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Today on Animal Fact Files we’re talking about oarfish. These amazing fish are also called ribbon fish, and one look at their impressive anatomy would explain why. Oarfish have long, sometimes very long, compressed bodies. They live throughout the world’s oceans, so they’re considered a cosmopolitan group - though they aren’t known from polar waters. Though their populations may spread around the globe, these fish are rarely seen. Heck, humans didn’t even have video of a live oarfish until after the turn of the century! Oarfish live in the open ocean. They may occur from 65 feet (20 meters) to more than 3,280 feet (1,000 meters) below the ocean’s surface. Like the coelacanths we’ve talked about previously, oarfish swim vertically in the water column; though oarfish face upwards not downwards. Oarfish do this in order to avoid predators. Any threats from either above or below would simply see a smallish spot floating along, disguising the long animal actually swimming there. Originally, oarfish were believed to swim using their pelvic fins the same way a rower would use oars in a boat. An oarfish’s pelvic fins are long and end in club shapes - thus the name oarfish - though now it’s known this is not the case. Currently, there are three recognized species of oarfish, though some sources split single species into multiple so this number may change with more information.

Adult oarfish likely don’t have many predators, though they may be eaten by sharks. Oarfish themselves eat small crustaceans like krill. Oarfish are filter feeders and don’t even have teeth despite their somewhat threatening appearance. They’re also thought to be relatively solitary, though groups have been seen during breeding events. Oarfish are broadcast spawners and don’t take part in raising their young. A male and female will meet up, release sperm and eggs into the water column and then leave their young behind. The fertilized eggs will float to the ocean’s surface where they’ll remain for about three weeks until they hatch into tiny baby oarfish who look like their parents but much smaller. Over time, these fish can grow to sizes of more than 26 feet (8 meters) depending on the species. At their max length, oarfish are considered the longest living bony fish on our planet. This is in contrast to the largest living bony fish, the ocean sunfish, who may not be as long but is much heavier than an oarfish. There’s potential that oarfish can be longer than this, too - but as of right now this is unresolved because every oarfish found more than five feet (1.5 meters) in length has had at least part of its body autotomized, leaving them with stumpy rears.

In the same way a gecko might drop its tail, an oarfish can drop pieces of its tail-end. Most of the important organs in an oarfish are located in the first quarter of their bodies, so they can lose the extra weight if the need arises. Scientists aren’t exactly sure why this happens. It could be to escape predators, to help the oarfish swim better, or to reduce energy costs - but no matter the reason it’s metal as heck - and in oarfish this can happen multiple times throughout their lives.

Oarfish don’t have scales, anal fins, or swim bladders, but they do have long dorsal fins that run the length of their bodies. The first few rays of these dorsal fins are elongated and stick far above the oarfish’s head. These often appear red or pink in color and are part of the influence behind the Water Dragon’s design from the game Okami - at least, that’s what our official complete works book says about it!

For more facts on oarfish, check out the links in the description. Thank you to sonic popsicle for today’s request! Give a thumbs up if you learned something new today, and thank you for watching Animal Fact Files.