Teleostei (teleosts) >
Ovalentaria/misc (Various families in series Ovalentaria) >
Embiotocidae (Surfperches)
Etymology: Hyperprosopon: Greek, hyper = over + Greek, prosopon = face, snout of animal (Ref. 45335); ellipticum: From the Latin 'ellipticum' - referring to the outline of the body (Ref. 6885).
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Ecology
Marine; demersal; depth range 0 - 110 m (Ref. 2850). Subtropical; 56°N - 30°N, 135°W - 116°W
Eastern Pacific: southern British Columbia, Canada to Rio San Vincente, northern Baja California, Mexico.
Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm ? range ? - ? cm
Max length : 27.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 2850); max. reported age: 7 years (Ref. 56049)
Dorsal spines (total): 8 - 10; Dorsal soft rays (total): 25 - 28; Anal spines: 3; Anal soft rays: 29 - 34. Dark green dorsally, sides and belly silvery; a series of narrow vertical bars of pale golden pink on body wall; pectoral fins colorless (Ref. 6885). British Columbia specimens dark on end of caudal fin and free edge of spinous dorsal (Ref. 6885).
Found inshore, in surf and sandy areas, also occur around rocks and piers (Ref. 2850). Intertidal and to 110 m (Ref. 96339). Viviparous, female carries the developing young (Ref. 205). Frequently caught, but not of much importance as a sport fish due to its small size (Ref. 2850).
Life cycle and mating behavior
Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae
Viviparous, female carries the developing young (Ref. 205).
Eschmeyer, W.N., E.S. Herald and H. Hammann, 1983. A field guide to Pacific coast fishes of North America. Boston (MA, USA): Houghton Mifflin Company. xii+336 p. (Ref. 2850)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2024-1)
Threat to humans
Harmless
Human uses
Fisheries: commercial; gamefish: yes; aquarium: public aquariums
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Estimates based on models
Preferred temperature (Ref.
123201): 8.3 - 12.8, mean 9.8 °C (based on 64 cells).
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref.
82804): PD
50 = 0.6250 [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.01905 (0.00827 - 0.04391), b=2.97 (2.77 - 3.17), in cm total length, based on LWR estimates for this (Sub)family-body shape (Ref.
93245).
Trophic level (Ref.
69278): 3.3 ±0.5 se; based on size and trophs of closest relatives
Resilience (Ref.
120179): Medium, minimum population doubling time 1.4 - 4.4 years (tm=3; tmax=7).
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref.
59153): Low vulnerability (17 of 100).
