''Paralabrax'' is a genus of fishes in the family

Serranidae The Serranidae are a large family of fishes belonging to the order Perciformes. The family contains about 450 species in 65 genera, including the sea basses and the groupers (subfamily Epinephelinae). Although many species are small, in some c ...

. They are known commonly as rock basses.Pondella, D. J., et al. (2003)
The phylogeny of ''Paralabrax'' (Perciformes: Serranidae) and allied taxa inferred from partial 16S and 12S mitochondrial ribosomal DNA sequences.
''Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution'' 29, 176-84. The nine species in the genus are native to rocky

reef A reef is a ridge or shoal of rock, coral or similar relatively stable material, lying beneath the surface of a natural body of water. Many reefs result from natural, abiotic component, abiotic processes—deposition (geology), deposition of ...

habitat in the eastern

Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

and western

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the "Old World" of Afr ...

s, where they are often dominant

predators Predation is a biological interaction where one organism, the predator, kills and eats another organism, its prey. It is one of a family of common feeding behaviours that includes parasitism and micropredation (which usually do not kill th ...

in the ecosystem. They are also commercially important in local fisheries.

Biology

Like many fish in the family Serranidae, some ''Paralabrax'' species are

hermaphrodite In reproductive biology, a hermaphrodite () is an organism that has both kinds of reproductive organs and can produce both gametes associated with male and female sexes. Many taxonomic groups of animals (mostly invertebrates) do not have ...

s, specifically protogynous hermaphrodites, which are female when young and eventually change into males. Others are gonochores, with individuals being either male or female and never changing sex. Gonochores in this genus are thought to be "secondary gonochores", species with ancestors that were hermaphrodites and lost the ability to change sex. An exception is the

barred sand bass The barred sand bass (''Paralabrax nebulifer'') is a species of fish in the family Serranidae, the sea basses and groupers. It is native to California and Baja California, where it lives in the coastal waters of the eastern Pacific Ocean. Descrip ...

(''P. nebulifer''), which is a gonochore which has retained the ability.Hovey, C. B., et al. (2002)
The reproductive pattern of barred sand bass (''Paralabrax nebulifer'') from southern California.
''California Cooperative Oceanic Fisheries Investigations Report'' 43 174-81. In addition, the

spotted sand bass The spotted bay bass (''Paralabrax maculatofasciatus'') is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a sea bass from the subfamily Serraninae, classified as part of the family Serranidae which includes the groupers and anthias. It is found in the cen ...

(''P. maculatofasciatus'') appears to be flexible, with some populations made up of gonochores and some made up of hermaphroditic individuals.Hovey, T. E. and L. G. Allen. (2000)
Reproductive patterns of six populations of the spotted sand bass, ''Paralabrax maculatofasciatus'', from Southern and Baja California.
''Copeia'' 2000(2) 459-68. ''Paralabrax'' species generally spawn early in summer, their

larva A larva (; plural larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle. Th ...

e joining the

ichthyoplankton Ichthyoplankton (from Greek: ἰχθύς, , "fish"; and πλαγκτός, , "drifter") are the eggs and larvae of fish. They are mostly found in the sunlit zone of the water column, less than 200 metres deep, which is sometimes called the ep ...

when the water is warmest.Oda, D. L., et al. (1993)
Reproductive biology of three California species of ''Paralabrax'' (Pisces: Serranidae).
''California Cooperative Oceanic Fisheries Investigations Report'' 34, 122-32.

Economic importance

Several species are of economic importance as

food fish Food is any substance consumed by an organism for nutritional support. Food is usually of plant, animal, or fungal origin, and contains essential nutrients, such as carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins, or minerals. The substance is inges ...

. The spotted sand bass (''P. maculatofasciatus'') is harvested in the

commercial fishing Commercial fishing is the activity of catching fish and other seafood for commercial profit, mostly from wild fisheries. It provides a large quantity of food to many countries around the world, but those who practice it as an industry must oft ...

industry and is caught for

subsistence A subsistence economy is an economy directed to basic subsistence (the provision of food, clothing, shelter) rather than to the market. Henceforth, "subsistence" is understood as supporting oneself at a minimum level. Often, the subsistence econo ...

.Loflen, C. L. (2013)
Examination of spotted sand bass (''Paralabrax maculatofasciatus'') pollutant bioaccumulation in San Diego Bay, San Diego, California.
''PeerJ'' 1:e213 DOI 10.7717/peerj.213. Some of these fish are also popular catches in

recreational fishing Recreational fishing, also called sport fishing or game fishing, is fishing for leisure, exercise or competition. It can be contrasted with commercial fishing, which is professional fishing for profit; or subsistence fishing, which is fishing ...

. The kelp bass (''P. clathratus'') and barred sand bass (''P. nebulifer'') are sought after in the waters along the coast of

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most populous urban ...

and northern

Baja California Baja California (; 'Lower California'), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Baja California ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Baja California), is a state in Mexico. It is the northernmost and westernmost of the 32 federal entities of Mex ...

, where they have both been in the top three species caught on commercial sportfishing tours.Love, M. S., et al. (1996)
Aspects of the life histories of the kelp bass, ''Paralabrax clathratus'', and barred sand bass, ''P. nebulifer'', from the southern California Bight.
''Fishery Bulletin'' 94(3), 472-81.

Systematics

This genus is a

basal clade In phylogenetics, basal is the direction of the ''base'' (or root) of a rooted phylogenetic tree or cladogram. The term may be more strictly applied only to nodes adjacent to the root, or more loosely applied to nodes regarded as being close to th ...

in the Serraninae, the basal subfamily in the family Serranidae. In terms of its evolutionary history, these fish species have characteristics that were present in the earliest known members of the family.Sadovy, Y. and M. L. Domeier. (2005)
Perplexing problems of sexual patterns in the fish genus ''Paralabrax'' (Serranidae, Serraninae).
''Journal of Zoology'' 267(2), 121-33. A

phylogenetic analysis In biology Biology is the scientific study of life. It is a natural science with a broad scope but has several unifying themes that tie it together as a single, coherent field. For instance, all organisms are made up of cells that pro ...

showed that the

grey threadfin sea-bass The grey threadfin sea-bass (''Cratinus agassizii'') is a species of marine ray finned fish which is a member of the subfamily Serraninae of the family Serranidae, which also includes the groupers and anthias Anthias are members of the family ...

(''Cratinus agassizii'') is the

sister taxon In phylogenetics, a sister group or sister taxon, also called an adelphotaxon, comprises the closest relative(s) of another given unit in an evolutionary tree. Definition The expression is most easily illustrated by a cladogram: Taxon A and ...

to genus ''Paralabrax''. Species include:Froese, R. and D. Pauly, eds
Species List: ''Paralabrax''.
FishBase. 2014. *'' Paralabrax albomaculatus'' ( Jenyns, 1840) (camotillo) *'' Paralabrax auroguttatus''

Walford Walford is a fictional borough of east London in the BBC soap opera '' EastEnders''. It is the primary setting for the soap. ''EastEnders'' is filmed at Borehamwood in Hertfordshire, towards the north-west of London. Much of the location wo ...

, 1936 (goldspotted sand bass) *''

Paralabrax callaensis ''Paralabrax'' is a genus of fishes in the family Serranidae. They are known commonly as rock basses.Pondella, D. J., et al. (2003)The phylogeny of ''Paralabrax'' (Perciformes: Serranidae) and allied taxa inferred from partial 16S and 12S mitocho ...

'' Starks, 1906 (southern rock bass) *''

Paralabrax clathratus ''Paralabrax clathratus'', the kelp bass, bull bass or calico bass, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a sea bass from the subfamily Serraninae, classified as part of the family Serranidae which includes the groupers and anthias. It is found ...

'' ( Girard, 1854) (kelp bass) *''

Paralabrax dewegeri ''Paralabrax dewegeri'', the vieja, vieja parrot rock-bass or meo viejo, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a sea bass from the subfamily Serraninae, classified as part of the family Serranidae which includes the groupers and anthias. It is ...

'' ( Metzelaar, 1919) (vieja) *''

Paralabrax humeralis ''Paralabrax'' is a genus of fishes in the family Serranidae. They are known commonly as rock basses.Pondella, D. J., et al. (2003)The phylogeny of ''Paralabrax'' (Perciformes: Serranidae) and allied taxa inferred from partial 16S and 12S mitocho ...

'' (

Valenciennes Valenciennes (, also , , ; nl, label=also Dutch, Valencijn; pcd, Valincyinnes or ; la, Valentianae) is a commune in the Nord department, Hauts-de-France, France. It lies on the Scheldt () river. Although the city and region experienced a ...

, 1828) (Peruvian rock seabass) *''

Paralabrax loro ''Paralabrax'' is a genus of fishes in the family Serranidae. They are known commonly as rock basses.Pondella, D. J., et al. (2003)The phylogeny of ''Paralabrax'' (Perciformes: Serranidae) and allied taxa inferred from partial 16S and 12S mitocho ...

'' Walford, 1936 (parrot sand bass) *'' Paralabrax maculatofasciatus'' ( Steindachner, 1868) (spotted sand bass) *'' Paralabrax nebulifer'' ( Girard, 1854) (barred sand bass)

References

External links

Kelp Bass on Exhibit.
Monterey Bay Aquarium. {{Taxonbar, from=Q2803760 Serraninae Taxa named by Charles Frédéric Girard