You're a cute one, Mr. Grunt

It's that time of year again!  The eggs our grunt sculpins laid in late summer have finally started to hatch!  On Saturday, the first 22 eggs hatched while their tank was being cleaned.  I lovingly took the larval fish out of the tank with a turkey baster so they wouldn't be caught by the anemones.  Last year we weren't successful in raising the larval fish, so this year I decided to release them off the floating dock.  Hopefully they found shelter in the nearby eelgrass bed and will grow to be adorable adults. 

The grunt sculpins with their eggs (in the lower barnacle)

Stay tuned for more news on the eggs, last year they were hatching from Thanksgiving to May!

Come visit these fish and all our animals in the Marine Exhibit December 28-30th, 12-4pm.

Julia Ledbetter
Marine Exhibit Education Coordinator