Fish Lifecycle

Species	Primary depth range in feet	Primary Geographic range within state using four regions	Habitat Preference juveniles	Habitat Preference adults	Unique or significant life history characteristics	Larval type	Larval duration [potential larval dispersal]	Potential for adult dispersal
Bass, barred sand	0-120	South: southern California mainland	soft bottom less than 30 ft, eel grass beds	sand bottom	aggregate over sand in summer - early fall for spawning	planktonic	3-4 weeks	moderate
Bass, giant sea	15-150	South: mainland and islands	rocky reefs, kelp beds, sand bottom	rocky reefs, kelp beds, sand flats	aggregate for several months during spawning	planktonic	one month; settle at ca. ¾ in.	moderate
Bass, kelp	0-75	South: mainland and islands (uncommon central Calif.)	rocky reefs, kelp beds, eel grass beds	rocky reefs, kelp beds	aggregate in kelp beds and over rocky reefs for spawning in late May- September	planktonic	28-30 days	moderate
Bass, spotted sand	0-200	South: Santa Monica Bay and south	sand, mud, jetties, eel grass beds	soft bottom, kelp forests, eel grass beds, jetties	aggregate near bays to spawn in summer	planktonic	25-31 days	low
Blacksmith	0-150	South: (to Monterey Bay)	rocky reefs	rocky reefs, kelp beds	demersal eggs in nests; defended by male	planktonic	short to moderate	moderate
Cabezon	0-250	All regions, including islands	rocky reefs, breakwaters, kelp beds, tide pools, open ocean	rocky reefs, kelp beds	eggs adhesive, attach to substrate, often macroalgae	planktonic	3-4 months	low
Corbina, California	0-45	South: mainland	soft bottom, nearshore including surf zone	soft bottom, surf zone and bays	growth rate faster in estuaries; spawn offshore	planktonic	short	low
Croaker, black	0-150	South: mainland	soft bottom, nearshore including surf zone	soft bottom, surf zone; occasionally rocky reefs	one of few croakers to prefer rocky reefs and kelp beds	planktonic	short	low
Croaker, white	0-420	All; most common Point Reyes to Mexico border	near bottom in shallow soft habitat	soft bottom, primarily nearshore and estuaries	schooling; multiple spawning each year; adults in deeper water than juveniles	planktonic; larvae become epibenthic	short	low
Croaker, yellowfin	0-150	South: mainland, Pt. Conception south	soft bottom, nearshore and estuaries	soft bottom, beaches and piers, estuaries, kelp beds	spawning primarily in summer	planktonic	short	low
Eel, wolf	Intertidal to 600	N,NC,SC	pelagic	rocky reefs, kelp beds	not a true eel; spawn October-February	planktonic	1-2 months	moderate
Flounder, starry	Shallow-900	N,NC,SC	estuaries and bays, nearshore soft bottom	soft bottom; estuaries and bays to upper slope	spawn near river mouths and in estuaries and bays	planktonic	25-75 days	moderate
Goby, bluebanded	0-210 incl. intertidal	S (to Monterey Bay during El Niño yrs)	rocky reefs	rocky reefs, kelp beds	males guard eggs, attached on brood chambers	planktonic	unknown	low
Goby, zebra	Intertidal to 200	S	rocky reefs	rocky reefs, usually in crevices and caves	demersal eggs, attached to roof of shelter	planktonic	unknown	low
Greenling, kelp	0-150	N,NC,SC	rocky reefs, kelp beds	rocky reefs, kelp beds	eggs adhere to rocky substrate	planktonic	unknown	moderate
Greenling, rock	shallow	N,NC	rocky reefs, kelp beds	rocky reefs, kelp beds	eggs adhere to rocky substrate	planktonic	unknown	moderate
Grunion, California	0-60	SC, S	sandy nearshore areas	sandy nearshore areas	eggs deposited on sandy beaches; lack filaments	planktonic	low to moderate	moderate
Guitarfish, shovelnose	0-50	SC, S	as adults	shallow sand or mud, open coast, bays, and estuaries	live-bearing	benthic	none	moderate
Hagfish, Pacific	30-3096	All	?	soft bottom	deposit egg cases	?	unknown	moderate
Halfmoon	0-130	S	rocky reefs, kelp beds	rocky reefs, kelp beds	regulates kelp growth by grazing	planktonic	unknown	moderate
Halibut, California	0-300	All	estuaries, shallow open coast soft bottom	estuaries and soft bottom open coast	distribution influenced by El Niño events	planktonic	< 30 days	moderate
Jacksmelt	shallow	All	kelp and eel grass beds; sandy beaches; harbors	kelp and eel grass beds; sandy beaches; harbors	eggs with filaments for attachment to eel grass and shallow algal beds	planktonic	low	moderate
Lingcod	0-1400	All	rocky reefs, kelp beds, hard bottom, soft bottom	rocky reefs, kelp beds, hard bottom, soft bottom	Spawns nearshore on rocky reefs; males guard eggs	planktonic	3 months	high
Lizardfish, California	5-750	SC,S	primarily soft bottom	primarily soft bottom	rest on bottom using pelvic fins	planktonic	unknown	moderate
Midshipman, plainfin	0-1000	All	soft bottom	soft bottom; spawn on hard substrate	Eggs deposited on rocks and hard substrate	planktonic	unknown	moderate
Opaleye	0-95	SC, S	rocky intertidal	rocky reefs, kelp beds	regulates kelp growth by grazing	planktonic	unknown	moderate
Pacific pompano (Butterfish)	30-300	All	coastal pelagic	coastal pelagic	a schooling species	planktonic	unknown	moderate
Prickleback, monkeyface	0-80	N, NC, SC	rocky intertidal	rocky reefs, kelp beds	deposit eggs on rocky substrate	planktonic	low	low
Prickleback, rock	0-60	N, NC, SC	rocky intertidal	rocky reefs, shallow	deposit eggs on rocky substrate	planktonic	low	low
Queenfish	0-180	SC, S	soft bottom	shallow water and sandy bottom; in bays and sloughs	spawn at night from March to September	planktonic	short	moderate
Ray, bat	0-150	All	shallow soft bottom; bays and estuaries	shallow sandy and rocky areas, including bays and estuaries; kelp beds	live-bearing	miniature adults	none	moderate
Rockfish, aurora	600-1800	All	soft bottom	hard and soft bottom	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	moderate
Rockfish, bank	102-810	All	midwater	midwater over hard bottom, drop offs	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	moderate
Rockfish, black	0-1200	N, NC, SC	soft bottom	rocky reefs, kelp forests	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	moderate
Rockfish, black-and-yellow	0-120	NC, SC, S	shallow rocky reefs	shallow rocky reefs, kelp forests	live-bearing	planktonic	Low to moderate	low
Rockfish, blackgill	720-1800 (juv.<660)	All	soft bottom	hard bottom, soft bottom, canyons, steep drop offs	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	moderate
Rockfish, blue	0-300	All	rocky reefs, kelp forests, soft bottom	rocky reefs, kelp forests	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	moderate
Bocaccio	0-1050	All	over hard and soft bottom	midwater over hard bottom	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	moderate
Rockfish, brown	0-420	All	low-relief hard and soft bottom	low-relief hard and soft bottom	live-bearing	planktonic	low to moderate	low
Rockfish, calico	60-840	SC, S	soft bottom	hard bottom, sand-rock and mud-rock interface	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	low
Rockfish, canary	0-900	N, NC, SC	soft bottom; sand-rock interface	midwater and near bottom over hard bottom	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	moderate to high
Chilipepper	0-1080	All	soft bottom	midwater over hard bottom	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	moderate
Rockfish, China	36-420	N, NC, SC	rocky reefs	rocky reefs, kelp forests	live-bearing	planktonic	low to moderate	low
Rockfish, copper	0-600	All	rocky reefs and soft bottom	rocky reefs, kelp forests	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	low
Cowcod	68-1200	All	soft and hard bottom	hard bottom, canyons	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	low
Rockfish, darkblotched	240-1800	All	soft bottom	soft and hard bottom	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	moderate
Rockfish, flag	100-600	SC, S	rocky reefs	rocky reefs, canyons	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	low
Rockfish, freckled	130-550	S	soft bottom	hard bottom	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	low
Rockfish, gopher	0-180	NC, SC, S	rocky reefs	rocky reefs, kelp forests	live-bearing	planktonic	low to moderate	low
Rockfish, grass	0-150	All	shallow rocky reefs	shallow rocky reefs, kelp forests	live-bearing	planktonic	low to moderate	low
Rockfish, greenblotched	200-1300	SC, S	soft bottom	hard and soft bottom, canyons	live-bearing	planktonic	low to moderate	low
Rockfish, greenspotted	160-660	NC, SC, S	soft bottom	hard bottom, canyons	live-bearing	planktonic	low to moderate	low
Rockfish, greenstriped	200-1320	All	soft bottom	low relief hard bottom, soft bottom	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	moderate
Rockfish, halfbanded	192-1320	SC, S	soft bottom	low relief hard and soft bottom, cobble	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	moderate
Rockfish, honeycomb	90-250	S	soft bottom	hard bottom	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate
Rockfish, kelp	0-150	NC, SC, S	kelp forests and rocky reefs	kelp forests	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	low
Rockfish, Olive	0-480	NC, SC, S	kelp forests, soft bottom	rocky reefs, kelp forests	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	low
Pacific ocean perch	180-2100	All	midwater over hard bottom	midwater over hard bottom	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	moderate
Rockfish, pink	250-1200	NC, SC, S	soft bottom	hard bottom, canyons	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	low
Rockfish, pinkrose	325-960	SC, S	soft bottom	hard bottom, canyons	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	low
Rockfish, quillback	75-900	N, NC	rocky reefs	rocky reefs	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	low
Rockfish, redbanded	300-1560	all	soft bottom	soft and hard bottom	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	low
Rockfish, redstripe	300-1200	N, NC	hard bottom	hard bottom	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	moderate
Rockfish, rosethorn	390-1800	N, NC, SC	soft and hard bottom	hard bottom, canyons	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	low
Rockfish, rosy	50-420	All	soft and hard bottom	hard bottom	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	low
Rockfish, sharpchin	300-1050	All	hard bottom	hard bottom	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	moderate
Rockfish, shortbelly	0-930	All	midwater over hard bottom	midwater over hard bottom	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	moderate
Rockfish, speckled	100-1200	All	hard bottom	hard bottom	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	moderate
Rockfish, splitnose	700-1560	All	soft bottom	hard bottom, canyons	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	moderate
Rockfish, squarespot	60-600	All	hard bottom	hard bottom	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	moderate
Rockfish, starry	80-900	NC,SC,S	hard bottom	hard bottom	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	low
Rockfish, stripetail	192-1320	All	soft bottom	soft and hard bottom	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	moderate
Rockfish, swordspine	250-1420	NC,SC,S	soft bottom	hard bottom, canyons	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	low
Rockfish, tiger	200-900	N, NC	hard bottom	hard bottom	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	low
Rockfish, treefish	0-150	SC, S	rocky reefs	rocky reefs, kelp forests	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	low
Rockfish, vermilion	0-900	All	soft and hard bottom	wide depth range, rocky reefs, kelp forests, canyons	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	low
Rockfish, widow	0-1200	All	midwater over hard bottom	midwater over hard bottom	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	moderate
Rockfish, yelloweye	150-1200	N, NC, SC	rocky reefs	hard bottom, canyons	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	low
Rockfish, yellowtail	0-1800	All	midwater	midwater over hard bottom	live-bearing	planktonic	moderate	moderate
Sanddab, Pacific	30-1800	All	soft bottom	soft bottom	may spawn twice a year	planktonic	unknown	moderate
Sargo	0-130	S	rocky reefs, kelp beds, sand	rocky reefs, kelp beds, sand bottom	broadcast spawners	planktonic	unknown	moderate
Scorpionfish, California	0-600	S	reef systems	hard and soft bottom	adults aggregate in 12 to 360 feet to spawn; eggs released in gelatinous masses that float to surface	planktonic	unknown	low
Sculpin, staghorn	0-300	All	soft bottom, estuaries	soft bottom, estuaries	abundant in San Francisco estuary	planktonic	unknown	moderate
Seabass, white	0-400	NC,SC,S occurs farther north during El Niño events	sandy area, estuaries, piers, jetties, kelp beds	kelp beds. rocky reefs, offshore banks, open ocean	adults aggregate in spring-summer during spawning	planktonic		high
Shark, brown smoothhound	0-360	All	bays and estuaries	soft bottom, bays and estuaries, nearshore	live-bearing	miniature adults	zero	moderate
Shark, gray smoothhound	0-150	All	bays and estuaries	soft bottom, bays and estuaries, nearshore	live-bearing	miniature adults	zero	moderate
Shark, horn	0-492	S	rocky reefs, kelp beds	rocky reefs, kelp beds	lay egg cases	miniature adults	zero	moderate
Shark, Pacific angel	3-600	SC, S	flat, sandy bottoms	flat, sandy bottoms; sand channels between reefs	live-bearing	miniature adults	zero	moderate
Shark, leopard	0-300	All	enclosed bays and sloughs; kelp beds; shallow sandy areas	enclosed bays and sloughs; kelp beds; shallow sandy areas near reefs	aggregate in very shallow water to release young; live-bearing	miniature adults	zero	moderate
Sheephead, California	0-180	SC, S	rocky reefs, kelp beds	rocky reefs, kelp beds	changes sex from female to male with size	planktonic	unknown	moderate
Skate, big	10-360	N, NC	soft bottom	soft bottom, occasionally rocky reefs	young hatch from eggs in cases	miniature adults	zero	moderate
Skate, California	60-2200	All	soft bottom	soft bottom	young hatch from eggs in cases	miniature adults	zero	moderate
Skate, longnose	180-2040	All	soft bottom	soft bottom	young hatch from eggs in cases	miniature adults	zero	moderate
Smelt, night	0-420	N, NC, SC	soft bottom	shallow sandy coastal areas	spawn in surf zone at night	planktonic	low to moderate	moderate
Smelt, surf	shallow	N, NC, SC	soft bottom	shallow sandy coastal areas	spawn in surf zone in daytime	planktonic	low to moderate	moderate
Smelt, whitebait	0-180	N, NC, SC	soft bottom	shallow sandy coastal areas, bays, and estuaries	spawn in sandy subtidal areas	planktonic	low to moderate	moderate
Sole, Dover	60-3000	All	soft bottom, deep water	soft bottom, deep water	a portion of the stock migrates	planktonic	at least 1 year	moderate
Sole, English	60-1000	All	soft bottom, shelf	soft bottom	migrates, spawns at 200-360 ft	planktonic	6-10 weeks	moderate
Sole, petrale	60-1500	All	soft and hard bottom, shelf	soft and hard bottom, shelf	migrates, spawns at 900-1200 ft	planktonic	unknown	moderate
Sole, rex	60-2100	All	soft bottom, shelf and slope	soft bottom, shelf and slope	spawns at 300-900 ft	planktonic	at least 1 year	moderate
Sole, rock	50-1200	N, NC, SC	soft and hard bottom, shelf	soft and hard bottom, shelf	one of few flatfishes found on rocky bottom	planktonic	unknown	moderate
Sole, sand	5-312	N, NC, SC	soft bottom, nearshore, estuaries	soft bottom, nearshore	one of few medium-large flatfish found inshore	planktonic	unknown	moderate
Sole, slender	250-1700	All	soft bottom, shelf and slope	soft bottom, shelf and slope	relatively abundant offshore species	planktonic	moderate	moderate
Surfperch, barred	0-240	NC, SC, S	beaches	beaches	bear live, free-swimming young	not applicable	not applicable	moderate
Surfperch, black	0-130	All	rocky reef, kelp beds	rocky reef, kelp beds	bear live, free-swimming young	not applicable	not applicable	moderate
Surfperch, calico	0-30	All	beaches	beaches	bear live, free-swimming young	not applicable	not applicable	moderate
Surfperch, pile	0-240	All	rocky reefs, kelp beds, soft bottom	rocky reefs, kelp beds, soft bottom	bear live, free-swimming young	not applicable	not applicable	moderate
Surfperch, rainbow	0-130	All	rocky reef, kelp beds	rocky reef, kelp beds	bear live, free-swimming young	not applicable	not applicable	moderate
Surfperch, redtail	0-60	N, NC	beaches	beaches	bear live, free-swimming young	not applicable	not applicable	moderate
Surfperch, rubberlip	0-150	All	rocky reefs, kelp beds, soft bottom	rocky reefs, kelp beds, soft bottom	bear live, free-swimming young	not applicable	not applicable	moderate
Surfperch, shiner	0-480	All	estuaries, soft bottom, kelp beds, rocky reef	estuaries, soft bottom, kelp beds, rocky reef	bear live, free-swimming young	not applicable	not applicable	moderate to high
Surfperch, striped	0-55	All	rocky reef, kelp beds	rocky reef, kelp beds	bear live, free-swimming young	not applicable	not applicable	moderate
Surfperch, walleye	0-60	All	beaches	beaches	bear live, free-swimming young	not applicable	not applicable	moderate
Surfperch, white	0-140	All	rocky reefs, kelp beds, soft bottom	rocky reefs, kelp beds, soft bottom	bear live, free-swimming young	not applicable	not applicable	moderate
Thornyhead, longspine	1090-5000	All	deep hard and soft bottom	deep hard and soft bottom; slope	lack swim bladder; may survive after being brought to surface and released; spawn gelatinous floating egg masses	planktonic	unknown	moderate to high
Thornyhead, shortspine	84-5000+	All	deep hard and soft bottom	deep hard and soft bottom; slope	lack swim bladder; may survive after being brought to surface and released; spawn gelatinous floating egg masses	planktonic	unknown	moderate to high
Tomcod, Pacific	0-720	N, NC, SC	unknown	soft bottom	broadcast spawners; high fecundity	planktonic	unknown	moderate
Topsmelt	shallow	All	kelp and eel grass beds; sandy beaches, harbors	kelp and eel grass beds; sandy beaches, harbors	spawns in eel grass and algal beds, possibly kelp beds; eggs attach to spawning substrate by adhesive filaments	planktonic	low	moderate
Turbot, C-O	shallow-966	All	rocky reef, sand; shelf	rocky reef, sand; shelf	one of few flatfishes to occur in kelp beds	planktonic	unknown	moderate
Turbot, curlfin	25-1146	All	soft bottom	soft bottom; shelf	small mouth; difficult to catch with hook-and-line	planktonic	unknown	moderate
Whitefish, ocean	0-300	SC, S	unknown	midwater over hard and soft	responds favorably to El Niño	planktonic	unknown	moderate