SM BEACH — Call it the grunion crunch: This weekend, millions of silvery fish will be coming onshore to spawn.
Between 12:20 a.m. and 2:20 a.m. on Sunday morning along Santa Monica’s shores grunion are expected to exit the water to lay their eggs in the wet sand of the beach.
Shortly after high tide, sections of beach are sometimes covered with thousands of grunion depositing their eggs in the sand, scientists said.
Grunion make these excursions only on particular nights and with such regularity that the time of their arrival is often predicted a year in advance.
Fishermen contend that grunion hunting has become a popular sport in Southern California. Since these fish leave the water to deposit their eggs, they may be picked up while they are briefly stranded on the shore.
According to the state’s Game and Fish Department, all that is needed to catch grunion is a valid “state fishing license” and a “willingness to get one’s feet wet.”
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on June 11, 2005. Read the original PDF.