California sheephead
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| California sheephead | |
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| 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) |
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The California sheephead (Semicossyphus pulcher) is a wrasse 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
Once abundant in California, overfishing has largely reduced the sheephead population. Its lack of 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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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: California sheephead |
[edit] Gallery
 A California Sheephead at Ensenada's fishmarket (Mercado Negro), Baja California, Mexico. |
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[edit] References
- Semicossyphus pulcher (TSN 170744). Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved on 18 April 2006.
- ^ Cornish & Dormeier (2005). Semicossyphus pulcher. 2006. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. www.iucnredlist.org. Retrieved on 11 May 2006. Database entry includes a lengthy justification of why this species is vulnerable
- ^ a b "Semicossyphus pulcher". FishBase. Ed. Ranier Froese and Daniel Pauly. February 2006 version. N.p.: FishBase, 2006.
- ^ "California sheephead". Monterey Bay Aquarium: online field guide. http://www.mbayaq.org/efc/living_species/default.asp?hOri=1&inhab=215. Retrieved 3 April 2006.
