Something Fishy… for our health!?

February 19, 2010 in Antioxidant, Education, Family Health, Fish Oil, Heart Health, Men's Health, Natural, Natural Health, News, Nutrition / Diet, Omega 3, Science, Supplements / Vitamins, Wellness, Women's Health by Evelyn Vincent | No comments

Bizarre “Sea Serpent” Captured on Video: in a world first, marine scientists working in the Gulf of Mexico filmed a Giant Oarfish in the wild written by Craig Weatherby, writer at Vital Choice Seafood

A team of researchers recently caught a rare, frightening, but oddly beautiful fish on video … for the first time (view it below). The Giant Oarfish captured on film was estimated to measure a jaw-dropping 16 to 32 feet in length.

The men in the photo at right are holding a dead Oarfish … one that may only be half the size of the one filmed in the Gulf, and just a third of the documented maximum. The biggest members of this bizarre species may be the biggest bony fish in the world. (Sharks have cartilage, not bone.)

It’s likely that some of the “sea serpent” sightings by sailors over the centuries stem from the size, dragon-like dorsal fin, bright red streamers, and sinuous, snake-like motions of the Giant Oarfish (Regalecus glesne).

Oarfish sightings and landings are infrequent, but happen regularly around the world … usually when one was dead or dying, at the surface or washed onshore.

How the “catch” happened

The video (above) was shot in the Gulf of Mexico by scientists from Louisiana State University and the UK’s National Oceanography Centre.

They were based on the world’s largest oil rig, called ThunderHorse, and using its remotely operated vehicle (ROV) when they saw the fish swimming – sometimes backwards – at a depth of more than 1,500 feet (457 meters).

Team leader Mark Benfield, Ph.D., offered this account:

“What was interesting about the fish was its swimming behavior. It moved by undulating its dorsal fin in waves that propelled it backwards at quite a good speed. The fish was really big … five to 10 meters [16 to 32 feet].”

How did we not know that the seas harbor a stunningly beautiful, scary-but-harmless “sea serpent”? Now that we do, we’re glad it exists!

Saving the ocean’s amazing creatures – many still undiscovered – is another good reason to keep greenhouse gasses, trash, and chemical pollution from killing the seas.

And saving the ocean and its food chain is essential to the health, welfare, and very survival of countless people.

What!? Are we now supposed to eat Giant Oarfish for good health???

No… [smiling] it’s just a fascinating news story I wanted to share. That’s something for our brains and hearts in another way.

The fish that are really good for are health (high in omega 3s) can be found at my favorite source for wild seafood, Vital Choice… and an essential oil enhanced supplement called Omega Blue (fact sheet) from Young Living Essential Oils.

Related articles on Omega 3s

Omega 3s Rival Antidepressants in Study

Omega 3s in Brian and their Link to Zinc, Alzheimer’s and Dementia

Aging Slowed by Antioxidant Power of Omega 3s

Can Nutrition Affect Behavior: how we become what we eat

Source

Louisiana State University (LSU). LSU Professor Records Video of Seldom-Seen Oarfish. February 10, 2010 http://appl003.lsu.edu/unv002.nsf/GetMonthDetail?OpenAgent&View=MonthYear=2010Month=02