Queenfish, Seriphus politus

Queenfish, Seriphus politus. Fish caught off the Oceanside Pier, Oceanside, California, May 2006. Length: 15.0 cm (5.9 inches).

Queenfish, Seriphus politus. Fish caught from coastal waters off Newport Beach, California, March 2012. Length: 15 cm (5.9 inches). Catch, photograph and identification courtesy of Eli (obsessiveangling.wordpress.com).

Queenfish, Seriphus politus. Fish caught from within the Ventura Harbor, Ventura, California, November 2023. Length: 15 cm (5.9 inches). Catch, photograph and identification courtesy of Chris Moore, Peoria, Arizona.

The Queenfish, Seriphus politus, is a member of the Croaker or Sciaenidae Family, and is known in Mexico as corvineta reina. Globally, there is only one species in the genus Seriphus,  this species which is found in Mexican waters of the Pacific Ocean.

The Queenfish has an elongated moderately compressed body. They have a silvery blue coloration, which transitions to silver on their belly. Their fins are yellowish. Their head is compressed with a depressed profile over the eyes, a key to identification, and a large oblique mouth that opens at the front. They have 2 pores on their chin, 8 pores on their snout and no barbels. Their gill cover can be either smooth or serrated. Their anal fin has 2 short thin spines and 21 to 23 rays and a long base; their caudal fin is slightly concave; their first dorsal fin has 8 or 9 spines and a short base; their second dorsal fin has 1 spine and 18 to 21 rays; and, their pectoral fins are short with a dark base. They have 25 to 27 moderately long and slender gill rakers. They are covered with rough scales and have a prominent lateral line.

The Queenfish is a demersal species that is found over sandy bottoms along the shore, in the surf zone, in inshore bays and off shore to depths up to 181 m (595 feet), however, they are most common in the surf zone at depths up to 9 m (30 feet). They reach a maximum of 31 cm (12 inches) in length. They feed on small, free swimming crustaceans, small crabs, and fish. The Queenfish is poorly studied with very limited information available about their lifestyle and behavioral patterns including specific details on age, growth, longevity, movement patterns, diet, habitat use, and reproduction.

The Queenfish is a resident of Mexican waters of the Pacific Ocean but has a limited distribution being found from Magdalena Bay, Baja California Sur, northward along the central and northwest coasts of the Baja.

The Queenfish cannot be confused with any other Croaker due to its large mouth, concave head profile around the eyes, wide gap between the two dorsal fins, and the anal and dorsal fins bases being of equal length.

From a conservation perspective the Queenfish is current considered to be of Least Concern the stable, widely distributed populations. They are caught with some regularity off the piers of southern California on live anchovies, cut shrimp, and cut squid. Although small in stature they are retained by substance fishermen and sold commercially on a limited basis. They are also used as live bait.