For the second time this year, a long, ribbon-shaped oarfish that is frequently connected to disasters has come ashore on Californian beaches. NBC News reports that PhD candidate Alison Laferriere of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in Encinitas, Southern California, made the discovery of the roughly 10-foot-long fish.

This month's sighting was only the 21st time the fish has been documented to have washed up in California since 1901, according to the Scripps Institution of Oceanography.

A rare oarfish, believed to portend disaster, washed up on a beach in Encinitas last week. Since 1901, only 21 oarfish have been recorded on California’s shores. This is the second this year.

A rare fish, regarded as a harbinger of doom, has washed up on the shore of Encinitas in southern California. It is the second time this year that an oarfish has been found in the area. Sightings are very rare, with fewer than a couple of dozen having been seen on the state’s coast in 120 years.

A rare deep-sea oarfish, also called a sea serpent, washed ashore near San Diego in Encinitas, and Scripps scientists are unsure what happened.

For the second time this year, an oarfish has washed up on a California beach. The 'doomsday fish' is considered a harbinger of doom in Japanese folklore.

SFGATE reports how the oarfish — which is an incredibly rare sea creature that can stretch up to 12 feet in length — was spotted on the sand of Grandview Beach in Encinitas a couple of weeks ago. According to a Facebook post published by the Scripps Institution of Oceanography,

A rare and almost mythical creature from the deep sea has washed up on a California beach in the form of an oarfish measuring more than 9 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.