Seaside Aquarium in Oregon shared a few photos on Facebook of a 100-pound Opah fish that washed up onto the shore of Sunset Beach.
The aquarium said they were sent the pictures around 8am and quickly jumped into action to preserve the fish that is rarely seen on Oregon Coast.
“After seeing photographs of the unusual fish they quickly responded and recovered the fish. It created quite the stir at the Aquarium where folks were encouraged to come take a look at this beautiful and odd looking fish,” Seaside Aquarium wrote on Facebook.
The fish was 3.5 feet long and shined with bright colors of red and orange with white dots all over its body. The aquarium said they are always looking for new educational opportunities for visitors and this Opah will most certainly teach students about the marine animal.
They said that the fish will be frozen until the next school year starts. Between now and then, they will be partnering with the Columbia River Maritime Museum’s educational director, Nate Sandel, to allow one lucky school group the chance to dissect it.
“While rare this far north, it is not unheard of. A 97 pound Opah was caught 37 miles off of the Columbia River Mouth in 2009,” Seaside Aquarium said.
Opahs are usually found in the open ocean in tropical and temperate waters where they feed on krill and squid. Even though this Opah was a massive 3.5 long and 100 pounds, they are known to grow over 6 feet long and weigh over 600 pounds.