A blue rockfish uncharacteristically resting on the rocky seafloor.

Contact: SWFSC Fisheries Resources Division, Benthic Resources Team

Species data:
Blue rockfish (Sebastes mystinus) are oval and have almost no head spines. Older juveniles and adults are blue-black or gray-blue and heavily mottled with dark gray or black. Two dark stripes run down and back from the eye. They resemble both black rockfish and dark dusky rockfish.

Blues range from southeast Alaska to northern Baja California, with most occurring from near the surface to depths of about 90 meters. They are a significant component of the live-fish fishery in California, and have long been a major target of recreational fishermen from northern Oregon to southern California.

Alternate common name: Blue bass.
Maximum size: 53 cm (21 inches).
Maximum age: At least 44 years.

From: The Rockfishes of the Northeast Pacific, by M.S. Love, M. Yoklavich, and L. Thorsteinson. University of California Press, 2002.