As a former Environmental Scientist with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife’s Marine Region, I had exposure to a wide range of research and policy and experiences. The focus of our research group, formerly known as the ‘Fisheries Independent/SCUBA Assessment Project”, was to collect fishery-independent data on southern California nearshore fishes to help inform management on the status of fish stocks. One of the many, fun projects having a lasting impression on me was our nearshore surf zone fish study, in which we conducted monthly beach seines at four different beaches (4 replicates per beach per month) for two and half years.

I hope you can take some time to enjoy a few of the articles written about our beach seining days, including an encounter with two juvenile Mexican Lookdown in Seal Beach, California, USA…

“That looks like a Lookdown!” lookdown

All the nerdy details California_Fish_and_Game_95(4):188-192

Lovely Outdoor California article written by my dear friend, Heather nearshore