An elusive deep-water oarfish considered to be a harbinger of bad news was discovered on the shores of Encinitas, California last Friday.

A rare deep sea fish, regarded as a harbinger of doom, has washed up on a southern California shore. The Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California, San Diego, said one of its PhD students discovered an oarfish on a beach in Encinitas last week that was around nine to ten feet long.

Two incredibly rare - and incredibly strange - oarfish have washed up on California beaches this year. Before now, only 18 had been documented on beaches in the state since 1901. Scientists say changing ocean conditions could have something to do with it.