A rare deep-sea oarfish, also called a sea serpent, washed ashore near San Diego in Encinitas, and Scripps scientists are unsure what happened.

A rare doomsday fish (oarfish) was spotted by scientists of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at Grandview Beach in southern California

For the second time this year, a deep-sea oarfish has washed ashore in San Diego County, giving scientists a rare chance to study the species.

PhD candidate Alison Laferriere from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego discovered the nearly 10-foot-long oarfish on a beach in Encinitas, in southern California, last week. Oarfish are elusive creatures that dwell in the deep ocean — often as far as 3,

It is the second time this year that an oarfish has been found in the area. Sightings are very rare, with fewer than a couple of dozen having been seen on the state’s coast in 120 years. They inhabit the depths of the ocean in a region known as the mesopelagic zone,