Pier— Length — Comments

1. San Mateo Pier — 4,135 feet — Part of the old San Mateo Bridge — now closed
2. Berkeley Pier — 3,000 feet — An old pier originally used by cars to reach the Berkeley- San Francisco Ferry— now closed

3. Santa Cruz Wharf — 2,745 feet —Large old commercial wharf; shops, restaurants and fishing

4. Santa Monica Pier — 2,000 feet — Much of the shore end is over beach instead of water; used mainly for recreation

5. Ravenswood Pier — 2,000 feet — west end of old Dumbarton Bridge — now closed
6. Dumbarton Pier — 2,000 feet— east end of old Dumbarton Bridge

7. Ocean Beach Pier — 1,971 feet — Supposedly the longest concrete pier in the world

8. Ventura Pier — 1,958 feet — Supposedly the longest wooden pier in California

9. Stearns Wharf — 1,950 feet — Large commercial wharf; shops, restaurants and fishing

10. Oceanside Pier — 1,942 feet— Some sources say 1,950 feet
11. Seal Beach Pier — 1,865 feet — End section under reconstruction
12. San Francisco Muni — 1,850 feet — Could use some help (repair)

13. Huntington Beach Pier — 1,830 feet

14. Avila Pier — 1,685 feet — Closed for indefinite time, may need to be totally rebuilt

15. Monterey Wharf #2 — 1,636 feet — Large commercial wharf; used by commercial fishing boats at the end, recreational anglers inshore.

 Some unofficial records —gathered from published reports

62 ¼ lbs. — Los Angeles Long Wharf, August 17, 1917 — Source: Port of Los Angeles, A Phenomenon of the Railroad Era, Ernest Marquez, 1975

58 Lbs. 11 Oz — Santa Monica Pier, Darrell Barry, March 10, 2001 — Source: Several including Santa Monica Pier Bait Shop, PFIC and Western Outdoor News, March 23, 2001

57 Lbs. 3 Oz. — Port Hueneme Pier, Joseph C, Groth, Sr., February 28, 1965 — Source: Pasadena Independent, March 4, 1965

54 Lbs. — Huntington Beach Pier, W. S. Keith & H. C. Carmichael, May 4, 1939— Source: Santa Ana Register, May 5, 1939

≈ 50 Lbs. — Santa Cruz Wharf, Unknown angler, January 4, 1940 — Source: Santa Cruz Sentinel, January 5, 1940

49 ½ Lbs. — Seacliff Pier, Unknown angler, July 2, 1948 — Source: Santa Cruz Sentinel, July 4, 1949

45 ¾ lbs. — Balboa Pier, Harry Campbell, May 20, 1927 — Source: Santa Ana Register, May 21, 1927

45 ½ Lbs. — Redondo Beach Pier, Virginia Lively, June 24, 1975 — Source: Long Beach Independent, July 2, 1975

45 Lbs. — Seacliff Pier (Aptos), Jack Elliott, July 1, 1946 —Source: Santa Cruz sentinel, July 2, 1946

44 Lbs. — Newport Pier, R. O. Stull, July 29, 1931—Source: Santa Ana Register, July 29, 1931

44 Lbs. — Huntington Beach Pier, Seymore Wilson, June 1933—Source: Santa Ana Register, June 5, 1933

43 Lbs. — Capitola Wharf, Wilbur Boyea, May 14, 1934 — Source: Santa Cruz Sentinel, May 16, 1934

41 lbs. — Santa Monica Pier, Hoyt Holdridge, March 1957 — Source: San Bernardino County Sun, March 5, 1957

40 Lbs. — Seacliff Pier (Aptos), August 1942 — Source: Santa Cruz Sentinel, August 6, 1942

40 Lbs. — Redondo Sportfishing Pier, August 2010—Source: Redondo Sportfishing

40 Lbs. — Monstad Pier (Redondo Beach), Dick Weddington, May 2, 1930— Source: Los Angeles Times, May 2, 1930

40 Lbs. — Santa Cruz Municipal Wharf, July 22, 1942 — Source: Santa Cruz Sentinel, July 23, 1942

40 Lbs. — Santa Cruz Pleasure Pier, E. J. Owens, August 5, 1932 — Source: Santa Cruz Evening News, August 5, 1932

≈ 40 Lbs. — Oceanside Pier, September 2004— Source: Oceanside Pier Bait Shop

39 Lbs. — Santa Cruz Municipal Wharf, July 1949 —  Source: Santa Cruz Sentinel, July 31, 1949

38 Lbs. — Santa Cruz Municipal Wharf, May 1953 — Source: Santa Cruz Sentinel, May 6, 1953

38 Lbs. — Ocean Beach Pier, August 1998— Source: Ocean Beach Pier Bait Shop

38 Lbs. — Newport Pier, May 2001—Source: PFIC

37 Lbs. — Santa Cruz Municipal Wharf — Clarence Hegewood, July 22, 1942 — Source: Santa Cruz Sentinel, July 23, 1942

35 Lbs. — Ocean Park Pier, F. A. Buchanan, May 1908 — Source: Los Angeles Herald, May 31, 1908

35 Lbs. — Newport Pier, August 1940 — Source: Santa Ana Register, August 2, 1940

35 Lbs. — Paradise Cove Pier (Malibu), William Cambier, January 1967 — Source: Valley News, January 26, 1967

33 /12 Lbs. — Redondo Wharf No. 3, August 24, 1910—Source: Santa Ana Register, August 25, 1910

33 Lbs. — Point Mugu Fish Camp Pier, W. J. Stuart, August 1935 — Source: Oxnard Daily Courier, August 3, 1935

32 Lbs. — Santa Cruz Municipal Wharf, June 23, 1948 — Source: Santa Cruz Sentinel, June 24, 1948

30 Lbs. — Balboa Pier, Maybelle Davis, May 1934 — Source: Santa Ana Register, May 21, 1934

30 Lbs. — Huntington Beach Pier, Earl Nelson, October 2, 1908—Source: Santa Ana Register, October 3, 1908

30 Lbs. — Port Hueneme Pier, January 2000—Source: PFIC

30 Lbs. — Redondo Pier No. 3, J. K. Richardson, February 17, 1916—Source: Los Angeles Times, February 17, 1916

 Some unofficial records —gathered from published reports

 50 Pound White Seabass — Imperial Beach Pier

83 Lbs. — Newport Pier, 1920s—Source: Personal communication, Patrick Kennedy, Baldy’s Tackle (1990)

61 LBS. — Newport Pier, Roger Jackson, December 1, 1927 — Source: Santa Ana Register, December 1, 1927

50 LBS. — Imperial Beach Pier,  “Oyuki”, October 2014 — Source: sdfish.com (October 28, 2014) and Oceanic Angler (oceanicangler.com), November 11, 2014

48 LBS. — Newport Pier, June 1, 1934 — Source: Santa Ana Register, June 2, 1934

45 Lbs. — Capitola Wharf, September 2000—Source: Capitola Wharf Bait Shop

45 Lbs. — Avalon Pleasure Pier, Pat Casey, May 5, 1936—Source: Catalina Islander, May 14, 1936

42 Lbs. — Santa Monica Pier, 1957—Source: Santa Monica Pier Bait Shop? Newspaper> DF&G

41 ¼ Lb. — Pacifica Pier, July 1992—Source: Pacific Bait Shop

41 Lbs. — Point Mugu Pier, Charles S. Leonard, August, 1959 — Source: Oxnard Press-Courier, August 5, 1959

40 Lbs. — Avalon Pleasure Pier, A. E. Eaton, July 3, 1916—Source: Catalina Islander, July 4, 1916

40 Lbs. — Hueneme Wharf, Charlie Chambers, October 1895—Source: Los Angeles Herald, October 27, 1895

≈ 40 Lbs. — Monterey Wharf No.2, October 2009— Source: PFIC

36 ½ Lbs — Balboa Pier, Ed Steif, May 30, 1928 — Source: Santa Ana Register, May 31, 1928

35 Lbs. — Redondo Wharf No. 1, Harold Rempe, June 3, 1909— Source: Los Angeles Herald, June 6, 1909

32 Lbs. — Hueneme Wharf, Charlie Chambers, October 1895— Source: Los Angeles Herald, October 27, 1895

30 Lbs. — Redondo Wharf No. 3, A. J. Bell, May 25, 1909—Source: Los Angeles Times, May 26, 1909

 Cusk-Eels—Family Ophidiidae

Cusk-eel (Photo courtesy of the Virginia Institute of Marine Science)

Species: Ophidion scrippsae  (Hubbs, 1916); from the words otophidium (referring to the large sacklike inner ear) and scrippsae  (in honor of Ellen Browning Scripps who helped establish the Scripps Institution of Oceanography).

Alternate Names: Eel or California cusk-eel. In Mexico they’re called congriperlass or congriperla canastera, while in far off Denmark (where they could only go as tourists, they are called skæflettet slangekvabbe).

Identification: Typical elongated eel-like shape that tapers toward the rear (one identification chart says it resembles a letter opener). The head contains large eyes and a large mouth with a pair of chin whiskers. Dorsal and anal fins are pale with black margins and continuous, joining the pointed caudal fin. Adults are brown to olive above and tan below. The body is plain with no spots but the small scales on the side present a criss-cross pattern similar to a basket weave.

Size: To 10 3/4 inches although most seen at piers are less than 8 inches.

Range: From Guaymas, Mexico, in the Gulf of Mexico, to Point Arguello, Central California. Found on the Pacific coast of Baja, Mexico from Todas Santos north.

Habitat: A bethnic (bottom dwelling) species typically found in nearshore, shallow-water areas, both sandy and muddy, as well as some estuarine areas. Found to a depth of about 360 feet.

Basketweave cusk-eel taken at the Newport Pier in 2003

Piers: Caught infrequently at southern California piers. Best bets: Oceanside Pier, Balboa Pier, Newport Pier, Seal Beach Pier, Belmont Veterans Memorial Pier, Redondo Beach Pier, Hermosa Beach Pier and Santa Monica Pier.

Shoreline: Rarely seen by shore anglers.

Boats: An inshore species rarely taken from boats.

Bait and Tackle: Cusk-eels are an incidental catch by anglers fishing on the bottom for other species. An angler has to have some luck to catch one of these fish. Generally during the day they hide in caves or crevices so most are caught at night or on overcast days. In addition, they typically will bury themselves in the sand and strike out at a passing meal. Their typical foods are small crustaceans, small clams, polychaete worms, and other invertebrates. Thus a small hook baited with worms, pieces of shrimp, or small pieces of clams will offer the best chance for these small fish.

Food Value: Not sure of their food value. Most I have seen were really too small to offer up much of a meal. The only two I have caught now reside in bottles of formaldehyde. However, the kingclip, a cusk-eel that reaches five feet in length in southern and eastern Pacific waters is considered a commercial species and its flesh is considered excellent.

Cusk-eel (Photo courtesy of Mex-Fish)

Comments: I caught my first cusk-eel when I was a neophyte angler fishing from the Newport Pier in the fall of 1962. Since I already fancied myself an amateur ichthyologist, I was determined to identify what this strange fish was, especially since no one I asked had a clue as to its identity. After an exhaustive search through antiquated reference books, I identified the fish. According to Marine Fishes of Southern California by Percy Spencer Barnhart (University of Californiua Press, 1936) it was a Southern California Cusk Eel (Otophidium Scrippsi) [Common and scientific names since changed]. Next, the fish was pickled in formaldehyde for my biology class at Newport Harbor High School. It may, for all I know, still be there. In December of 2002, I caught another of these little cusk-eels out at the end of the Newport Pier and it too was destined for preservation. However, it resides with the Fish and Game Department and is used by them to train game wardens in fish identification. By the way, the fish now has a new common name—basketweave cusk-eel. This fish has a closely related relative called the spotted cusk-eel (Chilara taylori). It is similar in shape to the basketweave cusk-eel but covered with dark blotches on its upper body. It is slightly larger, ranges all the way to Oregon, and is actually more common in California than the basketweave cusk-eel. But, it is also more of a deep-water fish and encountered less often at piers. However, I have seen several caught at the Balboa Pier and Newport Pier, piers that are located near deep-water canyons.

A sargo caught at the San Clemente Pier in 2015

Species: Anisotremus davidsonii (Steindachner, 1876); from the Greek word anisotremus (unequal aperture, in reference to the pores on the chin), and davidsonii (for George Davidson, a 19th Century astronomer at the California Academy of Sciences).

Alternate Names: China croaker, black croaker, blue bass, grunt, perch, sargo raiado. Called burro piedrero or sargo rayado in Mexico.

A sargo caught at the Santa Monica Pier in 2013

Identification: General perch shape but heavy bodied. The dorsal fin is long and ddeeply notched with spines longer than rays. They have 9 to 11 soft rays in the anal fin (perch have at least 13), and the second anal fin is strong and as long as the soft anal rays (anal fin spines of perch are weak and only half as long as the rays).  Their coloring is entirely metallic silvery; iridescent with a grayish tinge above, plain silver below. A dark vertical bar runs across the body in the pectoral area. The shape and similar dark bar can, at times, lead to confusion with pileperch but sargo have a shorter anal fin and a different shape to the dorsal fin. In addition the bar is farther back on the perch and the tail of the perch is very forked. Sargo caught in bays tend to be darker in color. Both “golden” and “albino” sargo have been recorded in California.

Size: To 17.4 inches and just over 3 1/2 pounds; most caught off piers are under 14 inches in length.

Two sargo taken from Malibu in 2009

Range: Bahia Magdalena, southern Baja California, and Gulf of California to Santa Cruz. Sargo are uncommon north of Point Conception.

Habitat: Primarily found inshore and in bays around rocky areas.

Piers: Common at both oceanfront and bay piers north to Gaviota. Best bets: Embarcadero Marina Park Pier, Shelter Island Pier, Oceanside Pier, Oceanside Harbor Pier, Dana Harbor Pier, Seal Beach Pier, Belmont Veterans Memorial Pier, Long Beach Finger Piers, Cabrillo Pier, Redondo Harbor Sportfishing Pier, and the Santa Monica Pier.

A sargo taken at the Crystal Pier in San Diego by Angel H in 2015

Shoreline: A common catch by southern California shore anglers especially when fishing near rocky areas. Favored areas include Mission Bay and San Pedro Bay.

Boats: An inshore species rarely taken by boaters unless they are fishing in bays—San Diego Bay, Mission Bay, and San Pedro Bay.

Small sargo caught by KJ at the San Clemente Pier in 2015

Bait and Tackle: Sargo are bottom feeders that prefer ghost shrimp, fresh mussels, and worms, but they can be caught on almost any bait. Use size 8 to 4 hooks and fish on the bottom or a couple of feet above the bottom. The most commonly used rigging is a high/low leader.

Food Value: Good meat, similar in taste and texture to croakers. Best fried, baked or broiled.

Comments: A good sport fish, very similar to the larger croakers.  The first sargo you catch may surprise you when you hold it and feel it grunt—not surprising since it belongs to the grunt family.

Sargo caught at the Oceanside Harbor Pier in 2013

Large sargo from the Redondo Sportfishing Pier in 2012

A sargo taken at the Long Beach Finger Piers in 2013

My grandson Adam’s first sargo, a fish caught in 2009 from the Crystal Pier

KJ and a sargo from the Crystal Pier in 2010

A sargo from the Belmont Veterans Pier in Long Beach in 1998

Tom and a pair of sargo from the Santa Monica Pier in 2003

Sargo from the San Clemente Pier by Domphabro in 2009

Sargo taken by IsoGure in 2014 from the Dana Point Jetty

The stated goals were to discuss human-wildlife conflicts, pier/ocean user conflicts, possible solutions, and pier management strategies. The meeting was hosted by Heal the Bay and the California Fish & Game Commission.

The “Summit” was prompted by the “illegal” actions of the Manhattan Beach City Council in 2014. The council closed the Manhattan Beach Pier (state owned but managed by the city) to fishing for a 60-day period starting in July 2014. It then, in mid-August, adopted new, local, fishing regulations that differ substantially from the statewide fishing regulations established by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.

• M.B.M.C. Sections regarding Fishing On The Pier

2.40.090 — Pier Fishing

It shall be unlawful for any person to:

(A) Fish with more than one (1) fishing line or cast out more than one (1) fishing line at the same time on or from any part of the pier, whether such line is attached to a fishing rod or not.

(B) Cast a line by swinging said line above the iron railing on the pier or by swinging or casting said line overhead from a pole or from the hand. Casting must be from below the level of the railing of the pier (overhead casting).

(C) Place, throw, or cast from the pier any fish or parts thereof (“chum”) or other debris into the water.

(D) Cast any line other than a monofilament line from the pier. A maximum forty (40) pound test line weight is allowed.

(E) Cast any steel, metal, or braided leader line from the pier.

(F) Cast with any hooks larger than a 4/0 or three inches (3”) in length by two inches (2”) in width from the pier.

(G) Fish from the pier using more than two (2) hooks on a single line.

(H) Clean or gut fish or other marine life on the pier.

(I) Fish from the pier with any fishing tackle, line, hook or other equipment in a manner that is dangerous to persons using the beach, the pier, or the water. Any person fishing from the pier shall comply with any directions given by the City’s code enforcement officers or police officers as may be necessary to safeguard lives, persons and property near or in the vicinity of any person fishing.

The rule changes followed an incident at the pier where a great white shark was hooked by an angler on the pier and then bit a swimmer. The city’s actions in closing the pier to fishing and imposing new regulations were done unilaterally and against the express instructions of both the California Coastal Commission and the California Fish and Game Commission.

Attendees at the conference included representatives from the California Fish & Game Commission, Heal the Bay, United Pier and Shore Anglers of California (UPSAC), The Sportfishing Conservancy, California Sportfishing League, Wrigley Institute for Environmental Studies, Surfrider Foundation, and representatives from the local Santa Monica piers—Redondo Beach, Hermosa Beach, Manhattan Beach, Venice, Santa Monica and Malibu.

Two presentations were given. The first discussed the recent Shark Ambassador Program, a survey of pier users and their catch done by Heal the Bay. The second was a presentation on Sharks of Santa Monica Bay by Dr. Chris Lowe of Long Beach State. Both were interesting although UPSAC had several criticisms regarding the Heal the Bay survey results.

The majority of the meeting concerned what had happened at Manhattan Beach, if there actually was a problem, and possible solutions to the existing conflict between the city and state. It was made clear that only the Fish and Game Commission can establish fishing regulations but it was also clear that a workable solution that avoids taking the case to court is preferable.

After considerable talk, considerable disagreement, and some agreement, it was concluded that further meetings will be needed and all participants agreed to meet again during the next few months. Hopefully by mid-summer 2015 a consensus can be reached on the best practices (and regulations) needed to meet the needs of the various groups sharing the ocean waters.

For a related article see the following —

http://kenjonesfishing.com/2013/12/great-whites-at-the-manhattan-beach-pier/

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