Grunion Watch This Weekend

They're back!  Those little slippery silvery fish that reclaim their beaches every so often to spawn will be on Venice and Dockweiler beaches this Saturday through Monday nights, July 26-28.  The best times to observe or catch them during this Grunion Run will be after 11 PM Saturday and after midnight on Sunday.  With the warm weather we've been having, tonight should be very pleasant for grunion watchers and fisherpeople.

If you plan to catch and keep grunion and you are 16 years or older, you must have a valid California sportfishing license with an Ocean Resources stamp.  It will set you back about $50 at Sport Chalet or other bait and tackle stores.  You may only catch grunion by hand.  Good recipes for grunion are here: http://blogs.ocweekly.com/stickaforkinit/2011/06/five_recipes_for_this_years_gr.php

One year I was on Venice beach a few hundred yards north of the Marina jetty.  We had been waiting nearly an hour for any sign of grunion, when all of a sudden, a wave brought in tens of thousands all at once.  As the wave retreated, there was hardly a sandy spot on the shoreline - the entire wetted beach was carpeted with grunion for hundreds of yards.   Then, they all disappeared with the next wave, only to reappear further down coast on a subsequent wave.

The female digs into the wet sand tail first in order to deposit her eggs at a safe depth, while as many as eight males wraps themselves around the female and release their milt.  In that instant before the next wave comes up onto the beach, the eggs are fertilized.  The eggs stay in the sand for about 10 days and hatch during the next high tide series, when the little fry wriggle out of the sand and swim into the ocean.

For a good Grunion resource, check out the Department of Fish and Wildlife's downloadable pamphlet at https://nrm.dfg.ca.gov/FileHandler.ashx?DocumentID=36316&inline=true

Another good source is http://grunion.pepperdine.edu/

Enjoy your Ballona Wetlands!

www.ballonafriends.org