Sea Bass

   The black sea bass (Centropristis striata) is a member of the family Serranidae, or true sea basses. Also known in the Chesapeake Bay area as "black will," "chub," or simply sea bass, they are year-round inhabitants of the mid-Atlantic region. These bass are bluish-black fish as adults and brownish as juveniles and have scales with pale blue or white centers.

The black sea bass population extends from Maine to the Florida Keys and into the Gulf of Mexico. Black sea bass found north of Cape Hatteras are seasonally migratory, from a stock that is considered distinct from that south of the Cape. In the Bay, adults migrate offshore and south to overwinter in the deep, 100-meter waters off the Virginia and Maryland coasts. In spring the fish return to the mid and lower Bay, as far north as Solomon’s Island, and remain there until late fall. Black sea bass have been captured as far north as the Chester River, but most fish encountered near the shore are juveniles (one to two years old).

Adult black sea bass are considered a temperate reef fish, and are most often found on rocky bottoms near pilings, wrecks and jetties. Visual feeders during daylight hours, black sea bass rely on swift currents and their large mouths to capture their prey, which include other fish, crabs, mussels and razor clams. Although they do not travel in schools, they can be found in large groups around structures or during inshore-offshore migrations.

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