A vibrant orange garibaldi hovers in the center of the frame, with a swirl of sparkling silver fish against cerulean sea just out of focus behind it. The garibaldi is facing to the right, and has its wide pectoral fins spread wide, and a face with a teeny mouth and beady black eyes.

It’s the sea-son of love! When’s a better time than now to learn about fish courtship behavior?

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🔸Behold! The bright and beautiful garibaldi! 🔶

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Garibaldi courtship includes lots of nest cleaning and gardening by the male to lure a mate, perfectly pruning the perfect patch of algae to prove his potential for parenthood. When a female garibaldi signals her interest by swimming towards the nest with all her fins upright, the male tries to entice her by swimming in loops.

Their dance doesn’t last long though—as soon as the female lays her eggs, the male garibaldi chases her away before fertilizing them. In fact, much of the work of raising eggs is handled by the male. 

And since the garibaldi is also the state marine fish of California, that of-fish-ially makes them our valentine! 🧡

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