A Scientist says he is surprised by strange occurrences of terrestrial animals caught at deep sea by Ghanaian fishermen. In less than a month, two animals, a bull and a deer, have been caught by fishermen on their normal fishing expeditions off the coast of the Central and Greater Accra Regions.
The first bizarre incident was at Ekon in the Central Region, where fishermen were held to a shocking sight of a deer at high seas during their fishing expedition. The fishermen, although shocked, caught the animal and brought it to the beach. The catch caused a stir in the community as school children, market women, drivers and people from all walks of life trooped to the beach to catch a glimpse of the creature.
On Wednesday, fishermen at Chokor in the Greater Accra Region also pulled up an unusually heavy fishing net with a healthy big brown bull. According to eyewitnesses, the fishermen sensing an unusual heaviness in their nets were invigorated to pull up the nets amidst spirited singing for a large catch. Their much anticipated shoal of fish rather turned into a whole surprise package when the unthinkable was found in the net.
Many have expressed shock at the news with some wondering whether there could be any scientific explanations for this occurrence. But a Senior Lecturer at the Fisheries and Aqua Sciences Department at the University of Cape Coast, Dr. Joseph Aggrey-Fynn, told Ultimate Radio, the incidents beats scientific logic. He said his outfit is equally surprised at the reports.
“We have amphibians that can live both on land and at sea but even those are in the river line areas like lakes and rivers that are close to forest areas but to have a bull which is purely a terrestrial animal ending up in the sea, is so abnormal,” he explained with astonishment.
He says the animals must have been intentionally transported there by ritualists seeking some superficial agenda. Dr. Aggrey-Fynn said he knew of some traditional worshipers that normally would send an animal to sea for rituals to ask their deity to grant them bumper harvest.
He said that was the only perceivable explanation for the animals found in the sea. He added that the low levels of catch among the fisherfolk in the fishing communities could be linked to the mythical incidents.
Meanwhile it has emerged that the bull which was found in the sea at Chorkor had been offered as sacrifice to the gods by the people of Winneba a few days earlier. According to the Chorkor Wulomo Chief Fisherman, Nii Kukurudu, a delegation from Winneba came to Chorkor to explain the incident. Nii Kukurudu indicated that the delegation from Winneba informed them that the live bull was left at sea in hopes that it would drown, but that did not happen.
“However, the delegation from Winneba could not give a good description of the bull and so we asked them to go and come back another time,” Nii Kukurudu told the Daily Graphic in an interview.
The Chief Fisherman added that the delegation from Winneba told him that since they had made the sacrifice to their gods, they needed it no longer. “Meanwhile some people from Sukura, a suburb of Accra, also insist that the bull be handed over to them,” he added. He said the Wulomo had been invited to perform rituals today and also advise them on the next step to take.