Sunfish Encounter Off Sydney's Coast

[IslandHopper]

A lucky encounter.....

Sky News: Sunfish encounter off Sydney's coast

[Don1500]

They aren't seen much. Until the late 1800's they were thought to be a myth.

[daddle]

We hit one once. In the brief moment available I thought it was a Sea Lion, which almost always get safely out of the way. But no. Bonk! Circled back to check on him. He didn't seem especially bothered by either the collision or the blue stripe of ablative bottom paint he acquired.

[Cormorant]

I saw one last summer off of Race Point, Cape Cod. It was idly finning at the surface. We circled it a couple of times and it didn't spook. I should've jumped in to swim with it. . . .

[pressuredrop]

saw/swam with one off the coast of palm beach in 30 feet of water this winter... we were the saftey boat for the laser masters regatta, it was overcast, cold (air 45 water 70, haha) and blowing stink but we couldnt pass up the opportunity... seeing that big eye come into view in the murky water is something i will remember forever

[imagine2frolic]

The fish looked as curious as the diver.......i2f

[S/V Alchemy]

There's a captive one at the Lisbon Aquarium. If you can't swim with them, standing in front of one is an instructive experience as well.

[Rakuflames]

Originally Posted by IslandHopper

A lucky encounter.....

Sky News: Sunfish encounter off Sydney's coast

Amazing -- I did not realize they were so big! Talk about a gentle giant!

[barnakiel]

Originally Posted by Don1500

They aren't seen much. Until the late 1800's they were thought to be a myth.

There not, but common e.g. along the Portuguese coast. They grow real huge !!! but I ever only see the small ones.

b.

[Captain Bill]

Actually the pictures ndividuals are quite small. I saw two in the tongue of the ocean a couple of years ago that I estimated to be 12 feet or more tall (dorsal fin to anal fin) with bodies about 6-7 feet long and 5 feet high. They were swimming together and took off rather rapidly when the finally noticed the boat. It is a common misconception that they are slow and inactive. Most seen near the surface that don't react are probably injured or sick. I once saw a smaller one that was apparently injured and did not react when the boat approached. It looked like it might have been hit by a boat propeller. By smaller I mean about 3-4 feet long and about 6-7 feet high.

[SkiprJohn]

I was lucky enough to see one when in transit from Hawaii to PNW in the mid 80s. Really odd acting rather slow swimming fish that loves to hang around the surface. Huge, and we did mistake it for a shark from a distance.
kind regards,