swordspine rockfish
Sebastes ensifer
Soft-bottom rockfish of the Pacific, reaching 30 cm and living between 70 and 433 m. It enters commercial fishing.
Also called: garoupa-de-espinho-longo, rocote espada, swordspine rockfish
- maximum
- 30 cm
- depth
- 70–433 m
who is the swordspine rockfish
Rockfish of the family Sebastidae, genus Sebastes. It grows to 30 cm. It lives on soft bottoms, 70 to 433 m deep, from San Francisco, California, to central Baja California, Mexico. It is viviparous. It stays away from shallow reefs, in a depth band that sets it apart from shore rockfishes. It enters commercial fishing.
Essential profile. Identification, where it occurs and rules, with data from FishBase and the cited regulations. Season, time of day, technique and bait are added once we have a good source for the swordspine rockfish.
identification
Small rockfish, reaching 30 cm, with spines on the head and fins, a family trait. It lives on soft bottoms, between 70 and 433 m, and depth is the best clue for telling it apart from shore rockfishes. The common name suggests a long, sharp spine.
Loading the next 7 days…
Each card shows the day's index (0 to 100) and, below it, a strip with the index for each hour, from 0h to 23h. from poor to excellent.
Essential profile: the index uses a general fish model (weather, sun, moon and tide), without a season or time of day specific to this species.
where found
Lives in the eastern Pacific, from San Francisco, California, to Baja California, Mexico. In Latin America, it occurs only in Mexico.
Habitat: Soft bottoms, 70 to 433 m.
rules for the swordspine rockfish
Summary of the regulations we found, with the source for each. Rules change; before keeping or transporting fish, check with the state environmental agency.
We found no species-specific rule beyond the region's general rules.
catch and release
catch and release Releasing the fish alive, quickly and with a wet hand. During a closed season it isn't always allowed: what the regulation says applies.
Bottom fish: it suffers barotrauma when brought up from great depth. Release it carefully and quickly.
how much it weighs without taking it out of the water
Length-weight relationship W = a·Lb (a = 0.01, b = 3.09; FishBase (relação peso-comprimento bayesiana, estimativa pelo gênero e formato do corpo)). It's an average: a fat or lean fish can vary by 10% to 20%.
estimated weight
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sources and references
Essential profile: size, length-weight, depth, countries and conservation come from FishBase and the cited regulations, and the texts were written from those sources. Season, time of day, sensitivities, technique and baits and lures are not included yet, because we did not find a good source for this species.
- scientific FishBase: Sebastes ensifer (ficha da espécie)Size, length-weight, depth, habitat, distribution, biology, and IUCN status. Page checked on Oct 13, 2026.
- scientific FishBase: nomes populares de Sebastes ensiferNames by country and language.