Tiny fish survive 2011 Japan tsunami and take a ride on a boat... to America

We've heard some pretty amazing animal survival stories, like the cat that travelled 3,400 miles on a plane from Egypt to England in a suitcase and the dog that had a remarkable escape from death after falling 200ft from a cliff top in Yorkshire.

But we never thought fish could survive 5,000 miles in a boat from Asia to America.

On Wednesday, the Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife revealed that five barred knifejaw or striped beakfish (Oplegnathus fasciatus) were found by biologists in an open well of a 20-ft-long Japanese boat washed up in Long Beach, Washington.

The department said the boat was apparently part of the debris from the earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan in 2011.

The Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife said on its Facebook page that Aquatic Invasive Species staff found "other Japanese species of sea anemones, cucumbers, scallops, crustaceans and worms alive in the very rare 'aquarium' of water inside the upright boat."

Allen Pleus, the Aquatice Invasive Species coordinator, told NBC News the boat "had a nice 20- to 30-gallon aquarium intact in the back."

The boat was reportedly found by a local, who scooped up one of the fish and took it to Long Beach's City Hall.

According to King5.com, in a statement released on Friday, Steve Rumrill of the Department of Fish & Wildlife, said: "This is a fascinating discovery that provides further evidence of the unusual transport mechanism for non-native species associated with marine debris generated by the Japanese tsunami."

The striped beakfish is found in Japanese waters, but has been sighted twice in Malta and once in Hawaii. Adults grow up to 15 inches and tend to be charcoal grey.

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