, that’s okay, now you too know how the Catalina Island Oarfish came to be discovered that early morning of August 16, 2006.

Big thanks to Rick Feeney and Bob Lea’s foresight to document records of all of the California Oarfish sightings and strandings since 1901. Based on their records, we know “our” Oarfish was 4.46 m (14.6 ft). ;-) So cool!

California Records of the Oarfish Bull. Southern California Acad. Sci.117(3), 2018, pp. 169–179

Below is a copy of the text from the original museum caption (as best as I could gather from a photo):

“On August 16, 2006, a large 4.4m (14.5 ft) silvery fish swam into Big Fisherman Cove at Catalina Island. It was identified as an oarfish by researchers from the Wrigley Marine Science Center located in the Cove, who were able to dive with and photograph the fish as it swam. They collected, froze and brought the fish by boat to the mainland where it was transported to the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County.

Oarfish have a long flattened, bladelike body and are named for their elongated oar-like pelvic fins. They are the longest known bony fish; one fish was measured at 11 m (36 ft) long and 272 kg (nearly 600 lbs) in weight. Sightings of oarfish probably account for early reports of sea serpents.

In life, oarfish are a brilliant silver color with bright blue and brown dots and streaks. The long dorsal fin and filamentous pelvic fins are bright red. The colors in this specimen have faded because of the ethanol in which the fish is stored. The pelvic fins on the fish were broken and have been repaired for this exhibit.”

Oarfish are rarely seen at the surface and are reported from depths of at least 300 to 1,000 m (1000 to 3500 ft). They are known to eat euphausids (small, shrimp-like crustaceans), small fishes, and squid. Their par(?) shape allows them to hang vertically in the water column, as do other fishes with long thin bodies. Oarfish are thought to feed in this head (up?) position.”