A GIANT sunfish, about 2.74 meters long, was caught on camera by kayakers off the coast of California in the U.S. recently.

Ocean sunfish and southern sunfish are the world’s biggest bony fish, and they are both found in the Pacific Ocean. Adult ocean sunfish may reach more than 1,800 kilograms, which is the same weight as an adult male rhinoceros.

During a kayaking trip off the coast of Laguna Shore on Dec. 2, Rich German and his friend Matthew Wheaton stumbled across the massive sunfish just a few hundred yards from the beach. They then dialed 911. According to German, who talked to the media, this was the biggest sunfish that any of them had ever encountered.

Sunfish are a genuinely global species that can be found all over the world, but since they spend their whole lives in the open ocean, encounters like these are few and far between.

German captured images and footage of the sunfish, which he then uploaded on Facebook. An underwater close-up shot of a sunfish as it wanders past the camera is included in one of the short films.

“It was a one-of-a-kind and really interesting event,” German said of the most recent encounter.

The sunfish, or mole, is a migrating bony fish that is found in all the temperate and tropical oceans of the globe. Beyond its particular silhouette devoid of the caudal fin, the species also surprises with its impressive dimensions, up to 3.10 meters long, which allow it to have few natural predators. (SD-Agencies)