Strange Fish Found after Tsunami

A friend sent me these images which I found very interesting. Since they are already identified species, I didn't feel this post belonged on the Critter Identification section. The story is (and I have no way of confirming the authenticity of the claim) :

'AS EVERYONE KNOWS, THE TSUNAMI IN SOUTHEAST ASIA WAS DEVASTATING BOTH IN THE LOSS OF LIFE AND ECONOMICALLY TO THE REGION. HOWEVER, NOW THAT THE CLEAN UP IS UNDERWAY IN THE REGION, DEEP SEA CREATURES THAT LIVE TOO DEEP TO BE STUDIED ARE BEING FOUND SCATTERED THROUGHOUT THE WRECKAGE. THESE CREATURES WERE WASHED UP ON SHORE WHEN THE WAVES HIT.'

Even if this claim isn't legitimate, there are some strange looking critters living down there !!

Cool creatures dmoss, but...

These creatures were actually collected during the NORFANZ expedition (New Zealand and Australia Norfolk Ridge - Lord Howe Rise Biodiversity Voyage) undertaken between May and June 2003, and have very little (well nothing actually) to do with the tsunami. The NORFANZ expedition captured fish during a series of 150+ deep water trawls in depths of up to 2000m. For further information go here.

It is likely that some deep sea creatures in the area off the northern tip of Indonesia would have been injured/killed by the pressure waves and sound generated by the earthquake. However, I'm sceptical about the likelihood of them ending up on the beaches. In fact, if you read the report by Jason on this site (who was actually diving as the wave hit) you get a feel for what was happening further away from the epicentre.

In addition to the extraordinary human tragedy, I am a little concerned about the likely consequences of increased runoff/silt/sedimentation from the tsunami and the effect that will almost certainly have on coastal fisheries/ecosystems in the more severely affected areas (eg. Aceh).

Thanks for sharing anyway and sorry for the rant.

There are also some interesting reports of active Thai folk getting together volunteers to assist in "standing up" the damaged coral heads.

anthp

Thanks for setting the record (and me) straight. I am always skeptical about e-mails I receive claiming certain facts that inevitably turn out to be false. At any rate, facinating creatures and I will read up on the links you provided.

Very wise to keep your sceptical hat on when reading just about any email

In this case, the truth is almost as interesting as the falacy

Anthp is right. A tsunami is not going to have any effect on midwater species like these. Plus these specimens are in very good condition - and have been collected with care not washed up on a beach.

They are nice images, though. The dragonfish is probably 10cm long (although some I have seen are a bit bigger), and the gulper eel is probably 15-20cm. Gulper eels use their large mouths to swallow prey much bigger than themselves which they slowly digest in their distendable stomachs.

Alex

Great place to check these kinds of things ut - the urban legends site:

http://snopes.com/

Just cut and paste a few lines in, and hit search... This one comes right up.

Don