Indeed, California fish experts are atwitter over the find and are hopeful that the footballfish specimens can shine a light on how these rare creatures live. “There’s these basic things we don’t know about them – we don’t really know what they eat, we don’t know much about their reproduction systems.” And I think that’s what makes it really fascinating especially to study these deeper water species that occur just out in the open ocean. “We don’t know a lot about even the basics of how they live,” he said. “There’s a lot we don’t know about this species in general,” explained William Ludt, the assistant curator of the ichthyology collection at the Natural History Museum, where one of the footballfish was displayed.įrable seconded that. Other footballfish have been found with empty stomachs. The specimen appeared to be in good shape, though it looked like a seagull had taken a bite from the fish at some point, and Frable found sand in its belly. The fish found in December, Frable continued, was a female that stretched about 15 inches and weighed an impressive five and a half pounds.

Until this year, a footballfish had not washed ashore in California since 2001. “It is pretty amazing that we’ve had three just in the past year and in Southern California alone,” said Ben Frable, the Collection Manager of Fishes at Scripps Institution of Oceanography.Ĭalling the find “serendipitous,” he added, “Because before that, the last time it happened in California, at least that we were aware of, that somebody saw and brought to scientists was 20 years ago today.” Twitter/Scripps Institution of Oceanography Ben Frable of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography with the most recent footballfish find. One appeared in Newport Beach’s Crystal Cove State Park in May a second one washed up at Black’s Beach in November, and a third appeared along the shores of San Diego in December. In 2021, a number of footballfish washed ashore in California. So what exactly have scientists found? And why are these elusive fish suddenly washing up on the beach? Why Are Footballfish Washing Up In California? That’s why many ichthyologists - or fish experts - are thrilled that three footballfish have washed up in California.

However, because they swim so deep, scientists rarely have the chance to examine them closely. These fish are bizarre and fascinating deep-sea creatures. Retaining only their testes, they cling to the female fish, providing her with a steady source of sperm in exchange for nutrients. Over time, the male fish lose their eyes and internal organs. In fact, scientists say that male footballfish are merely “sexual parasites” that fuse themselves to females. Up to three feet long, they’re about 10 times larger than males. Scripps Institution Of Oceanography The footballfish use their terrifying teeth to subdue their prey.īut it’s only females that hunt.

Deep sea football fish