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Illustration of Bigscale goatfish
fishing forecast

bigscale goatfish

Pseudupeneus grandisquamis · full profile

location

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period

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the species

everything about the bigscale goatfish

how to recognize it

Goatfish with a spindle-shaped body and large scales, which give the species its name. Like others in the family, it has two chin barbels, used to search for food on the bottom. It frequents sand and mud bottoms near shore and also deeper waters, down to 67 m, and is small, up to 30 cm.

Also called: salmonete-escamudo, chivo escamudo, chivo rosado, bigscale goatfish

don't confuse with:

We don't have tips on season, bait or technique for this species yet.

Where to look: Sand and mud bottoms near shore and in deeper water, from 1 to 67 m.

Found in the eastern Pacific, from Baja California, Mexico, to Chile, on sand and mud bottoms.

rules for the bigscale goatfish

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.

how much it weighs without taking it out of the water

estimated weight

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how we calculate

Length-weight relationship W = a·Lb (a = 0.01, b = 3.1; FishBase (relação peso-comprimento bayesiana, estimativa da própria espécie)). It's an average: a fat or lean fish can vary by 10% to 20%.

more about the bigscale goatfish

The largescale goatfish belongs to the family Mullidae and reaches 30 cm. It lives on sand and mud bottoms near shore and also in deeper water, from 1 to 67 m. It reaches maturity at 18.3 cm. It occurs in the eastern Pacific, from Baja California, Mexico, to Chile, and one specimen was already caught at the warm-water outflow of a nuclear power plant in southern California, United States. It is usually taken as incidental catch and is rarely sought by sport anglers. It has large scales, which give the species its name.

Family: Mullidae · predator

similar species

sources and references (2)

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.

  1. scientific FishBase: Pseudupeneus grandisquamis (ficha da espécie)Size, length-weight, depth, habitat, distribution, biology, and IUCN status. Page checked on Oct 13, 2026.
  2. scientific FishBase: nomes populares de Pseudupeneus grandisquamisNames by country and language.