Marbled rockfish (Sebastiscus marmoratus) is a saltwater species recorded in Hong Kong, Taiwan. It is mainly found over rocky. The main season in Hong Kong, Taiwan runs all year.
Scientific name: Sebastiscus marmoratus · Water: Saltwater · Season: All year
Size: up to 36.2 cm
Weight: up to 2.8 kg
The Marbled rockfish is a big-headed, mottled scorpaenid of inshore reef bottoms that spends its time among rock crevices; the agriculture knowledge portal records it around Taiwan on reef ground between 2 and 40 m, and it is also cultured commercially in Japan. It is viviparous, the eggs developing inside the female so that she gives birth to live young. Both Hong Kong and Taiwan fish it all year, mostly from shore or from boats. Maximum about 36.2 cm total length and 2.8 kg.
Four things are worth checking to identify it: the upper rear margin of the pectoral fin is almost straight, there is no suborbital spine or suborbital ridge, there is no flap of skin at the axil of the pectoral fin, and the caudal fin is rounded. The dorsal fin carries 12 spines and 10 to 13 soft rays, the anal fin 3 spines and 5 soft rays. The colour runs from yellowish brown through reddish to almost black, marked with white to dark blotches; a series of dark blotches or saddles runs along the back, and white spotting is scattered over the lower flank but is indistinct above the lateral line. It ranges from Vietnam north to China, Japan and Korea and east to the Philippines, reaching as far north as southern Hokkaido, and there are extralimital records — twice in Australia and once in the North Atlantic off Norway — which are thought to result from transport in ships' ballast water. It is a demersal fish of rocky ground near the shore, seaweed beds in lagoons and seaward reefs, feeding mainly on crustaceans and smaller fishes.
Caution: has venomous spines. Take great care when unhooking and handling; the sting is extremely painful.
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