California sheephead

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California sheephead

Conservation status
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Perciformes
Family: Labridae
Genus: Semicossyphus
Species: S. pulcher
Binomial name
Semicossyphus pulcher
(Ayres, 1854)

The California sheephead (Semicossyphus pulcher) is a fish native to the eastern Pacific Ocean. Its range is from Monterey Bay, California to the Gulf of California, Mexico.[2]

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[edit] Description

The sheephead can reach a size of 91 cm and a weight of 16 kg. The male is black with a white jaw and a broad red band spanning the body transversally. The female is pink. The juvenile form is bright red with a white stripe spanning the body. All sheepheads are born as females and eventually change to males. The age of the transition depends on environmental factors such as food supply.[3]

[edit] Biology

The sheephead inhabits kelp forests and rocky reefs, where it feeds on sea urchins, mollusks, lobsters, and crabs. Spawning occurs during the summer and results in pelagic larvae.

[edit] Fishery

A California Sheephead at Ensenada's fishmarket (Mercado Negro), Baja California, Mexico.
A California Sheephead at Ensenada's fishmarket (Mercado Negro), Baja California, Mexico.

Once abundant in California, overfishing has largely reduced the Sheephead population. Its timidity around divers has made the species especially vulnerable to spearfishing. Additionally, the Sheephead has a low resilience to population changes, due to its long doubling time of 4.5-14 years[2].

In Spanish, the fish is marketed under its common name "vieja" (old lady), or "vieja de California".

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[edit] References

  1. ^ Cornish & Dormeier (2005). Semicossyphus pulcher. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 11 May 2006. Database entry includes a lengthy justification of why this species is vulnerable
  2. ^ a b "Semicossyphus pulcher". FishBase. Ed. Ranier Froese and Daniel Pauly. February 2006 version. N.p.: FishBase, 2006.
  3. ^ California sheephead. Monterey Bay Aquarium: online field guide. Retrieved on 3 April 2006.