A new sea serpent was found-for the second time in a week. The sea serpent, or orafish,  may be behind legends like Nessie.

The oarfish, a rare, snakelike creature, washed up on a Southern California beach for the second time in less than a week. Prehaps the two killed each other in an underwater battle in the deep?

The oarfish is rarely seen, usually sticking with deep ocean water.

The sea serpent/ oarfish measured nearly 14 feet long and attracted a crowd of  roughly 75 people.

This is highly unusual, as oarfish are not usually found outside of the depths of the sea.

The oarfish, which can grow to more than 50 feet, is a deep-water pelagic fish -- the longest bony fish in the world, according to the Catalina Island Marine Institute.

The "levitihian" oarfish may be the source of legends about the Loch Ness Monster and other sea serpents.

This behemoth, however, will be studied, rather than being a thing of legend. After the oarfish washed up, police contacted SeaWorld San Diego, The Scripps Research Institute and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Researchers from NOAA retrieved the carcass, which was cut into sections for later study.

Last week, a different, 18-foot-long oarfish was also found.

Researcher Jasmine Santana spotted something shimmering in the depths 30 feet deep while snorkeling during a staff trip in Toyon Bay at Santa Catalina Island, which sits roughly two dozen miles from the mainland.

"She said, 'I have to drag this thing out of here or nobody will believe me,"' Mark Waddington, of the Catalinia Island Marine Institute, said.

After she dragged the carcass by the tail for more than 75 feet, staffers waded in and helped her bring it to shore. Santana needed the help of more than 15 people to drag the creature to shore. The  Catalina Island Marine Institute, where Santana works, is calling her find the discovery of a lifetime.

"We've never seen a fish this big," said Mark Waddington."The last oarfish we saw was three feet long."