Anchovies and a rock

  

I was at the Spud Point Marina docks briefly this afternoon and noticed lots of schools of what look to be young Northern Anchovies (Engraulis mordax).  [Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong!]

Also came across a nice juvenile rockfish (Sebastes sp.).  It was only ~4 cm (1.5 inches) long:

 

 

Rocks in the pools?

  

Last week we encountered a few juvenile rockfish at different sites along the Sonoma Coast.  Here are a couple of examples.  Both fish were ~2 inches (~5 cm) long.  I'm not sure which species of rockfish these are, so any comments/suggestions are welcome.

 

 

P.S.  Happy Solstice!

Rocky

 

Well, these aren't great photos, but one reason for this blog is to document events that stand out during the year.  I'll try to get better pictures of these fish, but for now I hope these images will serve as a record of a remarkable rockfish recruitment year.  

Right now there are amazing numbers of juvenile rockfish visible in small groups among the waving blades of surfgrass and seaweeds along the coast.  These fish were ~2 inches (5 cm) long.

 

Watch for them the next time you visit one of the local beaches!