Blackbelly rosefish (Helicolenus dactylopterus) is a saltwater species recorded in the United States. It is found at depths of 50–1100 m.
Scientific name: Helicolenus dactylopterus · Water: Saltwater
Size: up to 50 cm
The blackbelly rosefish is a sebastid whose adults are found on soft bottoms of the continental shelf and upper slope, recorded from 50 to 1,100 m. It feeds on both benthic and pelagic organisms, namely crustaceans, fishes, cephalopods and echinoderms. Its reproductive mode is a zygoparous form of oviparity, intermediate between oviparity and viviparity, and its larvae and juveniles are pelagic. Its range is the western Atlantic, from Nova Scotia in Canada to Venezuela, and the eastern Atlantic, from Iceland and Norway to the Mediterranean and the Gulf of Guinea, including Madeira, the Azores and the Canary Islands, as well as from Walvis Bay in Namibia to Natal in South Africa. Maximum length is about 50 cm total length, commonly about 25 cm, and it can live 43 years, maturing at about 32 cm. It is a commercial species and a gamefish, sold fresh, with a low price category. Fishing vulnerability is high to very high at 68 of 100 and resilience low. IUCN lists it as least concern.
Caution: has venomous spines. Take great care when unhooking and handling; the sting is extremely painful.
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