Giant sea bass (Stereolepis gigas) is a saltwater species recorded in the United States. It is mainly found over reef, rocky, sand, at depths of 5–46 m.
Scientific name: Stereolepis gigas · Water: Saltwater
Size: up to 200 cm
Weight: up to 197 kg
The giant sea bass (Stereolepis gigas) is a huge bottom-dwelling fish of the northeastern Pacific: adults are grey-brown to black with the first dorsal fin clearly lower than the second, while juveniles are brick red with black spots. It ranges from Humboldt Bay, California, south to Oaxaca and the Gulf of California, is most common south of Point Conception, and lives around kelp forests, drop-offs and rocky or sandy bottoms as the apex predator of the kelp community. Each summer the fish gather to spawn in specific areas, most famously around Catalina Island off California. California banned all take in 1981, so in the United States it is strictly a catch-and-release quarry; boat anglers in the Southern California bight still meet them incidentally and need heavy tackle and a fast, careful release.
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