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A giant, mysterious fish rattles surfers at busy Santa Cruz beach
Surfers at Santa Cruz’s Cowell Beach are used to sharing the ocean with wildlife. On occasion, they’ve been chased by aggressive otters, and white shark numbers are on the rise in an adjacent cove. On the morning of June 24, though, a far more enigmatic and elusive creature made an appearance, and gave the surfers a bit of a scare.In a photo captured by Santa Cruz resident Eric Mendelson from a nearby bluff, the creature’s dorsal fin is sticking out of the water, looking decidedly shark-like. But in another remarkable photo, Mendelson captured the animal’s bizarrely shaped head and Muppet-like eyeball.There is just one thing in the sea that looks this odd: a sunfish.Sunfish are the world’s largest bony fishes, with the largest species weighing more than 6,000 pounds and stretching more than 10 feet long. They resemble a drawing of a fish that a 5-year-old might do, with oversized heads and flat bodies that are as long as they are wide. The disproportionately large fins protrude from the top and bottom of the fish, bending from one side to the other as they swim, which makes them seem drunk.To find out more about what might have brought a sunfish to Cowell Beach, which is part of the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary, SFGATE contacted one of the world’s foremost sunfish experts, Tierney Thys.Thys is a marine biologist, filmmaker and research associate at the California Academy of Sciences. Colleagues sometimes refer to her as “Mrs. Sunfish.”When Thys saw Mendelson’s photos, she was struck by how big the sea creature was. “That looks like a very, very large sunfish — most likely a mola mola, the most common species that occurs there in Santa Cruz,” Thys wrote.Mendelson’s photos also drew an enthusiastic response on social media, with many users expressing surprise and awe. Mendelson, a retired financial manager and photographer, has lived in Santa Cruz on and off since 1980, but this was his first sunfish sighting.According to Thys, though, the Mola mola is actually common in the area, and scientists conducting aerial surveys have noticed them with increasing frequency. Part of the reason, she said, could be that California’s drift gill net fishery — which ensnares thousands of sunfish as bycatch — is being phased out.It’s unclear whether warming ocean temperatures due to climate change are a factor, she said, but one thing is for sure: “Ocean sunfish play a vital role in the ocean food web, particularly when they get over one meter in length,” Thys wrote.Surfers at Cowell Beach needn’t have worried, of course. While Mola mola might appear strange and intimidating, they are docile and primarily forage for jellyfish.For those interested in spotting a Mola mola, the peak time to see them off the California coast is between October and November, Thys wrote. And because of a vast submarine canyon and plenty of nutrient upwelling just offshore in Monterey Bay, the Mola mola (and plenty of other interesting creatures) tend to congregate there.“How lucky are we here in Monterey Bay to be able to jump on a surfboard, a paddle board, or a kayak — or just grab a set of fins and snorkel any day of the year — and enter this teeming world of mysterious giants?” Thys wrote. “ is one of those magnificent megafauna that takes your breath away.”
SANTA CRUZ, Calif. —
Surfers at Santa Cruz’s Cowell Beach are used to sharing the ocean with wildlife. On occasion, they’ve been chased by aggressive otters, and white shark numbers are on the rise in an adjacent cove. On the morning of June 24, though, a far more enigmatic and elusive creature made an appearance, and gave the surfers a bit of a scare.
In a photo captured by Santa Cruz resident Eric Mendelson from a nearby bluff, the creature’s dorsal fin is sticking out of the water, looking decidedly shark-like. But in another remarkable photo, Mendelson captured the animal’s bizarrely shaped head and Muppet-like eyeball.
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There is just one thing in the sea that looks this odd: a sunfish.
Sunfish are the world’s largest bony fishes, with the largest species weighing more than 6,000 pounds and stretching more than 10 feet long. They resemble a drawing of a fish that a 5-year-old might do, with oversized heads and flat bodies that are as long as they are wide. The disproportionately large fins protrude from the top and bottom of the fish, bending from one side to the other as they swim, which makes them seem drunk.
To find out more about what might have brought a sunfish to Cowell Beach, which is part of the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary, SFGATE contacted one of the world’s foremost sunfish experts, Tierney Thys.
Thys is a marine biologist, filmmaker and research associate at the California Academy of Sciences. Colleagues sometimes refer to her as “Mrs. Sunfish.”
When Thys saw Mendelson’s photos, she was struck by how big the sea creature was. “That looks like a very, very large sunfish — most likely a mola mola, the most common species that occurs there in Santa Cruz,” Thys wrote.
Mendelson’s photos also drew an enthusiastic response on social media, with many users expressing surprise and awe. Mendelson, a retired financial manager and photographer, has lived in Santa Cruz on and off since 1980, but this was his first sunfish sighting.
According to Thys, though, the Mola mola is actually common in the area, and scientists conducting aerial surveys have noticed them with increasing frequency. Part of the reason, she said, could be that California’s drift gill net fishery — which ensnares thousands of sunfish as bycatch — is being phased out.
It’s unclear whether warming ocean temperatures due to climate change are a factor, she said, but one thing is for sure: “Ocean sunfish play a vital role in the ocean food web, particularly when they get over one meter in length,” Thys wrote.
Surfers at Cowell Beach needn’t have worried, of course. While Mola mola might appear strange and intimidating, they are docile and primarily forage for jellyfish.
For those interested in spotting a Mola mola, the peak time to see them off the California coast is between October and November, Thys wrote. And because of a vast submarine canyon and plenty of nutrient upwelling just offshore in Monterey Bay, the Mola mola (and plenty of other interesting creatures) tend to congregate there.
“How lucky are we here in Monterey Bay to be able to jump on a surfboard, a paddle board, or a kayak — or just grab a set of fins and snorkel any day of the year — and enter this teeming world of mysterious giants?” Thys wrote. “[The Mola mola] is one of those magnificent megafauna that takes your breath away.”
