Species

Alternate Names: Silver perch or surfperch. In Mexico called mojarra ovalada or perca.

Identification: Their coloring is silver with duskiness on the back and the tail is usually pink. They have no spots on the fins with the exception (generally) of a small orange spot on the anal fin. Often confused with walleye surfperch but the tips of the pelvic fins ARE NOT black and they do not have the large eyes like walleye surfperch.

Size: To 10.5 inches; those caught off piers are usually 6-8 inches.

Range: Rio San Vicente, northern Baja California to Schooner Cove, near Ucluelet, Vancouver Island, British Columbia.

Habitat: Shallow-water areas near both sand and rock. Common in both oceanfront areas and in bays.

Piers: Most common on central and northern California piers. Best bets: Pismo Beach Pier, Seacliff State Park Pier, Santa Cruz Wharf, Pacifica Pier, Fort Point Pier, San Francisco Municipal Pier, Elephant Rock Pier, Fort Baker Pier, Point Arena Pier, Commercial Street Dock (Eureka), and the Trinidad Pier.

Shoreline: One of the main fish for sandy shore anglers in central and northern California anglers.

Boats: An inshore species rarely taken by boaters.

Bait and Tackle: Silver surfperch can be caught similarly to walleye surfperch with the following modifications: silver surfperch are usually mid-depth to the top of the water so fish off the bottom; and silver surfperch are more likely to take a worm-baited hook than walleye surfperch.

Food Value:  Fair, although most of the fish are too small to have much meat available.

Comments: Silver surfperch are very attractive perch that, in northern areas, seem to average much larger size than silver surfperch in the south. They are one of the main fish caught by pier anglers in central and northern California.

Species: Cymatogaster aggregata (Gibbons, 1854); from the Greek root words cymo (foetus or fetus) and gastro (belly) and the Latin word aggregatus (crowded together, referring to the schooling nature of the fish). Family Embiotocidae, subfamily Embiotocinae.

Alternate Names: Commonly called shiner; also 7-11 perch, leven perch, yellow perch, bay perch, yellow shiner. Called minnow, shiner, or sparda by 19th century fishermen. In Mexico called majarra brillosa or perca.

Identification: Their coloring is gray to greenish above, and silvery below. Females have three yellow bars on the side; the males typically only have yellow bars during the winter, in the breeding season they are nearly black.

Silver shinerperch (male during spawning season) from the Citizen’s Dock in Crescent City

Size: To 8 inches; most caught off piers are 4-6 inches in length.

Range: Bahia San Quintin, Baja California to Sitka, southeastern Alaska.

Habitat: Shiner surfperch prefer eelgrass beds in bays but are found in almost all shallow-water bay and oceanfront areas. They’re especially common around piers.

Piers:  Shiners are one of the most numerous fish taken at California piers.

Shoreline: A frequent catch throughout California’s bays.

Boats: Rarely taken from boats.

Bait and Tackle: For most anglers, the problem with these fish is how to keep them off your hook, not how to get them on. If you are using small hooks (under a size 4) and small bait, especially pieces of worm, and if shiners are around, you will probably catch them. However, some may actually want to catch them—they are great fun for kids. They also make good live bait for larger species like striped bass and halibut. To catch them, simply use small hooks (size 8), a small piece of bait, and fish from the top to the mid-depth level of the water.

Food Value:  Too small—throw ‘em back since they attract the larger game fish to the pier. Actually some ethnic groups do eat them; they’re often pickled and some people like to dry them and use them in Oriental dishes.

Comments: Shiners can be a problem when you are using expensive pile worms or bloodworms and fishing for the larger perch.

Many thanks to Robert O’H for the help with the pictures.