Tuesday November 3, 2026
KARE —
Juvenile razor surgeonfish, a tropical reef fish common in Mexico, are swimming under the Scripps Pier in San Diego, California, and researchers say the species has not been scientifically recorded in California before.
Local snorkeler Allison Wylot spotted the small, bright yellow fish on the underwater Scripps Pier live camera a couple of weeks ago, according to local diver Nick Meyers. She posted a screenshot to a local Facebook group and asked what they were.
“I saw it, and I immediately knew that it was a tropical fish,” Meyers said.
Meyers, who runs NauticalNick.net, an ocean visibility and marine biology website, researched the fish and identified them as juvenile razor surgeonfish. He said they were hard to identify because juveniles look different from adults, which become patterned, spotted and colorful. The fish are about the size of a thumbnail and gather around the pier’s pillars, he said.
Ben Frable, senior collection manager of marine vertebrates at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, said he pulled up the pier’s live stream after someone emailed him and saw the fish swimming.