pacific drum
Larimus pacificus · Sciaenidae · forage fish
Uncommon croaker of coastal Pacific waters, from Mexico to Peru, with dark stripes on the flanks and a large mouth.
Also called: corvina-do-pacifico, boquinete del Pacífico, corvineta tambor, pacific drum
- maximum
- 32 cm
- depth
- 29–50 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 pacific drum
who is the pacific drum
The Pacific croaker is a fish of the family Sciaenidae, with a short, shallow body, found in coastal waters of the tropical eastern Pacific, from Mexico to Peru. It is an uncommon species that lives between 29 and 50 m deep. It grows to 32 cm. It has a large, oblique mouth, grey to brownish-silver in colour and darker on the back, with well-defined black stripes along the rows of scales on the flanks. It feeds mainly on plankton crustaceans. It is an infrequent catch of small-scale 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 pacific drum; in the meantime, see the similar species.
identification
Short, shallow body, with a large, oblique mouth that extends past the centre of the eye. The back is darker and the flanks have sharp black stripes along the scales. The fins range from pale to greyish. It looks like the blackstripe croaker (Larimus acclivis), which also has dark lines on the flanks, but this one reaches 32 cm and lives between 29 and 50 m, while the other reaches 26 cm and stays in shallower water, down to 30 m.
where found
Eastern Pacific, from Mexico to Peru, in coastal waters, at 29 to 50 m deep, from Central America to the Andean coast.
Habitat: Coastal waters, 29 to 50 m deep.
rules for the pacific drum
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. Handle with wet hands and carefully release the specimens you are not keeping.
how much it weighs without taking it out of the water
Length-weight relationship W = a·Lb (a = 0.0123, b = 3.07; 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: Larimus pacificus (ficha da espécie)Size, length-weight, depth, habitat, distribution, biology, and IUCN status. Page checked on Oct 13, 2026.
- scientific FishBase: nomes populares de Larimus pacificusNames 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: