THREE INTERESTING FISHES

 SHINER SURFPERCH

This fish, known as Cymatogaster aggregate, is the most abundant surf-perch along the west coast from Alaska to Baja California, Mexico. They can live up to nine years and are shallow-water dwellers that like to “hang around” piers and pilings.” They can live in kelp beds, bays, estuaries, and they can even tolerate brackish water. They are commonly used as bait for fishermen trying to catch larger marine fish. Some people eat these surf-perches because of their mild, white tasty flesh. 

These common fish usually are silvery color with yellow vertical bars crossed by dark stripes. They are typically small size (about 8 inches length) but can be up to 14 inches long and weight about four pounds. Some individuals can be almost solid black.

These fish live in "schools" and eat small crustaceans and other invertebrates. Females give birth to live young, rather than laying eggs.

    Classification

Kingdom Animalia

Phlyum Vertebrata

Class Pisces

Order

Family

Genus Cymatogaster

Type Species 

Figure 1. “Shinner Surfperch” [Cymatogaster aggregate]; this specimen 8 inches (20 cm) length. Image via the Aquarium of the Pacific in southern California.

___________________________________

THE YELLOWTAIL DAMSELFISH

The generalized (common name) of “Damsel Fish” includes several different subfamilies of fish are mostly found in tropical oceans, especially in the Indo-Pacific region (including Indonesia and the Philippines). A few species can even live in brackish or fresh water.

The specific damselfish that is the focus of this blog post is Chrysiptera parasema, also known as the yellowtail damselfish. This fish prefers to live “schools” in sheltered lagoons and inshore coral-reef areas. They like depths between 3 to 50 feet deep. 

Juveniles of this fish initially have bright yellow color. When the fish becomes an adult, the coloration of this fish shifts to a vibrant blue color over all of the body, except for the tail (=caudal fin), which remains vibrant yellow. Adults can be up to 12 inches long.

  Classification

Kingdom Animalia

Phylum Chordata

Class Actinopterygii

Order Blenniiformes

FamilyPomacentridae

Genus Chrysiptera 

Type Species C. parasema

Figure 2. The yellowtail damselfish via the Aquarium of the Pacific in Los Angeles, California.

_____________________________________________________

                                                            

THE SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA STEELHEAD FISH

This is an endangered species, and there needs to be the immediate removable and/or modification of man-made structures that interfere with this fish’s migration to and from the ocean. If these modifications are not done, then the future of this fish is in great jeopardy. (see www.nmfs.noaa.gov and search the kewords “southern California steelhead.”

The upper elevations are where adults of this fish spawn eggs (in gravel). These eggs eventually hatch, and young fish develop. At the age of about 4 years, these young fish migrate into the ocean (at least theoretically), but man-made dams, etc. interfere with these migrations).

Figure 3. Southern California Steelhead fish.

Image via the Aquarium of the Pacific.

Reference For All the Above Fishes:

Wikipedia, 2026

"THE TIGER FISH"

This fish, whose scientific name is Hydrocynus goliath, goes by several common names: “tiger fish,” the giant GoliathTigerfish," and "Striped Tiger Fish." It lives in the Congo River Basin and Lake Tanganyika in Africa. The specific habitats of this fish are deep river channels, fast-flowing streams, and open lakes. There are five species of these fish (all in the same genus). Some of these fish can live up to 10 to 15 years, weight up to 145 pounds, and are up 6 feet long.

Figure 1. A "Tiger Fish." The black object on the lower left is a swallow bird that narrowly escaped being "grabbed and eaten" by a "tiger fish."

The "Tiger Fish" body resembles that of a tuna, and it can take a fisherman a day to “land one” via a fishing pole. The “tiger fish” is a VERY STRONG swimmer and can capture its prey in turbulent water. They are known to have killed large mammals (including some humans) that enter the lakes. If you look online, you will find some “redacted” images, which I imagine used to show some very grim details of what these fish can do to mammals that accidently fall into the water with these Giant-Tiger fish present. 

"Tiger Fish" have very sharp, dagger-like, conical teeth, up to an inch long! The size of their teeth is very similar to that of a Great White Shark! The upper jaw of H. goliath has 12 to 20 teeth, and their lower jaw has fewer (five or so) teeth. Each tooth is about 1 inch long. Like a shark, they have half-grown replacement teeth behind the “main teeth.” 

                          Figure 2. Teeth of the "tiger fish."

It takes at least 10 years for these fish to reach full maturity. They are good to eat but are very bony and oily.

  Classification

Kingdom Animalia

Phylum Chordata

Class Actinopterygii

Order Characiformes

Family Alestidae

Genus Hydrocynus
Type Species H. goliath

These fish are very strong swimmers and can capture prey in turbulent water. They are even known to have captured birds (swallows, etc.) flying low over lakes! In fact, they are the only recorded/photographed

fresh-water fish to catch birds in flight! There are videos online to prove that they can catch birds that fly low over the water. They are definitely an “ambush predator.”

Figure 3. A tigerish that caught a swallow bird 

flying over the water surface.

The Giant Tigerfish is a relative of piranhas and carp fish.

References

Macmillan illustrated animal encyclopedia. 1984. Macmillan Publishing Company, New York, 600 pp.

Wikipedia, 2026. 

TWO VERY UNUSUAL FISHES

"ARCHER FISH"

The first of two very unusual fishes discussed here is generally known as the "archer fish" or “spinner fish.” There are two genera and 10 species. They live in tropical fresh waters and “shoot down” insects via water squirts. These fish are usually 5 to 7 inches long but can reach 16 inches. 

They are found from India to northern Australia and live in freshwater streams or ponds, as well as in brackish and estuarine mangroves.

Incidentally, there was a World War 2 navy ship called the “Archerfish.”

   Classification

Kingdom Animalia

Phylum Chordata

Class Actinoterygii

Order Carangiformes

Family Toxotidae

Genus Labrus

Type species L. jaculator

Figure 1. Example of an archer fish (via a Wikipedia Common public domain image).

Figure 2. An archer fish “shooting down” an insect (a Wikipedia Commons public domain image).

______________________________

THE TWIG CATFISH

A second very unusual fish is the “whip” or “twig” catfish. It is aptly named because it is so narrow and thin. This fish is up to 6.3 inches long, olive-green to yellow brown and has a very distinct irregular dark band extending from its head to the end of its tail. Its fins are somewhat transparent. 

Figure 3. Lateral view of a "twig catfish." You have to look carefully to see its eye (on the far left side of this view).

The twig catfish fish lives in South America; namely, Columbia and Venezuela. It is a common aquarium fish, but is also vulnerable species (i.e., threatened). This fish feeds on plants and roots.

   Classification 

Kingdom Animalia

Phylum Chordata

Class Actinopterygii

Order Siluriformes

Family Loricariidae

Genus Farlowella

Type species: F. acus

Reference:

Wikipedia, 2026. 

 GINKGO BILOBA: A VERY ANCIENT TREE

The lineage of this ancient tree (also referred to as the “maiden-hair tree") has a fossil record that dates back to Early Permian time (290 million years ago). The modern-day lineage dates back to Early Eocene time (about 55 million years ago). Today, it is commonly referred to as a “living fossil.” 

This tree has two-lobed (fan-shaped) leaves, 2 to 4 inches long) that are bright green in summer and brilliant yellow in the fall. Thus, the foliage of this tree is very distinctive. It is also a very hardy plant. Some plant nurseries sell this tree to the public. Ginkgo trees are quite hardy and are especially disease resistant and pollution tolerant. That was proved during World War II when this tree survived being only ¼ to ½ of a mile from the impact site of an atomic bomb!

There are separate male and female trees. The fruit of this tree is is not for eating, and fresh seeds can be toxic.  It is a slow-growing tree that can be up to 115 feet (66 m) tall and 30-40 feet wide. Young trees are slender, but with age, the crown broadens.  Ginkgo biloba trees prefer full sun. Fertilization occurs via wind pollination. This tree can have aerial roots. 

The Ginkgo tree is commonly found today in China, Korea, and Japan. In North America, these trees are often planted near public buildings (universities, hospitals, etc.).

  Classification

Kingdom Plantae

Clades: 2 of them

Class Ginkgoopsida 

Order Ginkgoales

Family Class Gingoaceae

Genus Ginkgo

Type species: Ginko biloba 

 

 Figure 1. A Ginkgo biloba tree (image courtesy of Pixabay—a royality free site for a diverse array of images).

Figure 2. Ginkgo-tree leaves.

Figure 3. Ginkgo leaves and fruit.

Reference

Wikipedia, 2026.

“The Fungus Is Among Us”

After a three-day-rain storm to hit southern California, I found an adult (approximately 5 inches tall) specimen of a bulbous fungus in the grass in my front-yard. I determined that it belongs to genus Chlorophyllum, but to my untrained eye, determining the exact species was not all that easy. This was my first attempt ever to identify a fungus. Right away, I found that the shape of the caps of various fungi can be similar, thus making an identification difficult for a novice. 

Eventually, I decided that this large fungus is Chlorophyllum molybidtes. It is poisonous, especially if humans and dogs eat them.

Classification

Phylum-Club fungi

Class Mushroom-forming fungi

Order Gilled fungi

Family Agaricaceae

Genus Chlorophyllum

Species C. molybdites 

Genus Chlorophyllum is widespread in the world today in temperate and subtropical climates, for example, North America, Central America, South America, Africa, Asia, and Australia (Wikipedia, 2025). Chlorophyllum molybides is up to 12 inches in height. It has brown scales on the top of its cap and its gills (on the underside of its cap) are white, when the fungus it is young. Chlorophyllum molybides likes grassy areas ( Wernet and others, 1982, p. 537).

The geologic time record of fungi goes back to around 1.5 billion years ago, with the “higher fungi” evolving about 570 million years ago (Wikipedia, 2025). These occurrences are based on preserved fungal spores.

Figure 1. Frontal view of a cap (top) of Chlorophyllum molybdites that was living in my front yard. The ruler is in centimeters.

Figure 2. Basal view of the cap shown in Figure 1. The ruler is in centimeters.

References Consulted:

Hodgson, E. and five others. 2025. A global dataset of fossil fungi records from the Cenozoic. A downloadable pdf available for free, via nature.com------at  the following:

12:316 / https:doi.org/10.1038/s41497-025-045333-4

Wernert, S.J. and others. 1982. North American Wildlife. Reader’s Digest. Pleassntville, New York. 615 pp.

Wikipedia. 2025.

AN UNUSUAL CONICAL FLOWER

Celosia argentea, commonly known as the silver cock’s comb flower, is a tropical plant with very distinctive conical flowers with bright, bold coloration. This plant originated in Africa. The flowers of this plant are packed in narrow, pyramidal, conical, or plume-like heads. Colors can be bright red, orange, yellow, pink, light violet, or white. The plant is typically three or four feet tall, ant its flowerheads can last up to eight weeks. This flower loves shade in the mornings, but it needs sunlight early in the mornings but shade in the afternoons. 

        

Figure 1. Celosia argentea flowers. The tallest flower 

 shown here is abut 5 inches in height.

                 Figure 2. Closeup of Celosia argentea flowers; the

         tallest flower shown in this view is about 4 inches in height. 

  Classsification

Kingdom Plantae

Clades (5 of them)

Order Caryophyllales

Family Amaranthaceae

Genus Celosia

Type Species C. argantea Linnaeus

Reference

Wikipedia, 2026

TOXIC FROGS: PART 2

This is my second blog post about toxic frogs. The first one (entitled “Poisonous Frogs”) was published March 27, 2026.

  ____________________________________________

Panamanian Golden Frog 

Please note that the usage of the term “golden frog” is common in the literature and can apply to more than one example of a toxic frog. 

The Panamanian Golden Frog (Atelopus zeteki) used to live on mountain slopes in cloud forests in west-central Panama. But now, this frog is extinct in the wild! The Panamanian Golden Frog is variable in its coloration (also its back can have variable black coloration), and the example shown here has vibrant yellow coloration with black blotches. Males of this frog are up to 4.8 cm, whereas the females are up to 6.3 cm. This species of frog lives at elevations up to 4,300 feet, in forest streams or dry streambeds. It is an insectivore. 

                                                      

                                    Figure 1. Panamanian Golden Frog. 

   Classification

Kingdom Animalia

Phylum Chordata

Class Amphibian

Order Anura

Family Bufonidae

Genus Atelopus

Type Species A. zeteki

____________

Smoky Jungle Frog (Leptodactylus pentadatylus). It is brownish to reddish brown, and it makes a loud screaming sound (must to be fun to hear if you are trying to go to sleep in the jungle). This frog lives in northern South America and parts of Central America (e.g., Cosat Rica to Ecuador) in lowlands below 3,900 feet elevation. It prefers tropical rain forests to substropical moist formats (including swamps and marshes). It eats small arthropods (e.g. insects), other frogs, lizards, snakes, small birds, and small mammals. In sum, they can just about eat anything they can swallow. This frog secrete a toxic lethal protein poison. Also, this frog spends much time in burrows, under logs, and in dead leaves. 

                                 Figure 2. Smoky Jungle Frog.

  Classification

Kingdom Animalia

Phylum Chordata

Class Amphibia

Ordern Anura

Family Leptodactyidae

Genus Leptodactylus

Type Species Leptodactlus pentadactylus

TWO EXAMPLES OF WOOD-PECKER BIRDS

Wood-pecker birds have a known geologic time range from the late Oligocene (about 25 million years ago) to the present, but it is possible that they originated as early as the early Eocene (about 50 million years ago). They are closely related to puffbirds and toucans. The earliest wood-pecker birds lived in the tropics of Eurasia and were most small birds that likely age insects that lived in trees.

Family Picidae (the wood-pecker birds) consists of 36 genera. Birds in this family have reinforced skulls with spongy bones (i.e., shock-absording mechanisms) that allow them to withstand constant pecking on tree bark, but not be injured). These birds also have specialized feet (zygodactyl feet) that enable to hold onto a tree without putting excessive pressure on their ankles.

  Classification

Kingdom Animalia

Phylum Chordata

Class Aves

Order Piciformes

Family Picidae

_______

note: no wood peckers live in Australia, New Guinea, New Zealand nor in Madagascar.

_______

GENUS EXAMPLE 1:

“The Yellow-Bellied Sapsucker”

Genus Sphyrapicus

Type Species: S. varius

This species lives in Canada and the northeastern USA but migrates to South America (Panama area). This species has black, white, and red plumage with a red cap and a distinctive white strip located along the length of its folded wings on both sexes. It drills neat rows into trees in order to drink sap and eat insects.

                       

                     Figure 1. The “Yellow-Bellied Sapsucker.” 

____________________________________

GENUS EXAMPLE 2:

“The Acorn Woodpecker”

Genus Melanerpes

Type Species: M. formicivorus 

It lives primarily in Central America and in the western USA. The female is blue colored, whereas the male is black.

Figure 2. “The Acorn Woodpecker” Melanerpes formicicvorus

-------------

Figure 3. Woodpecker drill holes in a California Oak tree.

 When I was checking out the oak trees at the Placerita Nature Center near Santa Clarita, southern California (see several of my previous blog posts on animals that concern this nature center), I came across some trees that have numerous, closely-spaced holes drilled into their trunks. These holes have been filled with acorns from the nearby live oaks. It is likely that these holes were drilled and then filled by “acorn woodpecker” birds. 

“LAMB’S EAR” PLANT

This unusual plant is 13 to 18 inches high and characterized by having long, soft velvety, oblong to elliptical silver leaves (the size depends on the type of cultivare = variety). Its basal leaves are in a rosette. It was a challenge for me to identify, but I finally determined that it Stachys byzantina (also known as the “lamb’s ear”). Its genus name is pronounced “STAH-kees.” The word “stachys” is Greek, meaning “ear of corn,” because its flowers grow on tall, thick spikes. The flowers are usually small (they bloom in July) and are purplish-pink to somewhat red. This plant is native to rocky hills of Armenia, Turkey, and Iran.                                                            

                                     Fig. 1. "Lamb's" ear plant.

It is a hearty perennial found in UDS Zones 4-8 but does not do well in cold winters. This plant is popular as a ground cover and thrives in full sun. It needs well-drained soil. It is drought-tolerant once established. Its fuzzy foliage deters deer and rabbits. It forms a low, spreading mat that makes an effective grown cover. It stands 12 to 18 inches in height. It is not an aggressive spreader. Some people prefer to put this plant in containers to avoid leaf rot.

 Classification

Kingdom Plantae

Clades (4 of them)

Order Lamiales

Family Lamiaceae

Genus Stachys

Type Species S. byzantina 

Reference

Wikipedia, 2026

THREE UNUSUAL BIRDS

BLACK-CROWNED HERON

This bird also goes by several other names: for example, Night Heron or Black-Capped Night Heron.

It is a medium-sized heron found throughout a large part of the world (e.g., Europe, Asia, and North America (but not in Canada).

Figure 1. Black-crowned heron. About 1 foot tall. Seen on the shoreline of Castaic Lake, north of Santa Clarita, in Southern California. This unusual heron was seen and photographed by a very observant family friend and a keen-eyed "birder."

   

Classification

Kingdom Animalia

Phylum Chordata

Class Aves

Order Pelicaniformes

Family Ardeidae

Genus Nycticorax

Type Species N. nycticorax

This is not a typical-looking heron because it is stocky with short legs. It does hunch up, however, when resting. Adults have a black crown and a black back. Otherwise, it has a gray color. Its overall body length is 23 to 26 inches. It hunches up when waiting for prey. 

This bird stands still at the water’s edge waiting to ambush its prey, namely, small fish, small clams, squid, frogs, etc.

________________________

TERN BIRD

Larosterna inca is a seabird from from the coasts of Peru and Chile. It lives in nests in large colonies, often near sea gulls. The Inca Tern bird feeds on small fish (anchovies) and small marine invertebrates. Because of man's overfishing of anchovies, as well as habitat loss, this bird currently has a “near threatened” status.

                                               Figure 2. An Inca Tern bird.

It is a very distinctive bird with a slate-gray body and red beak and feet. It also has a prominent white “mustache." Its body is about 1.3 feet long, with a wing span of 10 to11 inches.

The Inca Tern makes a loud, crackling or a cat-like mewing but can also make catlike-mewing calls.

__________________________

THE UMPRELLABIRD

These birds are named for their distinct umbrella-like hoods on the top of their heads.

There are three species of this tropical bird. The image of the one illustrated herein (unusual it is bluish rather than black) has a rather short inflatable wattle on its neck, whereas the other species have longer wattles. Thus the specimen illustrated herein is most likely the endangered species Cephalopterus glaricollis, known from Costa Rica and Panama. The wattle is used to make loud, booming calls to attract females. 

These birds are 14 to 15 inches long and weigh less than a pound. Their wingspan is up to 28 inches. They can live for up to 16 years.

Umprellabirds birds can also be found in the Amazon. 

These birds mainly eat fruit but also eat insects and spiders, as well as small vertebrates.

Umprellabirds are secretive and solitary.  The inflatable wattle can amplify their loud booming calls. 

Classification

Kingdom Animalia

Phylum Chordata

Class Aves

Order Passeriformes

Family Cotingidae

Genus Cephalopterus (there are only three species known)

Type Species Cephalopterus ornatus

The geologic time range of umprellabirds is unknown (Wikipedia, 2026).

Figure 3. Cephalopterus glabricullis from Costa Rica and Panama. This species has a short neck-wattle. Image via Picyrl (public domain).

Reference

Wikikpedia, 2025