Rockfish is a common term used to describe fishes who enjoy hiding under rocks. There are numerous types of rockfishes but they may not be related to one another, but for sure they still enjoy settling beneath or behind rocks. Several types of rockfishes are the oceanic “Sebastes”, acanthoclinus, bull huss or the rock salmon, the venomous stonefishes, groupers as well as the striped bass.
It is widely believed that rockfishes are poisonous, but to what extent is that true? And what are the health benefits of rockfish?
Types of Rockfish
Before we find out about health benefits of rockfish, here’s the types of rockfish:
- Sebastes
The sebastes are found majority in the Pacific Ocean, particularly off the Californian coasts. Sebastes are also known to possess extremely long lifespan, with some species having known to exceed 100 years of age. It often consumed as a substitution to the costlier northern red snapper, in which it partly contributed to restrictions on fishing thanks to overfishing.
- Acanthoclinus
The acanthoclinus or the New Zealand rockfish can only be found in New Zealand at shallow waters with a maximum depth of 15 meters. They are also pretty small in size, measuring barely 5 to 15 cm long.
- Bull Huss (Rock Salmon or Nursehound)
This is a species of catshark that is primarily found in the Atlantic Ocean as well as the Mediterranean Sea. They are normally found in medium depth waters from 20-60 metres among algae and rocks. This nocturnal fish also has the possibility to grow up to 1.6 metres long.
These are also the health benefits of chum salmon.
- Stonefish
Stonefishes or the Synanceia is one of the venomous fishes in the world that habits the Pacific Ocean off east Australia. Their colour and shape allow the stonefish to perfectly camouflage themselves with the rocky surroundings. When triggered or disturbed (such as when stepped on by divers), they will also not hesitate to sting lethal venom into the perpetrator. The venom becomes fatal if untreated, and there are at least 25 recorded cases of death caused by stonefishes in Australia.
- Groupers
The term grouper is not actually referring to a particular species of fish, instead it refers to two species which are the Epinephelus as well as the Mycteroperca. Groupers in general have a distinct appearance comprising of a stubby body. They can also be as heavy as 100 kilograms with a length of 1 metre. The grouper has a distinctive sucking ability through its mouth, which is able to suck in preys from a distance and swallow it right after. The huge mouths are also utilized to dig sands under rocks for shelter while blasting it out through the gills.
- Striped Bass
Striped basses are native to the American East Coast and have been introduced to fisheries in mainland United States. The striped bass can adapt to both saltwater and freshwater, normally spending their early lives on freshwater and later as they are grown in saltwater. This type of fish is also popular yet valuable for sport fishing across the United States.
- Scorpaena
The scorpaena is a common term to describe various kinds of scorpion fishes. There are at least 62 discovered types of the Scorpaena. One common variant, the Madeira rockfish is native to the shallow waters of the Mediterranean Sea as well as North Atlantic Ocean. This yellow and red striped fish has a pretty small dimension measuring 14 centimetres.
- Myliobatis goodei (Southern Eagle Ray)
The Southern Eagle Ray is a common species of ray that belongs to the family Myliobatidae. It lives in the Atlantic Ocean stretching from Florida, the United States to Argentina. Its width of 100cm and short length makes it often mistaken to as the bullnose ray, despite the latter being more endangered than the southern eagle ray. It also gives birth on the shallow waters of estuaries and bays every spring and summer while for the rest of the year they migrate to open seas.
These are the health benefits of freshwater fish.
Are Rockfishes Poisonous?
There is a public perception that rockfishes are poisonous. Yes, that is true but only up to a certain extent. Rockfishes do contain mercury, which is not toxic if it is used moderately. Mercury on the other hand causes neurological and thyroid disorders, insomnia, kidney disorders and much more.
Like what is written above, mercury content on rockfish aren’t always absolutely negative. One simple way to avoid yourself from mercury poisoning is to not consume rockfishes everyday to maintain mercury levels at the safe level.
On the other hand, there is also another poisonous species of rockfish known as the ciguatera which contains ciguatoxin. Ciguatoxin is produced by the microalgae consumed by the reef fish. Us humans can fall ill if we consume the fishes that have consumed the algae. The illnesses range from diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, cramping and some other neurological side effects.
Potential Health Benefits of Rockfishes
Here are the health benefits of rockfish:
- Also Helps in Building Cells
Rockfishes help to building cells through its plentiful resources of protein. As we all know, protein is necessary for building and maintaining both cells and tissues.
- It also has Selenium
Ocean-sourced foods are rich in health benefits of selenium, and so are rockfishes. Selenium is important for a number of reasons, such as to increase brain power. Selenium also has cancer-fighting antioxidant properties, supports both a healthy heart and immune system. Indeed, selenium is also useful to prevent neurological disorders such as autism and down syndrome and increase brain power in return.
- It is Rich in Vitamin D
Certain types of rockfishes contain so much vitamin D that it becomes sufficient to fulfil 48% of our recommended daily intake. Vitamin D is essential for weight management like the health benefits of carp fish, bone and muscle health, nervous system function, prevent cancer symptoms plus vitamin d deficiency.
Those are the health benefits of rockfish. As you can see despite public perception of rockfishes, they aren’t absolutely negative for our health, provided that it is consumed moderately.