Popeye Catalufa, Pristigenys serrula

Popeye Catalufa, Pristigenys serrula, Juveniles. Both fish provided by the commercial fishermen of the greater Los Cabos area, Baja California Sur, July 2005. Length: 3.5 cm (1.4 inches) and 6.8 cm (2.7 inches), respectively. Note the interesting change in the body shape of this species from juvenile (round) to the adult (oval). Identifications courtesy of H.J. Walker, Jr., Scripps Institution of Oceanography, La Jolla, California.

Popeye Catalufa, Pristigenys serrula, Juvenile. Fish caught from coastal waters off Point Palmilla, Baja California Sur, February 2018. Length: 12 cm (4.7 inches).

Popeye Catalufa, Pristigenys serrula. Fish caught off the Gordo I Bank, Baja California Sur, February 2022. Length: 32 cm (13 inches). Catch and photograph courtesy of James Rosenwald, Saint Croix, Minnesota.

Popeye Catalufa, Pristigenys serrula. Fish caught from coastal waters off Loreto, Baja California Sur, February 2015. Length: 32 cm (13 inches). Photograph courtesy of Bob Wheaton, Cerritos, California.

Popeye Catalufa, Pristigenys serrula. Fish caught from coastal waters off  Los Barriles, Baja California Sur, August 2020. Length: 44 cm (17 inches). Catch, photograph and identification courtesy of Chip Shapley, Los Barriles.

The Popeye Catalufa, Pristigenys serrula, is a member of the Bigeye or Pricanthidae Family, and is known in Mexico as catalufa semáforo and within some fishing communities as simply “sol”. Globally, there are only four species in the genus Pristigenys, of which two are found in Mexican waters, one in the Atlantic and one in the Pacific Ocean.

The Popeye Catalufa is characterized by a strongly compressed, distinctively deep oval body that has a depth that is 49 to 53% of standard length, and a large upturned mouth with a projecting lower jaw. They are a uniform pink to crimson color with juveniles having faint dark bands on their sides that fade rapidly soon after collection. The outer edges of their rounded caudal and pelvic fins are black. Their dorsal fin is continuous with 10 spines with the central spines being the longest, a key to a correct identification. Their pelvic fins are long and are broadly attached by a membrane to the belly and positioned in advance of the pectoral fins. They are covered with large scales.

The Popeye Catalufa is found over and within rocky bottoms at depths up to 250 m (820 feet). They reach a maximum of 35 cm (14 inches) in length with this length being established by a fish that I caught. As of January 1, 2024, the International Game Fish Association world record stood at 0.5 kg (1 lb 2 oz) with the fish caught in coastal waters off San Carlos, Mexico in March 2017. They are reported to be nocturnal feeders, however I have caught them with some frequency mid-day on cut squid at depths between 45 m (150 feet) and 90 m (300 feet) in the greater Los Cabos area. The Popeye Catalufa 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 Popeye Catalufa is a resident of all Mexican waters of the Pacific with the exception that they are absent from the extreme northern portions of the Sea of Cortez.

The Popeye Catalufa is a straightforward identification due to their wide oval body and strongly upturned mouth. They are most likely confused with the Bulleye, Cookeolus japonicus (exceedingly long pelvic fins).

From a conservation perspective the Popeye Catalufa is considered considered to be of Least Concern with stable widely distributed populations. They are deemed to to be very marginal table fare and normally considered to be a “catch and release” with the exception that they are retained by subsistence fishermen.