Help identify this fish?

[AirAndSea]

I caught these off the coast in Ventura area, and I’m guessing they are brown rockfish. I’m still learning to distinguish between some of the rockfish, so I appreciate help identifying these! Thanks

 

[pacificscout]

Johnny bass?

 

[TOTW]

You are correct. They’re browns. I think they call them bolina up north. If you want to really nerd out: Sebastes auriculatus...auriculatus referring to those telltale ear spots.

 

[SeaHawk IV]

Browns

 

[Tuna Vic]

Brown’s for sure,Johnny Bass look completely different,great eating enjoy!

 

[mike garrahan]

You get up to northern California and the black rockfish (Sebastes melanops) and the blue rockfish (Sebastes mystinus) are very common. All of them look pretty much the same only different colors.

 

[AirAndSea]

Brown’s for sure,Johnny Bass look completely different,great eating enjoy!

They were excellent!

 

[michael e. bingham]

They are meons , sugar bass

 

[swami 805]

X2 on sugar bass

 

[TOTW]

The sugar bass term is usually in reference to a kelp rockfish, Sebastes atrovirens, and while close, these aren’t those. The dark ear spot is a dead giveaway for the brown rockfish.

 

[eat'm_raw]

Okay, someone needs to say it: be careful about keeping fish you can’t identify. Can be a very expensive mistake. In this case, no issue, just good eats!

 

[charliecat]

Okay, someone needs to say it: be careful about keeping fish you can’t identify. Can be a very expensive mistake. In this case, no issue, just good eats!

Beat me to it. Good call

 

[b-reel]

I heard someone call them gopher rockfish, anybody else hear that before?

 

[TOTW]

I heard someone call them gopher rockfish, anybody else hear that before?

That’s yet another rf species in CA!

 

[walter heim]

I concur with brown rockfish aka bolina.
For fish ID, if it has 13 dorsal spines, it is probably a rockfish. Now you just need to know which one as i believe there are 53 species

 

[AirAndSea]

Okay, someone needs to say it: be careful about keeping fish you can’t identify. Can be a very expensive mistake. In this case, no issue, just good eats!

I feel pretty confident in identifying what I’m not allowed to keep. And I knew these were some type of rock fish, just wasn’t exactly sure which species. Im glad people are here to help. I read the regs and agree with your sentiment, better safe than sorry.

 

[KXKH]

Brown rockfish for sure, good eating fish. My favorite rockfish is the blue rockfish, I call them the crappie of the ocean.

 

[KXKH]

That’s yet another rf species in CA!

RF? Rare find? Plenty of them up here in NorCal. Some big ones too, I have to up my swimbait to 8"+ to avoid them.

 

[TOTW]

RF? Rare find? Plenty of them up here in NorCal. Some big ones too, I have to up my swimbait to 8"+ to avoid them.

RF=rockfish

 

[CaliJeepHuntr]

That's a brown rockfish, aka bolinas. We catch them from time to time out of Avila. They're good eating. Best eating is the gophers, if they're big enough and they don't drag your lure into the rocks.

Blues are just pests really, meat is mushier. Bigger ones are ok though. We always throw the blues back.

 

[kichigai1]

Grass Rockfish....used to get em out of the surf in LA all the time

 

[TOTW]

Well, at least everyone is trying here, lol!

 

[LEC]

Brown rockfish, also heard them called chocolate bass.

 

[T-Tang]

Chocolate bass

 

[jjbaxter]

Bottom one is bolina top one is grass cod