The Bocaccio is an elongate, laterally compressed rockfish with an extremely large mouth, and lower-jaw underbite with a prominent knob at the tip.
Color is highly variable throughout its range and life cycle, so color is hard to nail down. I would say adults typically display an orangish, coppery brown color all over. This species is known to develop large black patches over the skin which are particularly common in older specimens. This is a form of skin cancer that in no way affects the qaulity of the musculature.
Bocaccio can be found over high relief rocky structure and boulder fields, sometimes well above the structure and interspersed with schools of Widow, Vermillion, and Yellowtail rockfishes. It ranges from the Alaska Peninsula to Central Baja California. A Bocaccio may grow to be 3 feet long and weigh up to 15 pounds. These rockfish have proven to be difficult to age, so maximum life span is not known.
