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Abyssal Rainbow Gar
A gar
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Background
Type Oceanic/ Fish
First Sighting 1930s
Last Sighting 1930s
Country Off the coast of Bermuda
Habitat Deep Oceans (2,500 feet deep)
Possible Population Unknown

The Abyssal Rainbow Gar is one of Beebe's Abyssal Fishes of the

North Atlantic Ocean.

Description[]

The Abyssal Rainbow Gar has a length of 4 inches. It has a blue body, scarlet head and a yellow tail. It has a long beak, similar to that of a gar fish.

Sightings[]

The Abyssal Rainbow Gar was only reported once by naturalist, ornithologist, marine biologist, entomologist and explorer William Beebe. His sighting was reported from an early 1930's bathysphere dive off Bermuda at a depth of 2,500 feet. He later reported his account in his 1934 book Half Mile Down:

"At 11:17 o'clock I turned the light on suddenly, and saw a strange quartet of fish to which I have not been able to fit genus or family. Shape, size, color, and one fin I saw clearly, but Abyssal Rainbow Gars is as far as I dare go, and they may be anything but gars. About four inches over all, they were slender and stiff with long, sharply pointed jaws. They were balanced in the center of the electric ray when it was first turned on, and the unheard-of glare affected them not at all. There they stood, for they were almost upright, and I could see only a slight fanning with a dorsal fin. Keeping equal distances apart, and maintaining their upright pose, they swam slowly into the uttermost dark. The amazing thing about them was their unexpected pattern and color. The jaws and head were brilliant scarlet, which, back of the gills, changed abruptly into a light but strong blue and this merged insensibly into clear yellow on the posterior body and tail. Unless in the light of some other fish, or in my electric path, their colors could never have been visible, and were assuredly useless by-products."

Explanation[]

As much of the deep ocean is left to be explored, it is unclear if the Abyssal Rainbow Gar is a new found species or not. It is possible that Beebe was the only person to have seen it. It is also theorized that the fish was an illusion caused by the condensation of the bathysphere's window.

Gallery[]

Sources[]

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