Female to male Sheephead question
Does anyone know how big California Sheephead are when they start to change into the big black and red males? (No sick jokes please.) And yes, the smaller pink females turn into males as they mature. I think around 17 to 20 inches long and 3 to 4 pounds. Anyone know?
From experience I know that it depends on where the Sheephead is from. I've caught males as small as 14" to as big as 10lbs. The determining factor on the sex transition is not size but if there is a lack of a male among a school of fish.
According to the excellent reference volume "Certainly More Than You Wanted to Know About The Fishes of the Pacific Coast" by Milton Love, there really is no definite period that defines this change - it is a matter of conditions and habitat. In some studies it has happened in the 3-6 year range, in in other samplings fish of over 10 years still had not made the switch. Overfishing/predation can speed up the process. He notes that this can happen anywhere from 9" to 20" in size, but also keep in mind that these fish can live over 50 years. They truly are a bit of a mystery.
And for total geeks, I cannot recommend the book enough. Yes, it is pretty technical and the size of a phonebook (and not inexpensive) but it is literally textbook quality for the information. The title truly fits.
My experience for local Sheeps is around 15-18" I've never caught a male smaller than that, or a female much bigger than 14". Like the others have said though it is entirely environmental not based on age or size.
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