barred sand bass
Paralabrax nebulifer · Serranidae · predator
Sea bass of sand bottoms near rocks, reaching 67 cm and 6 kg. It is an important fish for sport fishing.
Also called: cabrilha-de-areia-barrada, cabrilla de arena, cabrilla verde de arena, barred sand bass
- maximum
- 67 cm
- record/max.
- 6.0 kg
- depth
- 1–183 m
the right time
to be on the water
Choose the place and the species. The index, from 0 to 100, combines weather, sun, moon and tide with each fish's habits. Up to 28 days, with each day's confidence.
Reading the weather across 3 global models and 31 simulations…
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hour by hour
slide your finger or mouse over the chart to see each hoursee hour-by-hour table
why this index at —?
choose the day
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.
the fishing month at a glance
what's the best window for the crew?
Choose how many fishing days. We compare each stretch by its average index, discount days with a warning or closed season, and show the 3 best.
trend for the coming weeks
Line: the middle value of 31 simulations of the American GEFS model. Band: where 8 out of 10 fall. Narrow, firm trend; wide, high uncertainty.
everything about the barred sand bass
who is the barred sand bass
Sea bass of the family Serranidae. It reaches 67 cm and up to 6 kg. It lives on sand bottoms near rocks, mostly down to 30 m, and can reach 183 m. Juveniles feed on bottom invertebrates such as crabs, bivalves and mysids. Adults hunt fish and crustaceans. Spawning takes place in the water, with eggs released freely. It ranges from Santa Cruz, in central California, to Magdalena Bay, in Baja California, and also appears off Acapulco, Mexico. It is an important sport fish.
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 barred sand bass; in the meantime, see the similar species.
fun facts
- There are reports of individuals up to 31 years old.
identification
Sea bass with stripes on the body, as its common name indicates. It lives on sand bottoms near rocks and usually stays down to 30 m. It can be confused with the spotted sand bass, which lives on the same coast, but that one has spots, not stripes.
where found
Lives in the eastern Pacific, from Santa Cruz, in central California, to Magdalena Bay, in Baja California, and also appears off Acapulco, Mexico. In Latin America, it occurs only in Mexico.
Habitat: Sand bottom near rocks, mostly down to 30 m, but it can reach 183 m.
rules for the barred sand bass
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.
Poses no danger to anglers. When releasing it, remove the hook carefully.
in the kitchen
It is taken in subsistence fishing, for the consumption of the angler.
how much it weighs without taking it out of the water
Length-weight relationship W = a·Lb (a = 0.01122, b = 3.05; 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: Paralabrax nebulifer (ficha da espécie)Size, length-weight, depth, habitat, distribution, biology, and IUCN status. Page checked on Oct 13, 2026.
- scientific FishBase: nomes populares de Paralabrax nebuliferNames by country and language.
similar species
where each number comes from
The weather comes from three independent global models, cross-checked hour by hour: when they agree, confidence goes up; when they diverge, the band between them shows on the chart. Beyond 16 days, we use the GEFS ensemble of 31 simulations: if 20 of the 31 predict rain, the chance of rain is 65%. Sun and moon are calculated astronomically, with no uncertainty.
The index adds up, weighted for each species: time of day (species curve anchored to real sunrise and sunset), moon (transits, rise and set, phase), pressure (3 h trend and 24 h swing), water temperature (in rivers, estimated from air temperature; at sea, estimated by an ocean model), wind, rain, clouds, tide and the month in the species' cycle.
sources for this lookup
how accurate the forecast is
Accuracy measured in the reference project (4 regions, 93 days, forecast vs. observed): maximum temperature is off by 0.6 °C on average the next day and 1.7 °C at 7 days; rain of 5 mm or more is detected 76% of the time the next day and 57% at 7 days. Detection isn't everything: the false alarm rate isn't published here yet, and 93 days in 4 regions is still a small sample. We now also measure every day, at the app's destinations: