Philippines fisherman catches giant deep-sea fish as earthquake draws it to shallow waters

As Philippines' central areas were rattled by an earthquake, a fisherman was able to make an extraordinarily lucky catch. After the earthquake in Oras, the fisherman was able to catch a giant deep-sea fish known as 'Opah Fish' using just a hook and line. The fish is also commonly called a moonfish, weights 65 kgs, and is usually found at the depths of about 500 meters.

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Unbelievable catch after earthquake

As per Philippine's state news agency, the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Director Juan Albaladejo has stated that the deep-sea fish was probably frightened by the earthquake and as a result swam towards shallow waters.

The scientific name for the opah fish is Lampris guttatus. Opah is a type of warm-blooded fish, resulting in its high-performance predator that Is capable of swimming faster and seeing better than average fish. As per reports, the fisherman that caught the Opah fish sold it at the nearby market for about $4.11 (Php 200) per kg.

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800kg giant fish caught

In a similar incident earlier, a group of fishermen had managed to catch a  Giant Manta Ray. The fish was caught near the Odisha-West Bengal border on the morning of July 27, Monday. The giant fish weights 800kgs and is, therefore, the largest catch of its kind.

According to reports, the fish that was caught by the fisherman measured 8 feet long and 5 feet wide. The fish was sold for Rs 50,000. Fisherman usually calls the giant fish that was called Shankar fish since it resembles an elephant's ear in shape. Giant Manta Rays are listed as vulnerable under the IUCN.

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