tidewater

Less than a week before the trout were evacuated, 760 northern tidewater gobies — tiny endangered fish — were scooped out of the same watershed and transported to aquariums.

Their mission: Save the lives of northern tidewater gobies, a tiny endangered fish.

Genetic research conducted in 2021 found that eels likely reside in most rivers that snake inland from the Pacific coast and further north, in the tidewaters cradling the Sea of Japan.

Organizers of the triathlon did not receive confirmation of the tidewater goby’s presence in the Zuma Beach underpass until late August.

County’s Department of Beaches and Harbors confirmed that state Fish and Wildlife officials and the regional water board had directed the county to not disturb the tidewater goby.