On Friday, two oarfish were discovered after being caught in fishing nets off the northern prefecture of Toyama, bringing the total found this season to seven. Earlier this week, a 10.5 foot oarfish washed up on the shore of Toyama Bay, while a 13 foot long oarfish was tangled in a fishing net off the port of Imizu.
The elusive oarfish live between 650 to 3,200 feet deep and are characterized by silvery skin and red fins.
Legend has it that they beach themselves on shores ahead of underwater earthquakes. But scientists dispute such claims. Fears of an incoming natural disaster in Japan are swirling online after sightings.
The myth of oarfish as harbinger of destruction gained some traction after the 2011 Fukushima earthquake and subsequent tsunami, which killed more than 20,000 people. At least a dozen oarfish had washed up onto Japan's coastline in the year prior to the disaster, according to Kyodo News.
One possible scientific explanation could be that subtle changes in the earth's crust at the bottom of the sea ahead of an earthquake "might cause the current to stir and push creatures at the bottom to the surface.
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