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Exploring the beautiful nature of California


Marine Fish: California Lizardfish


Fishes are aquatic vertebrates that have fins, gills and scales. Gills are the part of the respiratory system that provide surface area for exchanging oxygen and carbon dioxide under water.

Fish are ectotherms, commonly referred to as 'cold-blooded', meaning their temperature is regulated by the temperature of their environment. They have a range of diets, being herbivores, carnivores, or omnivores. Some fish reproduce by laying eggs, while others reproduce by bearing live young.

California fish species reside in freshwater and coastal/marine waters. Coastal, or marine fish are an abundant and valuable resource. However, the ocean's supply is not limitless, and therefore careful planning and education must be undertaken to ensure the sustainability of the world's largest food source.
The California lizardfish looks a lot like a lizard The California lizardfish has an elongate cylindrical body with a head and mouth which are lizard-like in appearance. The body is a uniform brown on the back and sides shading to tan or white on the belly.

Because of its elongated body and mouth full of sharp teeth, California lizardfish are occasionally mistaken for the California barracuda. The barracuda, however, is silvery rather than brown and has two dorsal fins of approximately equal size with a wide space between them. The lizardfish has only a single dorsal fin with a tiny fleshy fin behind it.

The California lizardfish occurs from Guaymus, Mexico, to San Francisco, California, but is not common north of Point Conception, California. This species generally occurs over sandy bottoms in shallow water ranging from 5 to 150 feet, but has been taken at depths up to 750 feet. The California lizardfish, while not sought by most anglers, is taken incidentally in fairly large numbers by anglers fishing for other shallow water bottom fishes like halibut. California lizardfish can be caught on a wide variety of cut baits fished on the bottom.
The California lizardfish spend most of their time sitting on the bottom with the body at a slight angle, propped up in the front end by the ventral fins. This inactivity ends rapidly when small fishes or squid swim into the area and the fish dart upward to grab one, usually swallowing the prey in one gulp.

This species is believed to spawn during the summer months when adult fish have been observed to congregate on sandy patches. Young lizardfish, less than 3 inches long, are nearly transparent, elongate, scaleless, with a row of large black spots under the skin of the belly.

It is reported to reach a length of 25 inches. However specimens of 10 to 12 inches are most common. The eggs are pelagic, traveling the seas at will and generating juveniles that are found in large schools. They may live for about nine years, as the otoliths of a specimen taken off the Galapagos Islands indicates. The California lizardfish is also host to a parasitic tapeworm
California lizardfish are found off the coast of California The California Lizardfish comes with various shades of brown and red blotches on its back, eight irregular dark blotches along the mid-flank, and a pale belly. The anal fin base is equal in length to the dorsal fin base.

The pelvic fins are yellow, and the pectoral fins are long and extend past the base of the pelvic fins. The California Lizardfish has a row of seven scales between the lateral line and the dorsal fin that is a key to identification.

The California Lizardfish is not an easy species to identify. It is quite similar to the Reef or Calico Lizardfish, Synodus lacertinus (series of blotches below the lateral line); the Sechura or Iguana Lizardfish, Synodus sechurae (short pectoral fins, three rows of scales between lateral line and dorsal fin, and white spots along the lateral line); and the Sharpnose or Spotted Lizardfish, Synodus evermanni (anal fin base is shorter than dorsal fin base, knob on end of chin).
 
 
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