Are there sea serpents

Wildlife Facts. Max Greenburg August 5, Oarfish engraving, c. A non-decomposing basking shark. You have to admit, it was a nice try. Wikimedia commons. Wildlife Facts fish , holidays , oceans , seals , sharks , squid , whales. Written by Max Greenburg. Recent Popular. Conservation , People and Wildlife. Students and Nature.

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They also seem to only come up towards the surface when they are extremely ill and about to die. So although various sailors throughout the ages have definitely seen oarfish chances are they were already dead or dying.

It is also for this reason we know very little about their behaviours because the only specimens we have been able to properly study are dead ones. Although a Remote Underwater Vehicle RUV study in did reveal that rather than swimming horizontally like most fish, oarfish actually swim vertically up and down the water column to feed. As well as finding their place as monsters in maritime folklore oarfish are also regarded by many Pacific cultures to be harbingers of doom.

This is because when they move into shallower waters and die in countries such as the Philippines and Japan it supposedly coincides with earthquakes and tsunamis.

Even today the appearance of these giants along beaches in the Philippines can spark fears of natural disasters across the country. However a study by a group of Japanese seismologists have in fact debunked this particular myth by showing that there is no clear correlation between the two.

Regardless this sinister connection has only lead to further fear and misunderstanding of these fascinating creatures. Whilst for most people around the world oarfish are considered monsters and symbols of destruction, for others they are just another example of how little we still know about our own oceans. You are commenting using your WordPress.

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A juvenile oarfish raises its head above the water. Megophias megophias: A large sea lion-like creature with a long neck and long tail. Over feet 61 m long. Only the male has a mane. It is cosmopolitan. Long Necked or Megalotaria longicollis: A foot 18 m , long necked, short tailed sea lion. Hair and whiskers reported. Merhorse or Halshippus olai-magni: A foot 18 m , medium necked, large eyed, horse-headed pinniped.

Often has whiskers. It is also cosmopolitan. Many-Humped or Plurigibbosus novae-angliae: A 60—foot 18—30 m , medium necked, long bodied archaeocete. It has a series of humps or a crest on the spine like a sperm whale's or grey whale's. It only lives in the North Atlantic. Super Otter or Hyperhydra egedei: A 65—foot 20—30 m , medium necked, long bodied archaeocete that resembles an otter.

It moves in numerous vertical undulations Lived near Norway and Greenland, and presumed to be extinct by Heuvelmans. Many Finned or Cetioscolopendra aeliani: A 60—foot 18—21 m , short necked archeocete. It has a number of lateral projections that look like dorsal fins, but turned the incorrect way.

Compare to the armor on Desmatosuchus, but much more prominent. Super Eels: A group of large and possibly unrelated eels. Partially based on the Leptocephalus giganteus larvae, later shown to be normal sized. This "identification" was done by the paperwork and the actual specimen was missing by then. Marine Saurian: A 50—foot 15—18 m crocodile, or crocodile-like animal Mosasaur, Pliosaur, etc.

Yellow Belly: A very large, —foot 30—61 m yellow and black striped tadpole-shaped creature. Giant Invertebrates: Giant Venus's girdle and salp colonies.

It is not clear if Heuvelmans intended them to be unknown species or extreme forms of known species. Classic Sea Serpent: A quadrupedal, elongated animal with the appearance of many humps when swimming.

Essentially a composite of the many humped, super otter, and super eels types. The authors suggest Basilosaurus as a candidate, or possibly Remingtoncetids. Waterhorse: A large pinniped, similar to the long necked and merhorse. Only the males are maned, but females appear to have snorkels. Both of their eyes are rather small. They are noteworthy for being behind both salt and fresh water sightings.

Mystery Cetacean: A category of unknown whale species including double finned whales and dolphins, dorsal finned sperm whales, unknown beaked whales, an unknown orca, and others. Great Sea Centipede: Same as the many finned. The authors suggest the flippers may either be retractile, and the "scaly" appearance could be caused by parasites.

Giant Octopus, Octopus giganteus or Otoctopus giganteus: A large cephalopod living in the tropical Atlantic. The neck is the same thickness or smaller than the head. Hair reported. It is capable of travel on land.