California Corbina
Menticirrhus undulatus
Physical Description
- Elongate (long, skinny), cylindrical-shaped body
- Shiny, incandescent, solid grey coloration, with wavy diagonal lines on sides and a whitish belly
- One barbel (fleshy filament) projecting from chin
Range
- Point Conception, California to Gulf of California, Mexico
Habitat
- Bottom-dwelling fish
- Found on sandy beaches, shallow bays, and the surf zone
- Live at depths of 0-45 feet
Reproduction
- Spawning occurs from May to September, especially mid-June to mid-August
- Males mature at 2 years old and 10 inches long and females at 3 years old and 13 inches long
- Eggs are free floating
Diet
- 90% of diet is sand crabs
- Will ingest mouthfuls of sand to get to sand crabs, and spit the sand out of their gills
- Eat some clams and other crustaceans as well
Predators
- Pacific angel shark, California halibut, bottlenose dolphin
Interesting Facts
- Sometimes they feed in such shallow water in the surf zone that their backs are out of water.
- They use their chin barbels to search for sand crabs in the surf zone.
Sources: California Department of Fish and Wildlife; Ocean Protection Council; PierFishing.com
Photo: Herb Gruenhagen