are schooling fish. The juveniles are occasionally reported far offshore, although they are more frequent around shallow subtidal areas and kelp beds with the adults. In their first year they can still be as small as and can be found in schools of a dozen or more on the outer edge of kelp beds and in sea grass beds. These fish reach sexual maturity when they attain a length of about which is when they are roughly wo years old. The spawning season runs from June through to October and they are broadcast spawners. The fertilised eggs and newly hatched larvae are planktonic. The larvae are most numerous off northern Baja California The juveniles will school with juvenile opaleye beneath floating rafts of kelp. Fisheries The halfmoon is a prized species for recreational anglers using rod and line, it is a bycatch in traps and bait nets. In California its season runs from August to April. The flesh is lightly flavoured and the fish can be eaten as fillets or whole and cooked in a variety of methods. Species description The halfmoon was first formally described as Scorpis californiensis in 1876 by the Austrian ichthyologist Franz Steindachner with the type locality given as San Diego, California. References External links Scorpidinae Western North American coastal fauna Fish described in 1876