While kayaking and snorkeling in La Jolla, California, a group spotted a very rare deep-sea fish that had died.

The oarfish, also known as a “doomsday fish,” stretched 12 feet in length.

Only 20 oarfish have been reported in California since 1901, according to the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego.

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Doomsday fish have long, slender bodies that can reach lengths of up to 36 feet, about the size of a school bus.

The oarfish is commonly referred to as the “doomsday fish,” as some believe it “foreshadows natural disasters, such as earthquakes or tsunamis,” according to the Ocean Conservancy.

Kayakers and snorkelers discovered a rare oarfish in La Jolla, California.  (Michael Wang/The Scripps Institution of Oceanography via AP)

The fish has been observed around Japan during major earthquakes, but scientists report that they have yet to establish a link between its appearances and events such as quakes and subsequent tsunamis, as FOX Weather reported.

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Two days after the fish was discovered, Los Angeles was struck by a 4.6-magnitude earthquake on Aug. 12, according to the USGS.

A team of researchers and science-minded snorkelers worked together to recover a dead oarfish from waters in La Jolla Cove in San Diego, California. (Michael Wang/The Scripps Institution of Oceanography via AP)