According to NBC News, the ominous creature lives in the depths of the ocean, making it a rare sight. There have been just 21 recorded oarfish sightings near California beaches since 1901. Two of those sightings occurred in 2024 —another oarfish washed up on a shore in La Jolla in August.

An elusive deep-water oarfish considered to be a harbinger of bad news was discovered on the shores of Encinitas, California last Friday.

A rare oarfish, often referred to as a "doomsday fish," washed ashore on Grandview Beach in Encinitas, California, marking the second such occurrence in 2024. A doctorate candidate from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography made the discovery of the 9–10 foot deep-sea monster public on social media.

For the second time this year, a long, ribbon-shaped oarfish that is frequently connected to disasters has come ashore on Californian beaches. NBC News reports that PhD candidate Alison Laferriere of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in Encinitas, Southern California, made the discovery of the roughly 10-foot-long fish.

SAN DIEGO ( KUSI) — Another oarfish has made its way from the deep sea to the coast of San Diego County in Southern California. Scripps Institution of Oceanography researchers stumbled upon the rare fish, considered the largest vertebrate in the world’s oceans, at Grandview Beach in Encinitas last week.

Two incredibly rare - and incredibly strange - oarfish have washed up on California beaches this year. Before now, only 18 had been documented on beaches in the state since 1901. Scientists say changing ocean conditions could have something to do with it.