The deep-sea creature, known as a “doomsday fish,” was spotted swimming along the waters of Playa El Quemado in Baja California Sur on Feb. 9, according to news and intelligence agency Storyful.

The unusual citing was captured in a video by Robert Hayes, who showed the sliver-colored fish moving around in the shallow parts of the water before directing it back to the ocean.

‘Nobody is gonna believe this‘

“That’s an oarfish. Holy s**t, they’ve almost never been seen live,” one man said in the clip.

“Nobody’s gonna believe this,” the man is heard saying as another guides it back to the water, with one of the beachgoers taking a photo of him with it. “The first one I saw was 24 feet long. They’ve been found up to 30 feet.”

The fish returned from the water “three times“

Hayes recalled helping the oarfish multiple times, but it kept returning to the group.

“The fish swam straight at us, lifting its head above the water about two inches,” Hayes told Storyful. “We redirected it three times out to the water, but it came back each time.”

He also noted that the beachgoer who held the fish insisted on taking it to a marine biologist if it was injured, as oarfish typically surface when distressed, according to Ocean Conservatory.

Why is it called “doomsday fish”?

Since oarfish typically do not interact with humans, the organization said there are several reasons why they are spotted above sea level.

“If one is spotted close to the surface, it typically indicates that the creature is sick, dying or at least disoriented,” the conservancy said.

According to the organization, the oarfish is also known as the “doomsday fish” because it is “a warning sign from higher powers that disasters such as earthquakes are soon to occur.”

More than 20 oarfish washed ashore before Japan’s 2011 earthquake, one of the deadliest in history. Some believe their appearance foreshadowed the disaster.