California Halibut Photos and Fish Species Information

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California Halibut, California Flounder
Lenguado de California
(Paralichtys californicus)

Fish Identification Photos: California Halibut, Paralichtys californicus: The California Halibut is a member of the Bothidae Family of Left Eyed Flounders which includes flounders and sanddabs and the Paralichtys Genus which has only flounders. There are 98 global members of this family from 16 genera. There are only two members of the genus found in Mexican waters. The California Halibut is an exceptional species, with 60 percent of the individuals having eyes on the left side and 40 percent on the right side.

The California Halibut has a uniform dark chocolate brown appearance with a series of small pale dots randomly spaced over the body. It has a large mouth with the upper jaw extending behind the eyes and a set of strong canine teeth. The California Halibut is characterized by the shape of its tail which has a margin that is arched in the middle with outer edges that are square-cut or slightly indented. The long lateral line is significantly arched over the pectoral fin with branches into the upper eye and below the lower eye. The California Halibut has pectoral fins on both sides of body.

The California Halibut reaches a maximum size of 5 feet in length and 60 pounds. It is found in the first 600 feet of the water column over sandy and muddy soft bottoms. It is an opportunistic feeder, lying in wait, well camouflaged and partially submerged, on the ocean floor. In Mexico, the California Halibut is described as only found north of Magdalena Bay on the Pacific side of the Baja California peninsula, and absent from all other Mexican waters. However, it may also occur as a "trapped" population in the northern Sea of Cortez. See photos and notes below.

Due to its high food value in Southern California, the California Halibut has been a major targeted species. This has caused overfishing by both commercial fishermen, with annual catches of up to 1,000 tons via gillnets and otter trawls, and recreational anglers catching up to 300,000 per year. The California Halibut is considered to be a highly regulated species.

California Halibut Photo 1

California Halibut, Paralichtys californicus: Caught at Puerto Lopez Mateos, Magdalena Bay, Baja California Sur, Mexico, by Mary Kira.

California Halibut Photo 2

California Halibut, Paralichtys californicus: Photo courtesy San Quintin Sportfishing, San Quintin, Baja California, Mexico.

California Halibut Photo 3

California Halibut, Paralichtys californicus: Photo courtesy Trout Traubman.

California Halibut, Paralichtys californicus: Possible northern Sea of Cortez population: We have recently received a series of excellent halibut photos from Mike Auditore and Shawn Gustafson, who fish the extreme northeast corner of the Sea of Cortez out of Rocky Point (Puerto Penasco), Sonora, Mexico. Due to the size of the fish, it was logical to assume that they had caught California Halibut, Paralichtys califorenicus. However, a consultation of the scientific literature and our network of professional fish experts yielded mixed views on both the identity of the species pictured below and the likelihood of the California Halibut actually residing in the Sea of Cortez. We really cannot tell from these photos if these are California Halibut, Cortez Halibut, Paralichtys aestuarius, or Speckled (Dappled) Flounder, Paralichtys woolmani. Clearly, the best way to get this resolved is to have a professional present during the collection process. We would like to thank Dr. Lloyd Findley, Guaymas; Dr. Milton Love, University of California, Santa Barbara; and Dr. Ross Robertson, Smithsonian Institute, Panama; for sharing their views and comments about the fish pictured below. --John Snow.

California Halibut Photo 4

California Halibut, Paralichtys californicus (tentative identification): caught Sept. 24, 2005, Mike Auditore, Rocky Point (Puerto Penasco). "We had kind of a slow day, fishing 50 miles south of Rocky Point. I had three anglers with me, and we fished for about three-and-a-half hours. We caught a total of four fish. Two of the fish were real good eating Sea of Cortez Halibut. One was close to 20 pounds. The other was about 12 pounds. We caught the fish on the drift." Description and photo courtesy Mike Auditore.

California Halibut Photo 5

California Halibut, Paralichtys californicus (tentative identification): caught Nov. 25, 2005, by Shawn Gustafson, Chandler, Ariz., below, and John Korhonen, above, in the Sea of Cortez, about 50 miles south of Rocky Point, Sonora, Mexico. "On our boat Murphy Girl, we then headed south another 40 miles and drift fished a reef in 268 feet of 74-degree water, using both live bait and cut bait. I caught a nice 15 pound California Halibut on a live mackerel and we also had two break-offs with larger fish. We decided it would be best to try drifting the rock pile instead of anchoring and then started catching nice 20 to 25 pound halibut on almost every pass using live spotted bay bass." --Description and photos courtesy Shawn Gustafson.

California Halibut Photo 6

California Halibut, Paralichtys californicus (tentative identification).