A photo of a strange fish washed ashore has got much attention on Kenyan Facebook. The fish has oddly protruded teeth, zebra-patterned scales and fierce-looking eyes.
The caption reads: “This strange aquatic creature was found in a dam between Kericho and Bomet.”
But background details hint that the caption may not be true. The fish lies on white sand common on coastal beaches, not on the shores of Kenya’s inland dams.
A reverse image search credits the image to Roman Fedortsov, a Russian deep-sea fisherman. A look at his Twitter and Instagram accounts reveals countless other odd creatures.
His “crazy” deep-sea discoveries have been reported on CBS News and Gizmodo.
Africa Check contacted Fedortsov about the photo. He said a friend snapped it on Thailand’s Phuket island. He posted one photo of it on Twitter on 4 September 2018, crediting Alexei Yermashov.
He posted the second on 12 November 2018, saying it was from Layan Beach on the west coast of Phuket.
Those were the two images posted on the Kenyan Facebook page with the claim the fish was from a dam between Bomet and Kericho. – Dancan Bwire (26/02/19)
The caption reads: “This strange aquatic creature was found in a dam between Kericho and Bomet.”
But background details hint that the caption may not be true. The fish lies on white sand common on coastal beaches, not on the shores of Kenya’s inland dams.
Photo most likely from Thailand
A reverse image search credits the image to Roman Fedortsov, a Russian deep-sea fisherman. A look at his Twitter and Instagram accounts reveals countless other odd creatures.
His “crazy” deep-sea discoveries have been reported on CBS News and Gizmodo.
Africa Check contacted Fedortsov about the photo. He said a friend snapped it on Thailand’s Phuket island. He posted one photo of it on Twitter on 4 September 2018, crediting Alexei Yermashov.
He posted the second on 12 November 2018, saying it was from Layan Beach on the west coast of Phuket.
Those were the two images posted on the Kenyan Facebook page with the claim the fish was from a dam between Bomet and Kericho. – Dancan Bwire (26/02/19)
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Further Reading
[email protected]: The challenges of working across Africa
Misinformation knows no borders and Africa Check often responds to similar false claims from country to country.
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