El Niño Compendium
California Sheephead
Also calledsheepie, goat, billygoat, California redfish, snaggle tooth
Range status
Edge of rangeRarity this season
LegendaryAt the published northern limit, notable for numbers, age or season.
Primary biome
Secondary biomes
Sightings
2026 season, every one sourced
Central California
- Oct 24, 2026Wharf II, MontereyA juvenileSource: Diver post via Jarvis, Oct 24
Photos
From California this season
No photos yet. If you photographed this animal in California this season, post it to the Coastal Bulletin.
Home Range
Where it normally lives
Monterey Bay south.
Range source: Ichthyopedia entry: California sheephead
Habitat
Rocky reef and kelp bed, from the surface to about 180 feet, usually between 10 and 100 feet
Taxonomy
Phylum
Chordata
Class
Actinopterygii
Order
Labriformes
Family
Labridae
Genus / Species
Bodianus pulcher
Family, common name
Wrasses
Rarity
Rarity this season
Legendary
Reports this season
1
Conservation status
Vulnerable (assessed 2006)
Rarity in the compendium is how often the animal has been reported on the California coast this season, not how rare it is where it normally lives. It moves as new sightings come in.
Full Species Profile
The california sheephead has a full Ichthyopedia entry with its natural history, seasonality and where to find it in a normal year.
Read the California Sheephead entry →