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Monster washes up near Farewell Spit
20 October 2004

A sunfish that washed up near the base of Farewell Spit is a monster with a strange sense of timing, a marine expert says.

The 3m sunfish was discovered at Taupata Creek near Puponga by passers-by on Sunday.

Department of Conservation worker and Pakawau resident Heather Gunn said she was driving past when she saw "a big lump" on the beach, which she initially thought to be a whale.

"It looked fresh. It did not smell and it had not been pecked over."

A sunfish washed up on Farewell Spit at Christmas 2002, and another was washed up on Pakawau Beach about four years ago.

DOC marine specialist Andrew Baxter said the most recent sunfish discovery was "a real oddity" because of the time of year.

"The literature says they can be found in New Zealand's north-eastern waters in warm summers, and they can stray south of Cook Strait. But this is definitely not a warm summer, rather a cold spring."

Mr Baxter said sunfish could grow up to 3m long and weigh up to a tonne.

After seeing a photograph of the sunfish, Mr Baxter estimated it was between 2m and 3m long.

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http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,3070756a10,00.html

Imagine how many hungry somalians that could feed

That's one hideous monster...I mean look at it's hair..and those funky stick things covered with blue. I hope I don't see that thing near here

The tickle at your toes is more likely to be poisonous bluebottle jellyfish XD

Another reason to come to New Zealand, freakishly large fish!

Heres a live one:

All of a sudden, I'm really hungry.

Those things are freaky! How do they swim?

My godness that thing is scary...
Just look at the size of its teeth.

One thing: Ewwwww.

Wow that thing is huge! And freakishly attractive... I'm kidding!

Awww..I think it's cute. It looks like a giant bath squishy!

I have slightly irrational fear of fish anyway and that thing is just plain creepy!


(Ok so I'm not acctually scared of fish I just like admiring them from afar. Kinda like they belong under the water and I belong above the water and if I come into contact with them, one of us is going to get hurt and I don't want to hurt a small little fishie, and I don't want to be hurt by a big fishy. That particular one looks like the kind that it would win if I came into contact with it.)

Hrm. I think I learnt in Biology that they don't.. they're plankton-like because they can't swim and just float along.

Okay, this is what Wikipedia says:

Mola mola is the sunfish's scientific name.

Yukio... you're lucky I didn't have nightmares last night from that thing @_@
Gah!

To be honest, i'm more frightened of these guys... then of any sunfish.

*shudders*
Theres a reason I don't swim in deep water.... now I remember why.

*pokes* Eww...it's all squishy ;_;

Oh my god O_O;; *adds huge fish to list of reasons why i shouldn't go into deep water*