Every few years, someone claims the world is ending—remember 2012? This time, the panic comes from deep-sea creatures like oarfish (a.k.a. “doomsday fish”), anglerfish, and even killer whales surfacing mysteriously. Oarfish surfacing near the shore are linked to earthquakes in folklore, but science suggests pressure shifts might just be confusing them. Mass whale strandings? Likely due to sickness or sonar issues. Thousands of fish in Kerala? Just a natural phenomenon. That “Leviathan” spotted underwater? Fake news. The real issue? Us. Climate change, pollution, and rising ocean temperatures are forcing these creatures out of their homes. If we keep trashing the planet, the world might actually end!!!
“The world is going to end this year!” I’m sure we heard this back in 2012 as well, but it’s safe to say that we are all here today. You must have come across the recent fuss all over social media about deep-sea creatures surfacing in the ocean and how it indicates the end of the world. There have been sightings of oarfish (the so-called ‘doomsday fish’), the anglerfish, several killer whales being washed ashore, and much more that has left scientists and people wondering what the reason for all this might be.
The oarfish’s rare appearances near shore have earned it the nickname doomsday fish due to its association with natural disasters. The legend associating oarfish with impending disasters like earthquakes and tsunamis is rooted in Japanese folklore, where they are seen as "Ryugu no tsukai," meaning “messengers of the sea god." This belief gained widespread attention after the 2011 Tohoku earthquake in Japan, when several oarfish were found near the coast in the months leading up to the disaster. These sightings go back to 1996, when some American Navy soldiers were patrolling in San Diego, USA, and spotted a giant shiny fish that was up to 23 feet in length, and some time after the sightings, Mexico faced an earthquake of magnitude 7.1. While the folklore is widespread, there's no scientific evidence to support a direct link between oarfish sightings and earthquakes or tsunamis. Although some scientists suggest that earthquakes can create shifts in pressure, potentially disorienting or harming deep-sea creatures, which could explain why they might surface more frequently.
Another incident that shocked people was when more than 150 killer whales washed ashore in Tasmania, Australia, and eventually died despite rescue efforts. People also tried to make this a sign of the end of the world, but it was purely a result of a phenomenon called cetacean stranding, which is caused by some of the following reasons: sickness, injury, or weakness in whales that may affect their navigation, leading them to end up in shallow water, unable to return to deeper areas. Whales use echolocation to navigate, and shallow, sloping coastlines can confuse their sonar signals. They are social animals, and if one member of a pod is sick or injured and heads toward shore, others may follow, resulting in a mass stranding. In some cases, whales may beach themselves to escape predators such as orcas, though this is less common.
A rare and shocking sight unfolded on the shores of Kerala as thousands of fish mysteriously washed up, leaving locals stunned. This unusual event, believed to be caused by natural phenomena called Sardine Rush, where fish come ashore from their natural waters in need of cooler water, has happened in Kerala several times even before this. Another reason for this could also be the "Chakara" phenomenon, where nutrient-rich waters attract large schools of fish close to the coast, or it could be due to a panicked response to predators.
The most interesting sighting out of all these was that of the anglerfish, or black sea devil, near the Canary Islands. These bioluminescent creatures, typically found in the ocean's deepest, darkest regions, have recently been observed much closer to the surface. The surprising part is that this fish looks scary and appears huge, but is actually very tiny–only around six inches long. The exact cause for this is still unclear, but scientists believe that warming ocean temperatures and changing currents might be pushing deep-sea species into unfamiliar territories.
Another baffling sighting was that of a giant figure in the ocean between the continents of North America and Antarctica. This deep-sea structure was said to be the mythological creature Leviathan, mentioned in several Jewish and Christian texts including the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament), in Psalms, Isaiah, and Job. This belief about the structure actually being Leviathan was all over social media, with claims that this signifies the end of this world, but in reality, the data had been manipulated and exaggerated; the giant figure was not some mythological creature but a mere structure underwater.
It’s funny how we go around talking all over social media about these incidents being signs of the world ending soon, forgetting that they are actually the result of what we are doing to the planet. If it were not for us humans, maybe the environment would not be in such a terrible condition. If we could just shift our focus from these sightings of deep-sea creatures being signs of the end of the world to us being the reason these creatures are leaving their homes, which might even cause them to go extinct, the world would be a better place. Pollution and global warming have caused the ocean temperatures to rise so much that the whole marine ecosystem has been negatively affected. If we do not do anything to change this, one day the ocean bed will be all plastic, and maybe by then it will be too late to realise what actually caused the end of the world.
Freya Thakur is a student pursuing English Literature from Jamia Millia Islamia.
Edited By: Sidra Aman
Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this publication are those of the author. They do not purport to reflect the opinions or views of The Jamia Review or its members.
