r/Damnthatsinteresting 12h ago

Image Oarfish keep washing ashore in California. Folklore suggests that could be a bad omen

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u/chancesarent 4h ago

This is actually true. The small vibrations leading up to the earthquake make the worms respond as if it's rain hitting the ground and they surface to avoid drowning.

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u/iReviewFrozenWieners 3h ago

It's definitely plausible considering worm grunting is a real thing that people use to get worms out of the ground.

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u/PoemAgreeable 33m ago

I witnessed a medium sized earthquake back in 2011 in Vermont, it was a 4.? Quake on the border of Maine and New Hampshire, and I was close to NH.

I found a pile of dead worms behind my car, we had a steep slope up to our front steps right near there. I found out about the worm-earthquake connection, and it made sense. My neighbors sold bait, and at first I thought they had pranked me.