White Seaperch, Phanerodon furcatus
White Seaperch, Phanerodon furcatus. Fish caught from coastal waters off Santa Cruz, California, September 2023. Length: 15 cm (5.9 inches). Catch, photograph and identification courtesy of Ben Cantrell, Peoria, Illinois.
White Seaperch, Phanerodon furcatus. Fish caught off the beach in San Diego, California, April 2013. Length: 18 cm (7.1 inches). Catch, photograph and identification courtesy of Eli (obsessiveangling.wordpress.com).
White Seaperch, Phanerodon furcatus. Fish caught from within the Ventura, California marina, September 2020. Length: 18 cm (7.1 inches). Catch, photograph, and identification courtesy of Chris Moore, Peoria, Arizona.
White Seaperch, Phanerodon furcatus. Fish caught off Pier No. 2, Monterey, California, August 2012. Length: 18 cm (7.1 inches). Catch, photograph, and identification courtesy of Kenneth Tse, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
The White Seaperch, Phanerodon furcatus, is a member of the Surfperch or Embiotocidae Family, that is also known as the White Surfperch and as Splittails by locals and in Mexico as mojarra mojarra lomo rayado. Globally, there are three species in the genus Phanerodon, of which two are found in Mexican waters of the Pacific Ocean.
The White Seaperch has a highly compressed deep oval body with a depth that is 36% to 41% of standard length. They are predominantly a greenish silvery color with a thin dark line just below the posterior portion of the dorsal fin. Their anal and pectoral fins bases are yellow; their pelvic fins are white (a key to the identification and for which they are named); their anal fin has a dark spot near the front and the caudal fin has a dark margin. They have one or more black spots near the corner of the mouth. Their anal fin has 3 spines and 29 to 34 rays with a long base; their caudal fin is straight; their dorsal fin has 9 to 11 spines and 20 to 26 rays; and, their pectoral fins have 20 to 21 rays. They have 20 or 21 gill rakers. Their body is covered with small scales.
The White Seaperch is a demersal schooling species that is found near piers, docks and in bays with sandy substrate and in quiet waters adjacent to offshore rocks. They are known to prefer waters with temperatures of 10oC (50oF) to 19oC (64oF) and are found at depths up to 86 m (280 feet). They reach a maximum of 38 cm (15 inches) in length. They are active during daylight hours and consume barnacles, bivalves, brittle stars, crabs, fish, fish eggs, octopus, sand dollars, shrimp, and snails. In turn they are preyed upon by a wide variety of fishes, marine mammals and sea birds. Reproduction is viviparous with internal fertilization and each female carrying three to thirty-four developing young. They are sexually dimorphic with females being larger and live longer than males. They have lifespans of ten years.
The White Seaperch is a resident of Mexican waters of the Pacific Ocean but has a limited distribution, being found only from Guerrero Negro, Baja California, northward along the central and northwest coasts of Baja.
The White Seaperch is a straightforward identification due to its markings but is similar to the Pile Perch, Pnanerodon vacca (elongated dorsal rays; no dark stripe under dorsal fin) and the Sharpnose Surfperch, Phanerodon atripes (black tipped pelvic fins).
From a conservation perspective the White Seaperch has not been formally evaluated. They are a common catch of recreational anglers off piers and coastal rocks of the West Coast of North America. Although they are small in stature, they are considered to be an excellent food fish. Historically they were an important component of the diet of Native Americans. The White Seaperch Perch has been dated to the Pleistocene Period, 100,000 years ago.