The giant marine snakes are mysterious animals that open the curiosity of scientists and researchers and today our dear readers will learn a little about them.
Almost any sea monster long and serpentine is considered to be a giant marine snake. Let’s learn a little more about this topic.
Table Of Content
Main Characteristics of the Giant Sea Snakes
As for the few references that have been collected about their main characteristics, it is known that these animals base their diet mainly in zooplankton and some jellyfish. On the other hand, it is also known that they aren´t good swimmers and researchers say that this may be the reason why small specimens have been found dead on the sea´s shores because they have little capacity against the intensity of the marine currents and don´t have skills that allow them to return.
Reported Findings
The origin of this event is given by the discovery that occurred in California in October 2013 when two fish over 4 meters long appeared. The Comments on social networks, which caused a «storm» on the Internet, remembered that these creatures are a source of inspiration for different myths and legends. For example they are usually linked with the arrival of an earthquake.
It is also worth mentioning the case of Japan where several legends tell that there is a «sea serpent», known as Namazu, who lives under that country and causes earthquakes every time she leaves her lair. That is why every time this animal appears; the Japanese believe that the earth will tremble. While this has no scientific basis, after several sightings of this strange creature there were earthquakes.
In 2010, weeks before the earthquake in Haiti and part of Chile a giant marine snake was seen, and the same happened in 2011 before the terrible earthquake on the coast
¿What do the experts Say?
Scientists explain that these mythological creatures, could be oar fish, which coincide with the descriptions of the sightings that have been reported and that have a shape similar to that of snakes measuring up to 15 meters long
The biologist of the Marine Research Institute of the University of California-Santa Barbara, Milton Love, reached that conclusion after investigating the two specimens of this animal that ran aground on the Island of Santa Catalina, in Oceanside in 2013
The oars fish agree in many aspects with the characteristics of the supposed marine snakes since they are thin, flattened, they have small and protruding mouths and a shape similar to that of the snakes The first specimen of oar fish Regalecus glesne was discovered in 1772 by the Norwegian biologist Peter Ascanio. It is believed that they can weigh almost 300 kilogram and the reason why it is very difficult to see them is because their natural habitat is the extreme ocean depths, between 200 and 1,000 meters deep.
Unfortunately it has been quite difficult to fully study these creatures for several reasons. Dr. Love indicates that what is usually done to study fish that live in very deep areas of the ocean is to throw a net to catch them, but the oar fish, because of their large size, manage to escape. According to the scientist, the fact that only specimens that appear dead on the sea´s shore can be studied «makes it extremely difficult to know more about their behavior».
Other Explanations
The myth of the giant marine snakes has been originated by several animals:
- The oar fish, with its up to 15 meters in length has been confused numerous times with marine snakes.
- The same happens with eels or other serpentine animals.
- True sea snakes, such as Hydrophis melanocephalus and other reptiles of the snakes’ suborder, which are adapted to aquatic life, are commonly described as giant monsters, when their size is exaggerated by those who watch them.
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