Busselton fisherman finds 2.4m oarfish on Siesta Park beach

They say the early bird gets the worm, and for local angler Greg Tickle, that is not too far from the truth given his wriggly, slippery discovery this week.

The experienced fisherman was dropping his boat in at Siesta Park, about 5.30am on Tuesday, when he spotted a giant 2.4m eel-like fish.

The weird-looking creature was an oarfish, which can grow to almost 11m in length, making it the longest bony fish alive.

Though rarely seen, oarfish can linger at the surface when sick and are known to beach themselves to die.

Mr Tickle and his family also discovered the last oarfish that washed up on Geographe Bay 18 years ago.

“The boys, Kyle and Blake, found one up the Siesta Park Groyne in 2002 and I think in my whole lifetime, I’ve only ever seen about four,” he said.

I don’t think I’ve ever caught a fish that big, maybe a shark, but never a fish.