Hard to believe another season of Grunion Greeting in southern California has come and gone once again….I suppose time flies when the fish cooperate! Thanks to hundreds and hundreds of enthusiastic and committed "citizen scientists"—that's you—we are basking in the glow of another successful year of the project. You submitted observations from every one of our "official" sites as well as from many others, from multiple spawning nights. You sent us detailed comments, stunning photos and even video clips from your experiences. The exhaustive numbers of hours you spent on the beach collecting data has been an invaluable contribution to the protection of our favorite fish; the project literally would not be possible without you.
 |
 |
|
Cindy and the grunion, photo by Jennifer Sledge (click to enlarge) |
Grunion Mating Frenzy, photo by Cindy Sivak (click to enlarge) |
As you all know we conduct multiple training workshops prior to spawning season and it is always a thrill to see the familiar faces of returning Greeters and meet new ones to attach to a name (or as often is the case, an email address!). A special thanks to Grunion Greeters Michelle, Lori, Gaynell, Yukiko and Elizabeth who volunteered above and beyond to help me at the Birch Aquarium workshop. We always have an enormous crowd and it is wonderful to have extra support to keep registration flowing smoothly. Thank you all for spending the evening with us—and thank you for spending many more with the fish on the beach.
 |
 |
|
Grunion SB1, photo by Patty Malone (click to enlarge) |
Grunion SB, photo by Patty Malone (click to enlarge) |
We had an interesting season, complete with unusual weather, wild surf, and shockingly, even some wet stuff falling from the sky. Our monitoring dates (thanks to the moon—not by our choice!) were during the week, adding an extra challenge to Greeters who had to be at work in the morning. Still, Grunion Greeters proved once again they are the most dependable volunteers around—you signed up as instructed, responded to my numerous reminders, made it out to the beach for the late night runs, and then submitted your reports on our website. We achieved absolutely fantastic coverage across our sites this year and many of you experienced W-4 and even W-5 runs. For the few unlucky Greeters whom the fish disappointed, fear not! There's always next year…..and for those who can brag of a successful grunion run, remember: each one is different! Please come back for more in 2009.
Sandy Grunion, photo by Julianne Steers (click to enlarge)
See you then!
Melissa
