The Digital Fish Library

Distribution:
Pacific Coast of North America, with 3-4 species occurring in Korea and Japan.

Habitat:
Coastal marine habitats, usuallly in kelp beds, rocky reefs and tide pools, with one freshwater species.

Remarks:
Surfperches are livebearers, with females giving birth to fully developed young. Males are often born reproductively mature, with a thickened anterior anal fin that aids in impregnation. In members of this family the bladder extends along the ventral surface of the vertebrae.

Most surfperches 'pick' small invertebrates off the bottom or off algae, however a few species are specialized zooplanktivores. All members of this family use labriform locomotion and primarily use their pectoral fins for swimming. The maximum size is approximately 45 cm.

The family includes 13 genera and 23 species.

References:
Helfman et al. 1997; Nelson 2006