longspine thornyhead
Sebastolobus altivelis
Red rockfish of very deep Pacific waters, living from 201 to 1,757 m and reaching 39 cm. It enters commercial fishing.
Also called: garoupa-espinhosa, chancharro espinoso, rocote espinoso, longspine thornyhead
- maximum
- 39 cm
- depth
- 201–1,757 m
who is the longspine thornyhead
Rockfish of the family Sebastidae, genus Sebastolobus. It grows to 39 cm and lives in open sea over soft bottoms, 201 to 1,757 m deep, from the Aleutian Islands, Alaska, to southern Baja California, Mexico. Adults stay on the bottom and juveniles live in midwater. The species is oviparous: the spawn is released in gelatinous masses that float in the water. 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 longspine thornyhead.
fun facts
- Individuals up to 45 years old have been recorded.
identification
Red rockfish, with some black on the fins. The head has very strong spines, and the inner part of the gill cover is dark. The caudal fin is slightly rounded and the pectoral fin has a small notch. It lives on soft bottoms of open sea, in a very deep band, which sets it apart from shore rockfishes.
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 the Aleutian Islands, Alaska, to southern Baja California, Mexico. In Latin America, it occurs only in Mexico.
Habitat: Soft bottoms of open sea, 201 to 1,757 m.
rules for the longspine thornyhead
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.
Deep-water fish: it suffers barotrauma when brought to the surface. Release it carefully and quickly.
how much it weighs without taking it out of the water
Length-weight relationship W = a·Lb (a = 0.00912, b = 3.09; FishBase (relação peso-comprimento bayesiana, estimativa)). 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: Sebastolobus altivelis (ficha da espécie)Size, length-weight, depth, habitat, distribution, biology, and IUCN status. Page checked on Oct 13, 2026.
- scientific FishBase: nomes populares de Sebastolobus altivelisNames by country and language.