Heal the Bay Blog

In honor of National Sarcastic Fringehead Day on October 30, we’ve made the sarcastic fringehead available for adoption for a limited time through the end of October. Don’t miss an opportunity to contribute to this unusual fish’s care. The Aquadoption also includes a yearlong membership to Heal the Bay and free family admission to our Santa Monica Pier Aquarium for the year. Learn more about this species below, from guest blogger Jenna Segal, the Aquarium’s volunteer coordinator.

One of our favorite creatures here at the Santa Monica Pier Aquarium is the sarcastic fringehead (Neoclinus blanchardi). This is a type of fish usually found in rocky reef and kelp forest habitats. Fringeheads range from Northern California down to central Baja California, and usually reach a size of 30.5 cm (12 in). Their diet consists primarily of crustaceans, octopuses, crabs and shrimp. Neoclinus are solitary and very territorial. They like to live in a small shelter, and have been found in a variety of habitats ranging from shells, rock crevices, worm tubes and beer bottles.

When another sarcastic fringehead starts encroaching on an individual fringehead’s territory, they will wrestle one another by opening their mouths wide and aggressively pressing them together–this determines which fish is bigger and therefore more dominant. During reproduction, females will lay eggs in holes, shells, rocks, etc. but the males guard the nest. Our juvenile fringehead is currently on exhibit in the Jewel Tanks found in the Kids’ Corner section of the Aquarium, and a larger fringehead can be found in a turban snail shell, across the gallery in the Sandy Bottom Exhibit.

As I rode over Las Virgenes Road into the sun soaked valley, I was reciting what I would get to say to the 350-plus students and faculty of Mariposa School of Global Education.

The amazing students held their 5th Annual Beach Clean-A-Thon fundraiser and field trips April 15-17, which brought them down to the Santa Monica Pier Aquarium for education programs and a chance to help clean our beaches. As the students were learning about the animals off our coast and cleaning up their home, they were also raising funds to support their programs as well as donate to Heal the Bay. So I was there to accept the amazing gift of $2,300 they were presenting to Heal the Bay.

The students raised $23,000 through lemonade stands, video messages, letters and even their own piggy banks. I was welcomed on stage to shouts of “Nick!” from the audience, as they recognized me from their trip a month before. I spoke to them about how wonderful their commitment to the environment is and how they are the key to the future of our planet. When the oversized check presentation occurred (pictured left, courtesy Ziva Santop Photography), I realized I had a problem. I was on a motorcycle. Luckily for me they had a smaller version to fit in my pocket, but either way it was such a joy to accept such a wonderful gift and continue the two-year partnership with Mariposa.

— Nick Fash

Education Specialist, Heal the Bay’s Santa Monica Pier Aquarium

Schedule a cleanup for your school.

Plan a visit or field trip to our Aquarium.

Help us bring our ocean education programs to Los Angeles students.

In honor of dads and grads and in celebration of the male seahorse’s unique role in childbirth, the Santa Monica Pier Aquarium’s seahorses are available for aquadoption at the special price of $50 during the month of June. Fostering a seahorse through the Aquarium’s aquadoption program is a special way to connect with an animal; leave the actual daily care to Aquarium staff while you can feel proud of your important contribution to this unique creature’s well being.

Growing up to 12 inches in height, the Pacific seahorse, Hippocampus ingens, is among the largest of the world’s seahorses and the only one to be found along the California coast. In the seahorse family, the males do all the heavy lifting, carrying eggs in their brood pouch, which are deposited there by the female. The male can give birth to hundreds of babies – known as fry – at one time.

A yearlong aquadoption of a seahorse includes a personalized packet with an adoption certificate, photo, fact sheet and a yearlong membership to Heal the Bay – and free family admission to the Aquarium for the year. Aquadopt now!

Heal the Bay’s Santa Monica Pier Aquarium joins more than 1,800 museums nationwide in offering free admission to military personnel and their families this summer. In collaboration with the National Endowment for the Arts, Blue Star Families and the Department of Defense, the Aquarium will admit all active duty military personnel and up to five family members free of charge from Memorial Day through Labor Day.

This is the third year the Aquarium has participated in the Blue Star Museums program. Blue Star Families is a national, nonprofit network of military families from all ranks and services, including guard and reserve, dedicated to supporting, connecting and empowering military families. Blue Star Families hosts an array of programs with its partners and also works directly with the Department of Defense and senior members of local, state and federal government to highllight military family issues. Working in concert with fellow nonprofits, community advocates and public officials, Blue Star Families raises awareness of the challenges and strengths of military family life and works to make military life more sustainable.

Congress established the National Endowment for the Arts in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal government. To date, the NEA has awarded more than $4 billion to support artistic excellence, creativity, and innovation for the benefit of individuals and communities. The NEA extends its work through partnerships with state arts agencies, local leaders, other federal agencies, and the philanthropic sector.

View the complete list of Blue Star Museums.

Did you know that the Santa Monica Pier Aquarium annually welcomes more than 85,000 visitors to their education facility?That’s more than the capacity of Dodger Stadium and the Staples Center combined!

And even with such a talented staff, it’s still no wonder that the Aquarium relies heavily on the support and willingness of their volunteers. To date, the Aquarium has approximately 180 active volunteers serving within the numerous programs offered to the public. Some of these programs include Saturday story time, school field trips, Monday morning marine biology classes for three- to five-year-olds and marine-based presentations for visitors during public hours.

SMPA’s Volunteer Coordinator Jenna Segal started out as a volunteer herself back in 2010. She remembers the enjoyment of seeing students get excited about learning. “We might be their first point of [marine-related] education,” said Jenna. And with roughly 15,000 students visiting the Aquarium each year, education plays a key role in volunteering.

All volunteers go through a six-session training course, which involves learning some basics of marine biology and Heal the Bay’s hot topics. But don’t think it’s all work and no play here at the Aquarium. Most volunteers would agree that what they do is most gratifying, to say the least.

Barry Seid, a long time volunteer and honoree of the Bob Hertz Award for his loyalty and commitment, knows a little bit about the joys of being an Aquarium volunteer. “When you’re volunteering, you get more out of it than the people around you,” said Barry, who loves to mingle and joke around with every visitor. “It’s very satisfying, instant gratification.” When asked what might be his favorite volunteer-related memory, he answered sincerely. “Well, every memory has honestly been my favorite.” Which might explain the 13 years of service he has dedicated to the Aquarium thus far.

As we continue to celebrate the Aquarium’s 10-year anniversary and celebrate all that’s been accomplished, we can’t help but acknowledge the epic role each volunteer has played in this success. It’s not just about the training or the amount of hours invested, to volunteer is to pour your all into a cause that is dear to the heart; to educate and inspire the care and conservation of the Santa Monica Bay and its inhabitants. Here’s to another 10 years!

“We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give” –Winston Churchill

— Deana Fry
Aquarium Intern

Heal the Bay’s Santa Monica Pier Aquarium annually recognizes all the amazing work – and hours – put in by Aquarium volunteers. Last week the marine science center held its pin ceremony honoring the volunteers.