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Hi, thanks for reaching out, and welcome to the wonderful, sulfurous world of mudflat clamming! I'll do my best to answer these questions, but there are still some things I am learning myself. (And also break my long radio silence) Here in California, toxic algal blooms are a significant risk...

Two weeks after my last surf outing, I began to feel that itch again. Luckily for me, I had an exit seminar to attend out at Bodega Marine Laboratory, so why not beat midday traffic and get some fishing in? (Warning, long and overdramatic) 10/27 I pulled up to the same beach I fished last...

Late report, but I figured I may as well break the radio silence. Since graduating, I have settled down (somewhat) and started working in the Central Valley in fisheries (to nobody's surprise). Lately I've been fishing mostly freshwater for the usual suspects, but every now and then I feel the...

Beautiful fish! That's not a kelpfish of any kind, but is a painted greenling (Oxylebius pictus)! Strictly speaking, they aren't true greenlings, having been recently split off into Zaniolepididae with the Zaniolepis combfishes. Also, I didn't know you could fish at Salt Point, I've been there a...

According to the CDPH shellfish advisory webpage, dangerous levels of domoic acid have been detected in shellfish from Santa Barbara county, while dangerous levels of paralytic shellfish poisoning (likely saxitoxins) have been detected in shellfish from San Luis Obispo and San Mateo counties...

Extremely late report from my last trip to Avalon, conditions have likely changed since. This will also be long winded with some tangents on non-fishing related things, with fewer pictures than usual. After graduating in June, this would be my last summer break (ever!), so what better to do...

A very strong El Niño pattern is currently developing offshore, with a Sea Surface Temperature (SST) anomaly of 4-5°C in the equatorial Eastern Pacific. Very classic El Niño pattern as opposed to a negative SST anomaly characteristic of normal/La Niña conditions. Of additional interest is the...

Oh boy here we go, y'all ready for another year of shellfish closures and lost exotics? On a (probably boring) note, the oceanographic conditions currently off our coast are at odds with a full blown El Niño, with a significant negative sea surface temperature (SST) anomaly and strong...

Unfortunately I cannot make it on the 14/15, that is smack dab in the middle of finals week.

That lines up perfectly with the week of break I have after graduation. I'll try to join you then.

If it's any comfort, there's like 5 other fish called "sheephead" or "sheepshead", including another sheepshead porgy (Calamus penna), sheepshead drum (Aplodinotus grunniens), sheepshead pupfish (Cyprinodon variegatus), and then of course the other Bodianus wrasses closely related to our...

I've been fishing the creek fairly regularly, but it's been slow so there wasn't much to write about. (Also I am lazy) I really didn't want to deal with the Memorial Day crowds, so I fished the day before. I got to the creek at 6 am and started off fishing some riffles and pools in an upstream...

I’ll try bringing a rag or something to put under the reel next time, but with all of this rain, the creek banks have been horribly muddy and slick. I actually fell while trying to land this fish, hence the mud on the reel.

No conservation or history lecture this time around, short and simple: Fished Lower Putah in Davis from 1-7 pm. The creek was still turbid (1-2 inches of visibility) and the water was up and fast. I started off throwing 3" Keitechs and football jigs for nothing until 3, then switched to carp...

Very true, that's a classic example of trait-mediated indirect interactions, where just the presence of a predator changes prey behavior and causes cascading ecological effects. But at the same time, without sharks around to keep them on shore, sea lions take more risks when feeding, spend more...

Another Avalon report from me, what a surprise. I came home for spring break, my last one before graduation, so why not get some fishing in before I'm thrown into the real world? 3/27 I took the 6 am ferry to Avalon from Long Beach. This time around, none of the bonito hunters were around. I...

I need to brush up on my juvenile fish IDs, but I believe that is a larval lizardfish. Cool find!

Over the past couple weeks, weather permitting, I have been diligently fishing lower Putah Creek in Davis for pikeminnow and suckers for our respective studies, with very little luck. Even weeks after the storms, the water was still turbid—not quite chocolate milk, but not exactly Aquafina®...

Taken out of context, the species name is somewhat vulgar and might get picked up by any moderation tools/bots. Someone gets it! As for storm impacts on streams and small rivers, I am not sure, I will ask some people around the lab, though I suspect in riverine environments, native fishes...

I'm sure everyone has seen enough of these Avalon reports, but given the current state the weather and its effects on mainland piers, I elected to squeeze out one last Avalon trip before heading back up to Davis. I was going to catch the 6 am ferry out to Avalon, but it was delayed by 30...