Surfer impaled by fish suffered a rare and confusing attack
A surfer died last week after being impaled by a fish off Indonesia's West Sumatra coast, leaving surfers and swimmers to wonder whether it's not just sharks they need to fear in the ocean.
Giulia Manfrini, 36, was surfing in the Mentawai Islands the morning of Oct. 18 when she was speared in the chest by the fish, which may have been either a swordfish or a needlefish, according to various reports. The resort where the incident occurred said it was a needlefish, while the Mentawai Islands' Disaster Management Agency reported it was a swordfish, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corp.
Injuries by these fish are rare but not unheard-of. There have been documented cases of serious injury and fatalities after humans were struck by both kinds of fish. Swordfish and needlefish can leap out of the water, and both have sharp bills that can puncture skin.
Both species can be found in oceans around the world. The swordfish lives at midlevel depths, while needlefish are found closer to the surface. A swordfish's characteristic bill gives it its name, and it can grow to more than 1,000 pounds and 170 inches long. Commercially fished swordfish are typically 50 to 200 pounds and 47 to 75 inches long.
Needlefish are smaller; the largest species in the family grow to about 4 feet. They have a long beak and sharp, needle-like teeth.
How common are swordfish attacks?
People have been injured and killed by swordfish and needlefish before, but the attacks are rare, researchers have noted in scientific journals and articles.
In 2015, a fisherman was killed in Hawaii when a swordfish he had speared struck him with its bill. The man, Randy Llanes, 47, had jumped into the water with a speargun, police said.
Swordfish are also known to puncture sharks with their bills. In April 2020, researchers documented a case of a dead female thresher shark that washed up on the Libyan coast with part of a swordfish's bill lodged in its body.
They go after inanimate objects sometimes, too. In 2010, swordfish attacked an Angolan oil pipeline, puncturing an oil loading pipe and delaying tanker shipments, Reuters reported.
How common are needlefish attacks?
Needlefish are much more commonly found near the coastline where surfers would be, Jeanine Sepulveda, a marine biologist at MiraCosta College, told Paste BN. Swordfish tend to stay in the open ocean, and though they do come to the surface to bask, they usually stay far from shore.
Needlefish can be triggered to leap out of the water toward lights at night. They also may jump when they sense predators or when there is a disturbance on the surface of the water, Brazilian researchers have found. A 20-year-old surfer sought medical attention near São Paulo and was found to have part of a needlefish's jaw embedded behind his ear.
Another surfer last December who was also surfing off an Indonesian island was speared in the armpit by a needlefish and suffered a punctured lung but survived, the publication Surfer reported.
A tourist in Thailand was seriously injured when a needlefish struck him in the neck while he was swimming, the Bangkok Post reported in 2022. A few years before, a needlefish in the same area of Thailand killed a soldier, the outlet reported.
"When I worked in Panama, we knew to stay clear of (needlefish), especially if on the water at night, because they swim out of the water sometimes, much like a flying fish, and can get you if in a small boat," Sepulveda said.
Contributing: Saleen Martin