This is a juvenile mola mola, or ocean sunfish, the largest species of bony fish. It comes to most people’s surprise that such a large adult animal produces such small and vulnerable offspring (when first hatched they are a mere 2mm), but they also produce around 300 million eggs, their fecundity surpassing all other vertebrates on earth! This particular youngster was spit up by another fish that was caught, and had already passed away. (Credit to @derin.goya.fishing on Instagram)
Remember my illustrations for the Marine Animal Response Society from a while back? Earlier this year I was asked to paint some additional illustrations for them, and I happily complied. I had a lot of fun with the original (big!) commission, so painting some more for them was a pleasure. MARS is the leading responder to stranded whales and other marine life in distress in the Maritime Provinces. Check out their site, they do great work! And the wonderful species profiles features my work ♥
The fin whale was featured previously, but because of their strongly asymmetrical illustration MARS wanted to show their left side too. The Pygmy sperm whale illos already existed, but based on work on the Dwarf sperm whale I wanted to retouch it a bit. I’m glad to have finally painted narwhals (even though they’re a pain lol) and the bowhead was super interesting too, because it has been a while since I last painted one and they’re unusually proportioned to say the least. Fun to see the progression. The Mola mola was a fun challenge! Never painted fish much. I had lots of fun with this and I hope you’ll enjoy too!
Consider this your o-fish-al welcome to Monterey Bay, Hoodwinker Sunfish! You certainly had us fooled
Divers in Monterey Bay have photographed two hoodwinker sunfish this year—the first confirmed sightings of this new species of sunfish in Central California!
A hoodwinker sunfish being cleaned by señorita wrasses off of Pacific Grove. Video: Joe Platko
The word “tecta” is Latin for hidden—a perfect moniker for a hoodwinker. Mola tecta were thought to live mainly in the cold waters around Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Southern Chile.
This sighting of Mola tecta was tantalizing for sunfish researchers: Are hoodwinkers new arrivals to the area, carried by Chile’s cool Humboldt current and somehow punching their way through the equator and into our temperate waters due to some climatic abnormality? Or have hoodwinkers been around these parts for some time, hiding in plain sight until Marianne’s discovery gave attentive observers the right clues to look for? Maybe a little bit of both? Something else entirely?
Mola mola, known as the common sunfish, in the Open Sea display at the Aquarium
Mola tecta found in Monterey Bay just offshore of Pacific Grove. This was the first confirmed sighting of a Mola tecta in Monterey Bay. Photo: Jr Sosky
Key characteristics of Mola tecta for identification. Photo: Jr Sosky/Marianne Nyegaard
A blessing in disguise
Whatever the case, there are now at least two more Mola tecta confirmed here in California, and the first ever identified in Monterey Bay.
In early August, a merry band of underwater photographers came across a large ocean sunfish being cleaned by señorita wrasses at Eric’s Pinnacle, a rocky outcrop off Lover’s Point in Pacific Grove.
Our (erroneous) post on Twitter. More social media copy mistakes that lead to discoveries of new sunfish species in our backyard, please!
Mola mola is no stranger to the Monterey Bay—we see youngsters and heavyweights throughout the year just offshore of the Aquarium, and we’ve frequently had them on display in the Open Sea.
Weighing nearly 5,000 pounds and spanning over 11 feet from tip to tip, Mola mola is one of the heaviest bony fishes in the sea (its Western Pacific cousin, the bumphead sunfish Mola alexandrini is just a touch heavier in the record books.)
Something fishy about that fishy…
Content with our content, we looked to see what you all thought of this magical “Mola mola”—and that’s when things got exciting!
A comment right here on Tumblr by Drop Science mentioned that this fish looked more Mola tectathanMola mola. The two are remarkably similar in appearance, but there are a few tells. Most noticeably, a Mola tecta caudal fin is is divided by a smooth band projecting backwards to the fin’s edge.
Intrigued, we forwarded more images from Joe Platko and his dive buddy Jr Sosky to Senior Aquarist and resident mola expert Michael Howard.
Michael has been instrumental in our ocean sunfish program at the Monterey Bay Aquarium over several decades, pioneering training methods, specialized diets and tracking programs for these megafish. The Aquarium is the only one to successfully display Mola mola in North America.
Growing from just a few dozen pounds to several hundred, our resident sunfishes are released back to the wild. Once back in the bay, Michael’s satellite tags have revealed that Mola mola may migrate very far up and down the coast, and spend considerable time diving into the deep sea to feed on a varied diet of jellies, squid, crabs and other fare.
After reviewing the images, Michael thought there was certainly the chance that a hoodwinker had been found. He got us in touch with Marianne Nyegaard herself, and she confirmed that these were indeed the first images of a live Mola tecta in Monterey Bay!
Then, just three weeks later, diver Wei Wei Gao happened upon another Mola tecta off of Cannery Row!!
A hoodwinker sunfish filmed off Cannery Row. Video: Wei Wei Gao
A tecta-nic shift in our sunfish understanding!
In email exchanges that used up both of our yearly supplies of exclamation points, Dr. Marianne remarked that these sightings show just how little we know about one of the ocean’s most iconic fishes.
Michael is now diving into our records to see if there’s a chance we have had a Mola tecta hidden in our studies. And as for us, we’re buzzing with excitement at the discovery of this neighbor in our backyard, pleasantly deceived by a hoodwinker sunfish, and awestruck by the limitless wonder and mystery of our beloved Monterey Bay.
The first-ever confirmed Mola tecta in Monterey Bay being cleaned by señorita wrasses. Welcome to the neighborhoodwinker! Video: Joe Platko.
Giant ocean sunfish will spend time swimming sideways at the water’s surface. Some researchers believe the purpose of this basking behavior is to let birds remove parasites from their bodies.
Summer is in full swing and this watermola wants to hang out with you! Yes, it’s a watermelon mola mola cause why not make the most awkward fish in the sea even more awkward?
I love mola mola and here is my summer version - the Watermola! Want one of your own? We’re just under $5k away from unlocking this plush on Kickstarter! Available as pins, stickers and plush!
We’re excited to welcome an ocean sunfish (Mola mola) to the Open Sea exhibit! Always a fan favorite, this mola comes to us from Monterey Bay. It’s likely less than two years old and weighs about 17kg/37.4 lbs. We’re the only aquarium in North America to exhibit these sensitive animals, thanks to our proximity to their habitat.
These uniquely-shaped fish can be found in tropical and temperate waters around the world. They’re common visitors to Monterey, feasting on the bounty of the bay, including the smacks of jellies that come in with the currents. Along with their colossal cousins, the bump-head sunfish (M. alexandrini), ocean sunfish have earned the title of world’s largest bony fish, topping out at 2,300kg/5,000 pounds!
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Before joining Team Open Sea, new molasmust first successfully complete mola boot camp. Our aquarists target-train the ocean sunfish through positive reinforcement, teaching the sunfish to recognize a visual cue and associate that cue with meal time. When the symbol is set in the water the silvery sunfish swim right over to start snacking!
Molas are always temporary guests at the Aquarium. We weigh them regularly, and once a sunfish grows to be around 230kg/500 pounds, or if their behavior changes letting us know they’re ready to go, we release them back to the wild with tags. The tags allow us to find out how large the molas have grown should someone come across them again. We’re never quite sure how long a sunfish will stay with us, but for now, enjoy some magical mola moments in the Open Sea!
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