Overview

• Local resident Sybil Robertson discovered a roughly three-metre oarfish on Ocean Beach near Strahan, Tasmania on June 2 while walking her dog
• Authorities collected tissue samples and transported them to CSIRO laboratories for genetic and biological research
• This finding follows similar oarfish appearances in Tamil Nadu, India, and the Canary Islands, drawing both scientific interest and folklore associations
• Marine ecologists report that oarfish can grow up to eight metres, inhabit depths of 150–1,000 metres and surface primarily due to illness or oceanic conditions
• Studies have found no evidence that oarfish strandings serve as precursors to earthquakes or other natural disasters