Abstract. Developmental series 



of larval and pelagic juvenile chili- 

 pepper, Sebastes goodei, collected off 

 central California were described and 

 illustrated. Pigment patterns were re- 

 corded on pre-extrusion larvae through 

 fish in the pelagic juvenile stage, along 

 with the number of dorsal-, anal-, and 

 pectoral-fin rays. The number of gill 

 rakers on the first gill arch, morpho- 

 metric data, and the development of 

 head spines were also recorded on se- 

 lected specimens. In addition, otoliths 

 were used to help confirm the identifi- 

 cations of early larvae given the distinc- 

 tive pre-extrusion optical pattern found 

 in S. goodei. For comparison, otoliths 

 were examined on other Sebastes spp. 

 commonly found in the region that had 

 pigment patterns similar to, but slightly 

 different from, those of S. goodei. Ages 

 were obtained from S. goodei and other 

 Sebastes spp. otoliths. 



Early larvae of S. goodei were iden- 

 tified by their lack of pigment on the 

 lower jaw, the cleithral region, and both 

 the caudal and hypural areas, and by 

 the presence of pigment on the cranium 

 and the outer blade of the pectoral fin. 

 Juvenile S. goodei were readily identi- 

 fied by their distinctive barred pattern. 

 The distinctive pre-extrusion optical 

 pattern was observed in 96% of S. 

 goodei otoliths, as well as a significantly 

 larger extrusion check radius than that 

 in the otoliths of other Sebastes spp. 

 Larval growth rates for S. goodei cal- 

 culated from otolith age data appeared 

 to be slower than those previously re- 

 ported for pelagic juveniles. 



Description of larval and 

 pelagic juvenile chilipepper, 

 Sebastes goodei 

 (family Scorpaenidae), with an 

 examination of larval growth 



Keith M. Sakuma 

 Thomas E. Laidig 



Tiburon Laboratory. Southwest Fisheries Science Center 

 National Marine Fisheries Service, NOAA 

 3 1 50 Paradise Drive, Tiburon, CA 94920 



Manuscript accepted 24 April 1995. 

 Fishery Bulletin 93:721-731 (1995). 



The genus Sebastes (family Scor- 

 paenidae) is a diverse group in the 

 eastern Pacific Ocean comprising 72 

 species (Kendall, 1991), 59 species 

 of which are known to occur off Cali- 

 fornia alone (Eschmeyer et al., 

 1983). Off California, Sebastes spp. 

 form a substantial portion of the 

 groundfish fishery (PFMC 1 ). Cur- 

 rently, the preflexion larvae of 51 

 species occurring off California have 

 been described (Morris, 1956; Wes- 

 trheim, 1975; Moser et al., 1977; 

 Moser and Ahlstrom, 1978; Moser 

 and Butler, 1981; Stahl- Johnson, 

 1985; Moser and Butler, 1987; 

 Matarese et al., 1989; Wold, 1991; 

 Moreno, 1993; Laroche 2 ), but accu- 

 rate identification of field-caught 

 larvae is difficult owing to small 

 interspecific differences and rela- 

 tively large intraspecific variability 

 (Moser et al., 1977; Kendall, 1991; 

 Wold, 1991; Moreno, 1993). Descrip- 

 tions are usually obtained from 

 laboratory-reared larvae extruded 

 from females of known identity or 

 from a size series of field-caught 

 specimens (Kendall and Lenarz, 

 1987; Kendall, 1991). Electro- 

 phoretic patterns have also been 

 useful in the identification of larval 

 Sebastes spp. (Seeb and Kendall, 

 1991). The ability to readily iden- 

 tify Sebastes larvae could facilitate 

 their use in recruitment studies and 



larval production biomass estimates 

 (Moser and Butler, 1987; Hunter 

 and Lo, 1993; Ralston et al. 3 ). 



Chilipepper, Sebastes goodei, is 

 an important component of the 

 groundfish fishery off California 

 (mainly south of Cape Mendocino) 

 (PFMC 1 ). Individuals attain a maxi- 

 mum age of 21 years and a maxi- 

 mum size of 59 cm total length (TL); 

 both males and females reach ma- 

 turity from 3 to 6 years of age 

 (Wilkins, 1980; Wyllie Echeverria, 

 1987). Spawning mainly occurs 

 from November through March off 

 northern and central California 

 (Wyllie Echeverria, 1987). Partial 

 descriptions currently exist for re- 

 cently extruded larvae, 5.7 to 5.8 



1 PFMC (Pacific Fishery Management Coun- 

 cil). 1993. Status of the Pacific coast 

 groundfish fishery through 1993 and rec- 

 ommended acceptable biological catches 

 for 1994. Pacific Fisheries Management 

 Council, Portland, OR, 96 p. 



2 Laroche, W. A. 1987. Guide to larval 

 and juvenile rockfishes (Sebastes) of North 

 America. P.O Box 216, Enosburg Falls, VT 

 05450. Unpubl. manuscr., 311 p. 



3 Ralston, S., J. R. Bence, M. B. Eldridge, 

 and W. H. Lenarz. 1993. Estimating the 

 spawning biomass of shortbelly rockfish 

 (Sebastes jordani) in the region of Pioneer 

 and Ascension Canyons using a larval pro- 

 duction method. Southwest Fisheries Sci- 

 ence Center, Natl. Mar. Fish. Serv., NOAA, 

 3150 Paradise Drive, Tiburon, CA 94920. 

 Unpubl. manuscr., 32 p. 



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