Spotty-bellied greenling (Hexagrammos agrammus) male, protecting several clutches of eggs resulting from spawning with multiple females. During the autumn/ winter breeding season, males keeps watch over developing embryos until they hatch. At the same time, males actively court females that approach, swimming out to greet them and lead them back to carefully prepared spawning areas like the one pictured here. The eyes of developing fish larvae are visible in many of the eggs here, meaning they are close to hatching. Freshly spawned eggs were attached to the opposite side of this cluster. Successful males like this one often attend to a number of egg clusters at different stages of development, each from separate females.