304 BULLETIN OF THE BUREAU OF FISHERIES 



THE ROCKFISHES. FAMILY SCORP.ENIDjE 



Although the rockfishes are perchlike or basslike in general appearance they 

 are actually related to the sculpins (p. 314) and sea robins (p. 344) by the fact that a 

 bony stay (an extension of one of the suborbital bones) stretches right across the 

 cheek, giving the latter a characteristic bony appearance. Furthermore the cheeks 

 are spiny, and in most of the species the top of the head is marked by ridges that 

 terminate in spines. Both spiny and soft portions of the dorsal are well developed, 

 either as a continuous fin or subdivided by a deep notch. The ventrals are thoracic. 

 There are many species, the temperate Pacific being especially rich in them, but only 

 one occurs regularly in the Gulf of Maine, with a second appearing as a stray in the 

 southwest corner of the area covered by this report. 



KEY TO GULF OF MAINE ROCKFISHES 



1. The lower rays of the pectoral fin are not free. There are 15 dorsal spines 



Rosefish, p. 304 



The lower 8 pectoral rays are free for the outer half of their length. There are only 12 

 dorsal spines Black-bellied rosefish, p. 313 



116. Rosefish (Sebastes marinus Linnaeus) 



Redfish; Red bream; Red perch; Norway haddock 



Jordan and Evermann, 1896-1900, p. 1760. 



Description. — The rosefish is perchlike in general appearance, moderately com- 

 pressed, about one-third as deep as long, with large bony head, and tapers back from 

 the shoulders to a moderately slender caudal peduncle. The dorsal profile of the 

 head is concave, the mouth is large, very oblique, and gapes to below the eye, the 

 lower jaw projects, and there is a bony knob at its tip fitting into a corresponding 

 notch in the upper. Both jaws are armed with small teeth. The eye is very large 

 and set high. The sides of the head are armed with spines, of which two near the 

 gill cover and a series of five confluent ones on each cheek are the most prominent. 

 These, with a ridge behind and above each eye socket, give the head a "bony" 

 appearance that is extremely characteristic. The gill opening is very wide, with 

 pointed gill cover. There is one continuous dorsal fin running from nape to caudal 

 peduncle, the spiny part (14 to 15 spines) considerably longer than the soft part 

 (13 to 15 rays), but the latter higher than the former. The precise outline is easier 

 illustrated (fig. 141) than described verbally. The anal, consisting of three gradu- 

 ated spines and seven longer rays, is shorter than the soft portion of the dorsal, under 

 which it stands. The caudal is relatively small, slightly emarginate, and with angu- 

 lar corners. The pectorals are very large, and the smaller A r entrals are situated 

 below them. Both head and body are clad with scales of moderate size. 



The rosefish agrees with the cunner, tautog, and sea bass in the combination 

 of the spiny and soft portions of its dorsal into a single long fin and in its generally 

 perchlike conformation. Apart from its brilliant color, however, which is of itself a 

 sufficient field mark, it is separable from the first two by its much larger mouth, 



