Strange Bait Fish

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My fishing buddy Mark and I visited La Jolla today. It was an amazingly beautiful day on the water. 70 to 72 degrees for both the air and water. Glassy for most of the day until a little wind chop picked up after noon. The fishing unfortunately was not so good. Except for bait, we did not catch a thing.

Speaking of bait, I found a spot where the baitfish were very plentiful but different from anything I have ever seen before. They ranged in size from about 4 inches to a couple whoppers that were more than a foot long. They looked a lot like Spanish Macks but did not have the dorsal fin spikes.

These fish had very soft mouths and regularly came off the sabiki hook before making it to my bait tank. They were mostly silver with some golden bands. Overall they looked like a greenback in shape but had the Spanish big eyes and soft mouth.

Apparently they are not very attractive to the La Jolla game fish as I only had a couple short bites.

I know that my description is probably lacking but I would be interested in knowing what kind of fish this is. Any ideas?

Thanks, in advance.

Bob