Dead Cabezons (actually dead Plainfin Midshipman)??

Fish & Invertebrate sightings and descriptions, hosted by resident NWDC ID expert Janna Nichols (nwscubamom).
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Kalatin
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Dead Cabezons (actually dead Plainfin Midshipman)??

Post by Kalatin »

My apologies - I am not a photographer and I am terrible at fish ID (although I am learning). This would be a much better question with pics or a solid ID. Regardless, here goes.
Today at Sund Rock my buddy and I found six dead cabezons (or some other large sculpin shaped fish). The bodies were at various depths between 10 feet and 65 feet. All of them were upside down, about 8 inches long, and did not show any obvious signs of fishy-trauma. No other fish were taking advantage of the free lunch either - just lots of upside down dead cabby. I talked to another diver and he also thought it was odd that there were so many of the same fish scattered around. Anyone know what would cause this kind of die-off?
Last edited by Kalatin on Sun May 24, 2009 10:58 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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ljjames
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Re: Dead Cabezons??

Post by ljjames »

this is not a good sign. It may mean the O2 levels are dropping to critically low levels again. If you do a search for hood canal you'll see there are many threads and discussions, and even a news story about it. You can see pictures of how the oxygen starved animals look, so you can see/remember if you saw more 'signs'.

http://wdfw.wa.gov/hab/hood_canal_oxygen.htm

Has anyone reported this condition to the people that monitor this stuff yet?
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Dive 4 God
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Re: Dead Cabezons??

Post by Dive 4 God »

I saw lots of dead crabs at Redondo yesterday too! They were all upside down and intact...Weird!!
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H20doctor
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Re: Dead Cabezons??

Post by H20doctor »

Maybe the algae bloom is causeing high levels of nitrates.. Or useing up a lot of the oxygen in the water ? Just a speculation , I'm not a marine biologist, and am just wondering also ?
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eliseaboo
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Re: Dead Cabezons??

Post by eliseaboo »

H20doctor wrote:Maybe the algae bloom is causeing high levels of nitrates.. Or useing up a lot of the oxygen in the water ? Just a speculation , I'm not a marine biologist, and am just wondering also ?
That happens with our lakes back home. Fertilizers wash into the lake from lawns, golf courses, etc, causing high levels of algae which uses up the oxygen and cause fish death. I believe it's actually the nitrates and phosphates that cause the problem, because they provide the nutrients for the algae to grow so quickly. Poor guys...what a way to go.
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Tom Nic
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Re: Dead Cabezons??

Post by Tom Nic »

Strange. I don't usually see Cabbies at Redondo - dead or alive.

I have seen dead Plainfin Midshipman that would sort of fit your description, and usually see several on the same dive.
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dwashbur
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Re: Dead Cabezons??

Post by dwashbur »

I don't know about the fish, but it's possible the crabs were moults. We've been seeing a lot of them at Les Davis among other places.
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spatman
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Re: Dead Cabezons??

Post by spatman »

penelope and i were at sund today and saw the fish kate's referring to:
CIMG3970.JPG
CIMG3977.JPG
CIMG4073.JPG
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coachrenz
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Re: Dead Cabezons??

Post by coachrenz »

spatman wrote:penelope and i were at sund today and saw the fish kate's referring to:
CIMG3970.JPG
CIMG3977.JPG
These two are Plainfin Midshipman Porichthys notatus.
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Re: Dead Cabezons??

Post by coachrenz »

Tom Nic wrote:Strange. I don't usually see Cabbies at Redondo - dead or alive.

I have seen dead Plainfin Midshipman that would sort of fit your description, and usually see several on the same dive.
I think she said she saw them at Sund Rock, and you are right, the pictures that Spatman took are of Plainfin Midshipman.
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Kalatin
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Re: Dead Cabezons??

Post by Kalatin »

Those are the fish I saw. Thanks for grabbing pics Matt and for the ID. Any idea why so many of them would be dead in the same general area?
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Tom Nic
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Re: Dead Cabezons (actually dead Plainfin Midshipman)??

Post by Tom Nic »

THought so....

Disclaimer - Don't know the biological details, but I believe that the die off is natural and occurs regularly?
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Re: Dead Cabezons (actually dead Plainfin Midshipman)??

Post by WylerBear »

Plainfin Midshipmen do come shallow this time of year to mate. Perhaps there's a natural die-off after that? I've seen plenty of dead Plainfins in the past although not all in the same spot at once.
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Re: Dead Cabezons (actually dead Plain fin Midshipman)??

Post by Aquanautchuck »

We saw a bunch in the shallows and along the shore up at the north end of the Canal on Saturday. They were all Midshipman. Not real unusual to see them.
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don
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Re: Dead Cabezons (actually dead Plainfin Midshipman)??

Post by don »

it's normal this time of year to see the plainfin midshipmen in the shallows in Hood Canal dead or dying. They come up to shallow water to reporduce then many die. Right now the O2 levels are good. But it's good to pay attention. This year, so far, we're seeing consistent northerly breeze with sunshine and warm temp. Not much rain. If this pattern holds we may see another low DO2 event later in the year when the first southerly blows in. If you want links to the research in Hood Canal regarding the disolved O2 issue or anything else let me know. There's lots of info out there if you know where to find it.

Be Safe
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Re: Dead Cabezons (actually dead Plainfin Midshipman)??

Post by nwscubamom »

No worries!!! This is a natural, normal phenomenon we see in Hood Canal every year. It is NOT RELATED to low O2 levels! In fact, this year the O2 levels are looking VERY good!

Those are, as others have already mentioned, NOT Cabezon, but rather Plainfin Midshipmen. They come into the intertidal zone to lay their eggs, and the males hang out and guard the eggs. They can stay out of water when the tide is low, for hours at a time, and when mating make a humming noise that's heard by the females. After mating, it would seem the females take off for deeper water, and the males hang around, and many die off.

We see it every year, and it's very normal in Hood Canal.

FYI - if you're going to see low O2 levels, they occur later in the year - around late August or September.

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