Giant ocean sunfish washes up in Sagay

By: Glazyl Y. Masculino

BACOLOD City – A very rare giant ocean sunfish, locally known as “Mola-Mola” was found floating at the waters of a beach resort in Barangay Taba-ao, Sagay City, Negros Occidental early Monday.

According to Jose Roberto Togle of the City Environment and Natural Resources Office (Cenro), the sunfish weighs about 90 to 100 kilos.

It was found by a caretaker of the beach resort around 5:30 a.m. He immediately asked some of his companions to help him bring the sunfish to the shore.

The sunfish was somehow weak when they found it. They reported it to the authorities. However, it died a few minutes later.

Togle said in an interview with Aksyon Radyo Bacolod that the fish surfaced probably because of the changes in temperature of the sea.

Togle said they opened the intestines of the fish to determine if it had injuries, but they could not yet tell the cause of its death.

He said they will find a place where they could bury the sunfish.