OARFISH
JCC JEWELRY BROOCH...A
COMMEMORATIVE PIN...
I just created this beautiful,
unique brooch to commemorate the recent sightings of oarfish
seen around the world. Oarfish Jewelry has never been created
until now. Oarfish are the largest bony fish in the sea and have
been seen as large as 56 feet long. According to the ancient
Japanese Oarfish are the "Messengers from the Sea God's Palace."
Also considered royal because they are the King of Herrings",
also thought to be behind all the sea serpent legends. The
paradox being is that the oarfish is a most beautiful, docile
and harmlessly innocent creature. Recently oarfish have been
seen washed up on the shores of Japan and most recently Sweden.
They are considered the harbinger of earthquake disasters to
come...JAMES
CLINTON CURRAN...May 2010 (Please read more below).
HISTORY of
the MYSTERIOUS OARFISH
...Oarfish...are
large, greatly elongated, pelagic Lampriform fishes comprising
the small family Regalecidae. Found in all temperate to tropical
oceans yet rarely seen, the oarfish family contains four species
in two genera. One of these, the king of herrings (Regalecus
glesne), is listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the
longest bony fish alive, at up to 17 metres (56 ft) in length.
The common name oarfish is presumably in reference to either
their highly compressed and elongated bodies, or to the former
(but now discredited) belief that the fish "row" themselves
through the water with their pelvic fins. The family name
Regalecidae is derived from the Latin regalis, meaning "royal".
The occasional beachings of oarfish after storms, and their
habit of lingering at the surface when sick or dying, make
oarfish a probable source of many sea serpent tales. Although
the larger species are considered game fish and are (to a minor
extent) fished commercially, oarfish are rarely caught alive;
their flesh is not well regarded due to its gelatinous
consistency.
...Anatomy
and morphology...The tapering, ribbony silver bodies of
oarfish together with an impressive, pinkish to cardinal red
dorsal fin help explain the perception of majesty taken from
rare encounters. The dorsal fin originates from above the
(relatively small) eyes and runs the entire length of the fish.
Of the approximately 400 dorsal fin rays, the first 10 to 12 are
elongated to varying degrees, forming a trailing crest
embellished with reddish spots and flaps of skin at the ray
tips. The pelvic fins are similarly elongated and adorned,
reduced to 1 to 5 rays each. The pectoral fins are greatly
reduced and situated low on the body. The anal fin is completely
absent and the caudal fin may be reduced or absent as well, with
the body tapering to a fine point. All fins lack true spines. At
least one account, from researchers in New Zealand, describes
the oarfish as giving off "electric shocks" when touched. Like
other members of its order, the oarfish has a small yet highly
protrusible oblique mouth with no visible teeth. The body is
scaleless and the skin covered with easily abraded, silvery
guanine. In the streamer fish (Agrostichthys parkeri), the skin
is clad with hard tubercles. All species lack gas bladders and
the number of gill rakers is variable. Oarfish coloration is
also variable; the flanks are commonly covered with irregular
bluish to blackish streaks, black dots, and squiggles. These
markings quickly fade following death. The king of herrings is
by far the largest member of the family at a published total
length of 11 meters (with unconfirmed reports of 15 meters or
more) and 272 kilograms in weight. The streamer fish is known to
reach 3 meters total length whilst the largest recorded specimen
of Regalecus russelii measured just 5.5 centimeters standard
length. It is probable that this little-known species can
regularly reach a maximum length of at least 15.2 meters (50
ft).
...Distribution...The
members of the family are known to have a worldwide range.
However, specific encounters with live individuals in situ are
rare and distribution information is collated from records of
oarfishes caught or washed ashore.
...Ecology
and life history...Rare encounters with divers and
accidental catches have supplied what little is known of oarfish
behavior and ecology. Apparently solitary animals, oarfish may
frequent significant depths up to 1,000 metres (3,300 ft). A
photograph on display in bars, restaurants, guesthouses, and
markets around Thailand that is captioned, "Queen of Nagas
seized by American Army at Mekhong River, Laos Military Base on
June 27, 1973 with the length of 7.80 meters," is a hoax. The
photograph is actually that taken by USN LT DeeDee Van Wormer,
of an oarfish found in late 1996 by US Navy SEAL trainees on the
coast of Coronado, California. A catch of an 11 ft 4 in (3.3
metres), 140 lb (63.5kg) monster that turned out to be an
oarfish was reported on 17 February 2003 by Ms Val Fletcher, who
was using a fishing rod baited with squid, at Skinningrove, a
coastal settlement of north-east England. In 2001 an oarfish was
filmed alive and in situ: the 1.5 meter fish was spotted by a
group of US Navy personnel during the inspection of a buoy in
the Bahamas. The oarfish was observed to propel itself via an
amiform mode of swimming; that is, rhythmically undulating the
dorsal fin whilst keeping the body itself straight. Perhaps
indicating a feeding posture, oarfish have been observed
swimming in a vertical orientation, with their long axis
perpendicular to the ocean surface. In this posture the
downstreaming light would silhouette the oarfishes' prey, making
them easier to spot.
...Behavior...In July 2008, Canadian Researcher William
Sommers captured footage of the rare fish swimming in its
natural habitat off the Gulf of Mexico. It is the first ever
confirmed sighting of an oarfish at depth, as most specimens are
discovered dying at the sea surface or washed ashore. The fish
was estimated to be between 5m and 10m in length. From December
2009 through March 2010, unusual numbers of the slender oarfish
Regalecus russelii / Ryu-gu--No-Tsukai,) known in Japanese
folklore as the Messenger from the Sea God's Palace, have
appeared in the waters and on the beaches of Japan; the
appearance of which is said to portend earthquakes.
...Feeding
ecology...Oarfish feed primarily on zooplankton,
selectively straining tiny euphausiids, shrimp, and other
crustaceans from the water. Small fish, jellyfish, and squid are
also taken. Large open-ocean carnivores are all likely predators
of oarfish, and include the Oceanic whitetip shark. Oarfish have
no visible teeth.
...Life
history...The oceanodromous Regalecus glesne is recorded
as spawning off Mexico from July to December; all species are
presumed to be non-guarders and release brightly coloured,
buoyant eggs, up to 6 millimetres (0.24 in) across, which are
incorporated into the zooplankton. The eggs hatch after about
three weeks into highly active larvae, that feed on other
zooplankton. The larvae have little resemblance to the adults,
with long dorsal and pelvic fins and extensible mouths. Larvae
and juveniles have been observed drifting just below the
surface. In contrast, adult oarfish are rarely seen at the
surface when not sick or injured.
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