By KAZUHIKO OKADA/ Staff Writer
December 22, 2019 at 12:50 JST
NUMAZU, Shizuoka Prefecture--Although mature specimens are rarely seen, the young of two rare deep-sea fish species were spotted floating in waters off the coast here on Dec. 21.
Photographer Kazushige Horiguchi captured video of juvenile oarfish and polka-dot ribbonfish, which measured 5 centimeters and 8 cm, respectively.
Horiguchi, 33, of Nishi-Izu in the prefecture, encountered and shot video of the two creatures when he dived in the sea off Osezaki point in the city.
As mature oarfish and polka-dot ribbonfish inhabit deep ocean waters, it is rare for humans to catch a glimpse of them.
Although their young are believed to remain in waters near the surface for a time right after hatching, feeding on plankton, details of their life cycle largely are unknown.
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The young of oarfish float in waters near the surface off Osezaki point of Numazu, Shizuoka Prefecture, on Dec. 21. (Provided by Kazushige Horiguchi)
