298 



Fishery Bulletin 94(2). 1996 



Sebastes saxicola can be separated from other 

 Sebastes spp. greater than 10 mm SL on the basis of 

 meristic characters and pigment patterns. The aver- 

 age fin ray counts of 12 dorsal rays, 7 anal rays, and 

 16 pectoral rays (Table 1) are similar to those re- 

 ported by Moreland and Reilly ( 1991 ), who found this 

 combination of meristic counts typical only for S. 

 saxicola. The strong lines of pigment on the lateral, 

 dorsal, and ventral midlines help to distinguish late 

 larval S. saxicola from other Sebastes spp. As the 

 larvae transform into juveniles, the distinctive bar 

 pattern becomes evident (Fig. 1, E and F). In later 

 stage juveniles, body-bars 3 and 4 become quite dis- 

 tinct and allow for field identification. 



The growth of S. saxicola is similar to that of other 

 Sebastes spp. occurring in the study area (Laidig et 

 al., 1991; Woodbury and Ralston, 1991). The growth 

 rate (as determined by the power curve model) for 

 the first 40 days for S. saxicola is 0. 125 mra/d, which 

 is slightly slower than that reported for other spe- 

 cies. Sakuma and Laidig ( 1995 ) found that S. goodei 

 had a growth rate of 0. 135 mm/d for the first 40 days, 

 whereas Laidig et al. (1991) found that the growth 

 rate of S. jordani in the first 20 days was approxi- 

 mately 0.165 mm/d. As S. saxicola larvae develop, 

 their growth rate increases to 0.367 mm/d (for days 

 40-70). The change from slower growth to faster 

 growth for S. saxicola occurs at approximately 9 mm 

 SL (Fig. 5), which corresponds to the end of flexion. 

 During flexion, the notochord turns up and the 

 hypural plates form, creating the caudal fin. During 

 this period, little growth in length is recorded, but 

 the fish appears to grow in depth (Table 2). This pe- 

 riod of slow apparent growth is similar to that found 

 for S. jordani (Laidig et al., 1991 ). 



Acknowledgments 



We would like to thank the crew of the RV David 

 Starr Jordan, scientific personnel who assisted in 

 the collection of samples, and Michael Bowers for the 

 donation of the pre-extrusion larvae. We also thank 

 Brendon Daly, Moss Landing Marine Laboratories, 

 the crew and scientific personnel onboard the RV Ed 

 Ricketts, and scientists at Sea Grant ( RTF- 142 ) for their 

 contributions. Special thanks are extended to Ralph 

 DeFelice for his excellent illustrations. 



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