{"id":3451,"date":"2009-11-09T22:05:11","date_gmt":"2009-11-10T03:05:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.turtlejournal.com\/?p=3451"},"modified":"2010-01-16T10:24:25","modified_gmt":"2010-01-16T15:24:25","slug":"ocean-sunfish-strandings-continue-on-cape-cod","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.turtlejournal.com\/?p=3451","title":{"rendered":"Ocean Sunfish Strandings Continue on Cape Cod"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"011<\/a><\/p>\n

Don Lewis Discovers Ocean Sunfish on Dennis Beach<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The Turtle Journal Team patrolled Dennis beaches on Saturday morning in search for cold-stunned sea turtles.\u00c2\u00a0 The first wave of sea turtle strandings has yet to come ashore due to lingering temperate conditions and the lack of a sustained wind event so far this fall.\u00c2\u00a0 About a quarter mile short of Corporation Beach, Don discovered a large ocean sunfish that had\u00c2\u00a0stranded with the early morning high tide.<\/p>\n

\"Dennis<\/a><\/p>\n

Location of Dennis Ocean Sunfish<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The Dennis ocean sunfish came ashore at 41\u00c2\u00b0 44′ 56.35″ N 070\u00c2\u00b0 11″ 52″ W.\u00c2\u00a0 Within the last week at least five ocean sunfish have stranded on Cape Cod bayside beaches.\u00c2\u00a0 None that the Turtle Journal Team has inspected have measured up to the 7-footers that we found last November.<\/p>\n

<\/embed><\/object><\/p>\n

Click Here to View Video in High Quality<\/em><\/a>\u00c2\u00a0<\/p>\n

Discovery of Ocean Sunfish on Corporation Beach<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The video documents the initial discovery of the giant ocean sunfish on Corporation Beach during Saturday morning’s sea turtle patrol.<\/p>\n

\"012<\/a><\/p>\n

Stranded Ocean Sunfish (Mola mola)<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

When it comes to bizarre, nothing in our corner of the\u00c2\u00a0universe matches the ocean sunfish (Mola mola<\/em>).\u00c2\u00a0 It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the most massive bony fish in the world.\u00c2\u00a0 [Yep.\u00c2\u00a0 That “bony” adjective\u00c2\u00a0excludes sharks (cartilaginous) and, of course, the “fish”\u00c2\u00a0category cuts out whales and dolphins (mammals) and giant squid (cephalopods) and even our favorite sea serpent:\u00c2\u00a0Nessie.\u00c2\u00a0 Doesn’t seem fair.]\u00c2\u00a0 Researchers in the Pacific\u00c2\u00a0claim that they have documented an ocean sunfish that reached 14\u00c2\u00a0feet (from dorsal fin tip to anal fin tip) and 10 feet long from face to clavus (caudal fin), and hit the scales at near 5000 pounds.<\/p>\n

\"016<\/a><\/p>\n

Sue Wieber Nourse Photo-Documents Ocean Sunfish<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s right:\u00c2\u00a0 nearly round, flat and awfully heavy \u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 like a millstone and voil\u00c3\u00a0<\/span>,\u00c2\u00a0the Latin word for millstone is \u00e2\u20ac\u0153mola.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d\u00c2\u00a0 Yet, un-millstone like, the ocean sunfish swims lithely through the water not flat like a flounder, but upright with\u00c2\u00a0its dorsal fin topside and\u00c2\u00a0its anal fin beneath.\u00c2\u00a0 As the sunfish cuts through the ocean, its dorsal fin often\u00c2\u00a0prompts shouts of \u00e2\u20ac\u0153shark\u00e2\u20ac\u009d from\u00c2\u00a0nervous observers.\u00c2\u00a0 Sunfish are also known\u00c2\u00a0to bask motionlessly on the surface for thermoregulation (a.k.a., to warm up).<\/p>\n

\"009<\/a><\/p>\n

Makeshift Measuring Box for Stranded Mola mola<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The sea patrol leg to Corporation Beach stretches two miles long.\u00c2\u00a0 So unsurprisingly, we\u00c2\u00a0ran into\u00c2\u00a0the stranded ocean sunfish without our usual data collection kit.\u00c2\u00a0 Fearing that the incoming 12-foot flood tide would quickly reclaim the Mola mola<\/em>, we resorted to a makeshift measuring box to obtain gross data.\u00c2\u00a0 In the sand we drew a rectangle touching the tip to the anal fin, tip of the dorsal fin, tip of the snout and trailing edge of the clavus (rudder) or caudal fin.\u00c2\u00a0 Luckily, my New Balance sneakers measure exactly one foot from heel to toe, providing a roughly calibrated ruler.<\/p>\n

\"010<\/a><\/p>\n

Ocean Sunfish Framed in Makeshift Measuring Box<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

This Corporation Beach Mola mola<\/em> measured 5 feet 3 inches long from snout to the trailing edge of caudal fin.\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0It measured 6 feet 6 inches wide\/high from the tip of the dorsal fin to the tip of the anal fin.<\/p>\n

\"013<\/a><\/p>\n

Documenting the Ocean Sunfish<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Looking at the ocean sunfish from the bottom, we find the snout, the mouth and the left eye to the left side of the photograph.\u00c2\u00a0 The gills, covered by an operculum, and the pectoral fin are located anterior\u00c2\u00a0of the center.\u00c2\u00a0 The dorsal fin lies at the top right and the anal fin on the bottom center.\u00c2\u00a0 The clavus (rudder), also called the caudal fin, falls to the right center of the image.\u00c2\u00a0 A raw redness surrounds the anal opening on the bottom and is dotted with embedded parasites.<\/p>\n

\"004<\/a><\/p>\n

Front Quadrant of Ocean Sunfish<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The snout lies above the mouth to the left of the picture.\u00c2\u00a0 The left eye falls in the line between the snout and the pectoral fin, which is bent downward in the image.\u00c2\u00a0 In front of the pectoral fin are the gills covered by a protective\u00c2\u00a0operculum.\u00c2\u00a0 Dorsal (top) and anal (bottom) fins extend from the body at the far right.\u00c2\u00a0 The anal opening lies in front of the anal fin on the bottom right.<\/p>\n

\"008<\/a><\/p>\n

Close-Up of the Ocean Sunfish Mouth<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Note the fused teeth that frame the top and bottom of the Mola mola<\/em> mouth.<\/p>\n

\"006<\/a><\/p>\n

Extreme Close-Up of the Ocean Sunfish Left Eye<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The eye lies about midway between the snout and the operculum that covers of the gills in front of the pectoral fin.<\/p>\n

\"005<\/a><\/p>\n

Close-Up of Operculum and Pectoral Fin of Ocean Sunfish<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

About a third of the way back from the snout lies the gills which are covered by a protective operculum.\u00c2\u00a0 Immediately behind the gills is the pectoral fin.<\/p>\n

\"007<\/a><\/p>\n

Extreme Close-Up of the Operculum of an Ocean Sunfish<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The protective operculum covers the gills that lie immediately in front of the pectoral fin.<\/p>\n

\"017<\/a><\/p>\n

Ocean Sunfish Clavus or Caudal Fin<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The truncated tail of the ocean sunfish is called a clavus (rudder) or caudal fin.<\/p>\n

\"002<\/a><\/p>\n

Parasite Embedded Near Anal Opening of Ocean Sunfish<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

A number of parasites were fully embedded around the anal opening, in front of the anal fin, of this ocean sunfish.\u00c2\u00a0 Some of the parasites had fallen off the animal now dry and baking in direct sunlight.<\/p>\n

\"001<\/a><\/p>\n

Extreme Close-Up of Ocean Sunfish Parasite<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Along with pictures of the infestation,\u00c2\u00a0a specimen has been provided to a local parasitolgist.\u00c2\u00a0 Analysis of the parasite continues.<\/p>\n

\"014<\/a><\/p>\n

Ocean Sunfish on Corporation Beach, Dennis, Cape Cod<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The ocean sunfish (Mola mola<\/em>) is a magnificent marine critter that inspires awe whenever spotted, whether basking in the summer waters of Stellwagen Bank or stranded on a bayside beach in the fall conditions.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Don Lewis Discovers Ocean Sunfish on Dennis Beach The Turtle Journal Team patrolled Dennis beaches on Saturday morning in search for cold-stunned sea turtles.\u00c2\u00a0 The first wave of sea turtle strandings has yet to come ashore due to lingering temperate conditions and the lack of a sustained wind event so far this fall.\u00c2\u00a0 About a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[824],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.turtlejournal.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3451"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.turtlejournal.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.turtlejournal.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.turtlejournal.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.turtlejournal.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3451"}],"version-history":[{"count":21,"href":"https:\/\/www.turtlejournal.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3451\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3488,"href":"https:\/\/www.turtlejournal.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3451\/revisions\/3488"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.turtlejournal.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3451"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.turtlejournal.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3451"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.turtlejournal.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3451"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}