Walleye Surfperch
Hyperprosopona argenteum
 |
Photo by:
Milton Love
|
In-depth Information Regarding this Species
| U.S. Range in the Pacific Ocean |
Vancouver Island to Baja (Eschmeyer and Herald 1983, Love 1996)
Common from Washington southward (Love 1996) |
| Habitat |
Rocks and surf (Eschmeyer and Herald 1983) |
| Substrate |
Sand (Eschmeyer and Herald 1983)
Sand or rock (Love 1996) |
| Depth range (meters) |
Down to 18 (Eschmeyer and Herald 1983)
Usually down to 9 (Love 1996) |
| Behavior |
Dense school (Eschmeyer and Herald 1983)
School during the day
Solitary at night to feed on the bottom (Love 1996) |
| Average Maximum Overall Length (cm) |
30 (Eschmeyer and Herald 1983, Love 1996) |
| Overall Length to Age Ratio (cm/age in years) |
18/4 (Love 1996) |
| Overall Maximum Age (years) |
6
Females live longer than males (Love 1996) |
| Overall Growth Rate |
Females grow faster than males (Love 1996) |
| Overall Age at Maturity (years) |
1
Males mature sooner than females (Love 1996) |
| Overall Length at Maturity (cm) |
11 (Love 1996) |
| Type of Reproduction |
Internal fertilization
Viviparous (Eschmeyer and Herald 1983, Love 1996) |
| Fecundity |
5–12 per litter (Eschmeyer and Herald 1983)
19 (Love 1996) |
| Time of Year of Spawning |
Mate in November
Spawn from April until June (Love 1996) |
| Adult Feeding Type |
Night (Love 1996) |
| Adult Food Preference |
Crustaceans (Eschmeyer and Herald 1983)
Amphipod, Isopod, Small Fish (Love 1996) |
| Commercial Fishery |
"important commercial and sport fish" (Eschmeyer and Herald 1983)
Small
"…important species for small vessel fishermen (Love 1996)." |
Recent Wild Harvest Data for Oregon
Data from the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife
(Data for all surfperch in the family Embiotocidae)
|
Year
|
Total Catch
(Pounds)
|
Ex-vessel Value
( U.S. Dollars)
|
|
1989
|
3,710
|
2,810
|
|
1990
|
4,953
|
3,540
|
|
1991
|
2,201
|
1,748
|
|
1992
|
3,596
|
3,529
|
|
1993
|
1,676
|
2,458
|
|
1994
|
1,298
|
1,819
|
|
1995
|
2,471
|
2,226
|
|
1996
|
3,428
|
4,788
|
|
1997
|
2,148
|
2,260
|
|
1998
|
3,319
|
4,773
|
