While unusual marine species stories do exist, post-tsunami, some of them will be fakes. The first one for 2011, however, appears to be real. According to the Associated Press, after the March 11th Japanese earthquake and tsunami wave from half-a-world away, the fish began acting strangely near Acapulco, Mexico.

Masses of sardines, anchovies, stripped bass and mackerel surged close to shore Friday on one beach in the Mexican resort city, packed so tightly near the surface they looked like an oil slick from above.

Delighted fishermen rushed out in wooden motor boats, abandoning their rods and nets and simply scooping the fish up with buckets.

“It was so much fun. There were about 20 or 30 fishermen and there were people who came with their kids to take advantage of it,” fisherman Carlos Morales said.

The fishermen attributed the strange phenomenon to the unusual currents unleashed by tsunami that followed the earthquake in Japan.
Experts couldn’t be sure.

“It would fall into that category where you would love to make the connection, but who knows?” said Rich Briggs, a geologist with the U.S. Geological Survey. “Tsunamis can change local currents, but it’s hard to make a firm connection.”Associated Press

It will be recalled that after the tsunami of 2004, hoax videos began appearing trying to blame that tsunami on the appearance of bizarre fish. However, it was determined those videos were merely images from earlier deep-sea finds of those species.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vX90r12ANjY

Another similar hoax was posted in 2009, as well. Expect more fakery like that now that the 2011 Japanese megaquake is all over the news.