Giant oars fish predicting earthquakes in the Philippines?

Before the earthquake in Surigao del Norte province, southern Philippines two days, locals were reported to have discovered the body of a giant paddle fish drifting to the coast.

According to ABC-CDN News, an earthquake measuring 6.7 on the Richter scale on February 10 has left thousands of locals evacuated. An estimated 90 people were injured and 15 died in this earthquake.

Photos of paddle fish drifted to the Philippine coast, two days before the earthquake.

Many houses and 3 bridges were completely collapsed or badly damaged due to seismic influence while Surigao airport had to stop operating because the runway was broken.

Two days earlier, local people were thought to have discovered a 3-meter-long paddlefish drifting to the coast, raising questions that deep-sea creatures could predict the earthquake. .

Giant paddle fish (Regalecus glesne) was first described in 1772. Humans are rarely seen because they often live at a depth of 1,000m above sea level. This is the longest bone fish alive in the world , with a length of up to 17 meters and weighing up to 270kg.

According to traditional Japanese beliefs, many oars fish appear to be a sign of an imminent earthquake.

Paddle fish drifted to the coast of California, USA in 2013. (Photo: CNN).

Researcher Mark Benfield of Louisiana State University once told Live Science that, before the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami in Japan, about 20 oars were stranded on the coast.

"This may be theoretically correct, because when earthquakes occur, the pressure in the rock layers can create static charges, causing charged ions to be released in the water," said Rachel Grant, biologist. Animal studies at Anglia Ruskin University, Cambridge (UK) said.

The process will lead to the formation of a toxic compound called hydrogen peroxide . The integrated ion can also oxidize organic matter, or kill fish or force them to leave deep waters and appear near shore.

Another possibility is that before the earthquake, carbon monoxide (CO) is released, affecting paddle fish and other marine species.

Japanese folk believe that the appearance of paddle fish is an earthquake premonition.(Illustration).

Fish that live near the seabed are often more sensitive to the movement of fault lines, but that is not entirely certain that they are prelude to earthquakes, some scientists say.

Hiroshi Tajihi expert from Kobe Earthquake Center said: "This is just a superstition concept, there is no clear connection between earthquakes and deep-sea fish."

In 2013, the phenomenon of paddle fish appeared continuously in California, USA. But no one has ever recorded any earthquake after the rowing fish appeared.

"Paddle fish drifting from the coast may be due to seismic activity, but they do not exclude non-earthquake factors such as lowering the sound generated by military submarine operations, or polluting the water environment. " expert Rachel Grant said.