Sheephead: The Bold Rogue of the Kelp Forest

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CaliforniaDivingNews

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Torrance, California
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I'm a Fish!
by Curtis Simpson

When I first came upon a male California sheephead, I thought I had wandered into the neighborhood of the local bully. The adult sheephead (Semicossyphus pulcher) are bigger than many fish of the Central and Southern California rocky reefs and kelp forests. With a big, blunt, black head, red mid-section, and black tail he looks at you with alert eyes, a sense of cool detachment and a mouthful of long, crooked teeth. Itʼs not just his appearance that is a bit intimidating, itʼs his attitude. If I hover relatively still, I have found it common for the male sheephead to ... Read More

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Divers frequently encounter the big male sheephead known as "Oscar" in Catalina's Casino Point Dive Park. What they don't know is there have been as many as FOUR "Oscars" all of similar size. I once saw all four swimming single file past Little Casino Reef. I was too shocked to film them and provide evidence.
 

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