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Rougheye rockfish Sebastes aleutianus

Rougheye rockfish

A deepwater Pacific rockfish that can live over two centuries.

Photo: Anonymous Unknown author, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

The rougheye rockfish is a long-lived species found in the North Pacific. It inhabits deep, cold waters from Japan to California. Scientists first described it in 1898. These fish grow slowly and can reach ages exceeding two hundred years.

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  • Can live for more than 200 years
  • Found at depths up to 450 metres
  • Has spines along the lower eye edge
  • Range spans from Japan to California
  • Average adult size is about 80 cm

What it is

This fish belongs to the genus Sebastes. It gets its name from the spines along the lower edge of its eye sockets. Adults usually measure around 80 cm, though they can reach 97 cm. The body colour varies from pink to tan or brownish. Irregular dark patches appear on the skin, often with a darker spot behind the gill cover. The rear part of the lateral line frequently shows a pink hue.

Where it lives

These fish live in the North Pacific Ocean. Their range extends from the coast of Japan to the Navarin Canyon in the Bering Sea. They are found near the Aleutian Islands and south to San Diego, California. They inhabit depths between 150 and 450 metres. Larger individuals tend to stay in deeper water. The temperature in these zones ranges from minus 0.3 to 5.0 degrees Celsius.

How it lives

Rougheye rockfish feed on shrimps, crabs, other fish, amphipods and mysids. They often stay close to the seabed. You can find them among boulders, rocks, soft substrates, caves and crevices. While they form schools at times, larger adults often prefer solitude. They may also move in small groups for much of the year. This species is notable for its extreme longevity.

Breeding and life cycle

This species reproduces by laying eggs. Spawning mainly occurs between February and June. Occasionally, breeding activity happens between October and January. The young develop from these eggs. Specific details about larval stages or growth rates are not provided in the available records.

Rougheye rockfish
A drawing made by EveryFish from what this page says. It is a diagram, not a picture of the real fish.

Fish and people

Anglers target this species for sport fishing. The International Game Fish Association record weight is nearly 6.7 kg. As a deepwater fish, it is part of commercial fisheries in some areas. Its extreme age makes it interesting for scientific study regarding longevity in marine life. No specific cultural or culinary traditions are detailed here.

Status and threats

However, its slow growth and long lifespan suggest vulnerability to overfishing. Deepwater habitats may face threats from bottom trawling or climate changes affecting water temperatures. Further assessment would be needed to determine population trends.

Questions people ask about Rougheye rockfish

How old can a rougheye rockfish get?

This species is extremely long-lived. Individuals have been known to reach an age of 205 years. This makes it one of the longest-living fish species currently known to science.

Where does the rougheye rockfish live?

It lives in the North Pacific Ocean. Its range goes from Japan to the Bering Sea and south to California. It stays in deep water between 150 and 450 metres near the seabed.

What does the rougheye rockfish eat?

Its diet includes shrimps, crabs, other fish, amphipods and mysids. It hunts these prey items in deep, cold waters near rocks and soft substrates on the ocean floor.

Good reading and sources

Where this page comes from

The facts on this page come from the Wikipedia article "Rougheye rockfish", written by its contributors and used under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence, and from its Wikidata record (CC0). EveryFish rewrote the text in its own words, with AI assistance, and compares every page with the article to make sure no passage is copied. It may be reused under the same CC BY-SA 4.0 licence with a link back.

It may contain mistakes, and figures change over time. Nothing here is investment or buying advice. If something is wrong, tell us. Last refreshed 2026-11-15.

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Photo credits on this page

The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.

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