Pinkrose Rockfish, Sebastes simulator

Pinkrose Rockfish, Sebastes simulator. Fish caught from coastal waters off San Diego, California, May 2020. Length: 22 cm (8.8 inches). Catch, photograph and identification courtesy of Ben Cantrell, San Diego, California. Identification reconfirmed by Milton Love, University of California, Santa Barbara, Goleta, California.

Pinkrose Rockfish, Sebastes simulator. Fish courtesy of the commercial fishermen of the greater San Diego area, San Diego, California, December 2014. Length: 24.1 cm (9.5 inches). Identification courtesy of Milton Love, University of California, Santa Barbara, Goleta, California.

Pinkrose Rockfish, Sebastes simulator. Fish courtesy of the commercial fishermen of the greater San Diego area, San Diego, California, December 2014. Identification courtesy of Milton Love, University of California, Santa Barbara, Goleta, California.

The Pinkrose Rockfish, Sebastes simulator, is a member of the Rockfish and Scorpionfish or Scorpaenidae Family, and is known in Mexico as rocote rosa. Globally, there are one hundred eight species in the genus Sebastes, of which fifty-three are found in Mexican waters, all in the Pacific Ocean.

The Pinkrose Rockfish has a robust oblong shaped body with a depth that is 31% to 35% of standard length. They have a uniform dark red or maroon coloration with 4 or 5 conspicuous white blotches running along the top of their back. All their fins are a uniform color which is identical to the dark red or maroon color of the body, however some fish have anal, caudal, and dorsal fins with white tips. Their anal fin has 3 spines (the second being stout and longer than the third) and 5 or 6 rays; their caudal fin is straight; their dorsal fin has 13 spines and 12 to 14 rays; and, their pectoral fins have 16 to 18 rays. They have 28 to 33 gill rakers and their body is covered with scales.

The Pinkrose Rockfish is a non-migratory sedentary bottom dweller that resides in the same area throughout their lifespan. They are found within boulder fields, high-relief rocks, and over cobblestone bottoms at depths between 90 m (300 feet) and 275 m (900 feet). They reach a maximum of 42 cm (16 inches) in length. They feed on fish, krill, octopus, and a variety of other small marine organisms. They have life spans of up to fifty-three years. The Pinkrose Rockfish 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 Pinkrose Rockfish is a resident of Mexican waters of the Pacific Ocean but has a limited distribution being found from Guerrero Negro, Baja California, northward along the central and northwest coasts of Baja.

The Pinkrose Rockfish is fairly straightforward to identify due to its uniform dark red or maroon coloration and therefore it cannot easily be confused with any other species, with the exception that it is very similar to the Rosethorn Rockfish, Sebastes helvomaculatus (pink tinges on fins).

From a conservation perspective the Pinkrose Rockfish has not been formally evaluated. They are of limited interest to most as they are a rare deep water species that is seldom seen by humans.