European seabass

European seabass
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Actinopterygii
Order:	Moroniformes
Family:	Moronidae
Genus:	Dicentrarchus
Species:	D. labrax
Binomial name
Dicentrarchus labrax (Linnaeus, 1758)
Distribution of European seabass
Synonyms
click to expand Perca labrax Linnaeus, 1758 Labrax labrax (Linnaeus, 1758) Morone labrax (Linnaeus, 1758) Roccus labrax (Linnaeus, 1758) Sciaena labrax (Linnaeus, 1758) Sciaena diacantha Bloch, 1792 Labrax diacanthus (Bloch, 1792) Perca diacantha (Bloch, 1792) Centropomus lupus Lacépède, 1802 Dicentrarchus lupus (Lacepède, 1802) Labrax lupus (Lacepède, 1802) Centropomus mullus Lacepède, 1802 Perca elongata É. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1817 Dicentrarchus elongatus (É. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1817) Labrax elongatus (É. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1817) Perca sinuosa É. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1817 Labrax vulgaris Guérin-Méneville, 1829-38 Labrax linnei Malm, 1877

The European seabass (Dicentrarchus labrax), also known as the branzino, European bass, sea bass, common bass, white bass, capemouth, white salmon, sea perch, white mullet, sea dace or loup de mer, is a primarily ocean-going fish native to the waters off Europe's western and southern and Africa's northern coasts, though it can also be found in shallow coastal waters and river mouths during the summer months and late autumn. It is one of only six species in its family, Moronidae, collectively called the temperate basses.

It is fished and raised commercially and is considered the most important fish currently cultured in the Mediterranean. In Ireland and the United Kingdom, the popular restaurant fish sold and consumed as sea bass is exclusively the European bass.^[2] In North America, it is widely known by one of its Italian names, branzino.^[3]

European seabass is a slow-growing species that takes several years to reach adulthood. An adult European seabass usually weighs around 2.5 kg (5.5 lb). European seabass can reach measurements of up to 1 m (3 ft 3 in) in length and 12 kg (26 lb) in weight, though the most common size is only about half of that at 0.5 m (1 ft 8 in). Individuals are silvery grey and sometimes a dark-bluish color on the back.

Juveniles form schools and feed on invertebrates, while adults are less social and prefer to consume other fish. They are generally found in the littoral zone near the banks of rivers, lagoons, and estuaries during the summer and migrate offshore during the winter. European sea bass feed on prawns, crabs and small fish. Though it is a sought-after gamefish, it is listed as Least Concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature because it is widespread and there are no known major threats.