Buffalo sculpin are named after the American buffalo because they have a very long upper spine on each of their gill covers; there’s also a smaller spine near the mouth that points downwards Their colors range from black to green and they often have 3 dark saddles across the back. They have scaleless bodies except for the large and thick scales along their lateral line.
Habitat
Shallow, rocky areas from the intertidal zone and subtidal to depths of 141 feet
Buffalo sculpin spawn from at least January to April from the intertidal to depths of 66 feet, usually where there’s a strong current, including rocky headlands, reef crests, piers, and even near invertebrates such as among mussels and barnacles. Females are able to spawn twice in a season, for a total of 16,000-43,100 eggs. A male will mate with as many as 9 females during the breeding season. Each female’s egg mass will have its own color of eggs, which might be purple, yellow, red, tan, etc. The male guards the egg mass for as long as 39 days, except when the eggs are exposed to the air during low tide. Planktonic larvae hatch out at 0.2 inches long. Juveniles will settle to shallow waters and can be found in eelgrass, kelp, or among rocky bottoms. Buffalo sculpin can reach a length of 15 inches and may live to 25 years.
IUCN Status
Not Evaluated
Ecosystem & Cultural Importance
A smaller sculpin species, the spinynose sculpin, relies on buffalo sculpins for its own reproduction. It lays its eggs on the surface of the egg mass of a buffalo sculpin.
Buffalo sculpin are preyed on by cabezon, lingcod, seals, and river otters. Their egg masses are eaten by striped seaperch.
While a male is guarding an egg mass, besides fanning the eggs with his pectoral fins, he will also bite at and chase off any striped seaperch that attempts to eat the eggs.
Citations & Other Resources
DeMartini, Edward E. inchesSpatial aspects of reproduction in buffalo sculpin, Enophrys bison.inches Envi. Biol. Fish 3.4 (1978): 331-336.
Kent, Daniel I., John D. Fisher, and Jeffrey B. Marliave. inchesInterspecific nesting in marine fishes: spawning of the spinynose sculpin, Asemichthys taylori, on the eggs of the buffalo sculpin, Enophrys bison.inches Ichthyological research 58 (2011): 355-359.
Love, Milton S. Certainly more than you want to know about the fishes of the Pacific Coast: a postmodern experience. Really Big Press: Santa Barbara. 2011. 649 pp. ISBN 978-0-9628725-6-3
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