The California sheephead is a large marine fish from the wrasse family. All young individuals are initially females, and later some change sex and become males with a large bulge on the head.
The California sheephead differs from other wrasses by its ability to change sex from female to male and a large bulge on the head of males. It is important for nature because it eats sea urchins and prevents them from destroying seaweed thickets.
Immature form that undergoes metamorphosis before adulthood.
Worker
birth time
Pelagic Ocean
bottom
Dogs, dolphins, lynx hang out for 9-25 years and party on their birthday three times a year
m
Map
will celebrate their {n} birthday
g
t
When your next jubilee falls in {name} life years
Human
days
marine pelagic
coral and rocky reef
How old you would be if you lived as {name}
crustaceans
Theoretical maximum lifespan estimated from the Dynamic Energy Budget (DEB) mathematical model. This value reflects a biological potential derived from metabolic parameters, not from direct observation — real recorded lifespans are often significantly shorter.
mollusks
small planktonic crustaceans — copepods, krill
adult
Maturity
crabs
Handbag
sea urchins and stars
invertebrates
About health
from 1.2 to 4.8 kilograms, 0.7 – 1.4 meters
marine coastal
When your next birthday would fall if you lived as {name}
Repro interval
results
Colors
Sex
Upcoming jubilees
Gremllins
mo
Uses jaws or beak to break hard-shelled or tough food items.
all seas and oceans
Trophic type
all living animals without backbone
Filters
Cold Upwelling
Upcoming birthdays
Truly long lives: 40-100 years. Bowhead whales, albatrosses, giant tortoises recall their birthday at most once a year
Lifespan
Age (juvenile)
Age (from birth to death)
Foraging occurs on the floor of aquatic or terrestrial habitats.
Age (embryo)
Wanderers
far from shore, deep water, large whales and sharks live here
world of Australasia
Jubilee = every 10th birthday
Earliest developmental stage inside an egg or womb.
Business sausages
Lifespan average
What do they look like?
Maturity
emergence (insects)
end of lifespan
live echinoderms, sea stars, urchins, sea cucumbers
How do they live?
fertilization / egg laying
How do they behave?
birth / hatching
metamorphosis / end of larval stage
end of acceleration
the upper illuminated layer of the sea, 0–200 meters
Share
live snails, mussels, oysters
Find a pet...
Mature, fully developed individual capable of reproduction.
water is cool or warm, cold in winter, comfortable to swim in summer
Actively hunting and capturing live prey.
Pets
Nearctic realm
{name} jubilee
cm
zooplankton feeding, animal plankton — small crustaceans and larvae
Old-timers
Find an animal or breed...
turns
Rascals
after fast growth and adult
Litter size
live crabs, shrimps, lobsters
Map data sources: Ecosystem classification — IUCN Global Ecosystem Typology (Keith et al., 2022), indicative distribution maps Keith et al. (2020), https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3546513; Large Marine Ecosystems — NOAA LME Program; Bathymetry — GEBCO Bathymetric Compilation Group (2026), GEBCO_2026 Grid, https://doi.org/10.5285/4f68d5c7-45eb-f999-e063-7086abc036fa; Climate data — Generated using Copernicus Climate Change Service information; Species occurrence data — GBIF.org, Derived dataset "all animals", https://zveriki.com/dataset/dataset.tsv; Terrestrial ecoregions — RESOLVE Ecoregions 2017 (Dinerstein et al., 2017), CC BY 4.0
How to care for them?
Living from 25 to 40 years. Orangutans, bald eagles, African elephants celebrate their birthday twice a year
°C
Not specified
Egg color
pelagic zone — open water far from shore and seabed
Where are they found?
all seas and oceans
Species lacks any fixed or lasting shelter structure.
all rivers and lakes
Locomotion through water employed while searching for or capturing prey.
Legendary longevity: over 100 years. Galapagos tortoises, Greenland sharks, ocean quahogs celebrate with family once every 4 years
Offspring
Elders
Bro
Taxons
carnivore
if born as {name}
biotope of coral and rocky reefs
age
birth date
swimming
no permanent shelter
Close
was
Career from 7 to 15 months. Dwarf hamsters, voles, field crickets celebrate their birthday twice a month
Marine world
marine epipelagic
The basics
My weight?
Non-stop carnival: they only live a few days. Mayflies, rotifers, midges celebrate their birthday more than twice a day
primary food sources
teeth
Temperate sea
Potential Habitat
d
In husbandry
On the go from 1.3 to 3.5 years. Forest mice, anoles, rainbow fish party on their birthday once a month
Feeding occurs in water bodies such as rivers, lakes, or oceans.
Mass
Mosquitoes, fruit flies, small crustaceans hustle for up to 7 months and throw a birthday party every week
Gestation
islands and part of Australia, many unusual animals and plants
aquatic
{name} birthday
Nearctic realm
No results found
North America and Greenland, from tundra to forests
On the map
Female ♀
all life stages
Body color
Map data sources: Ecosystem classification — IUCN Global Ecosystem Typology (Keith et al., 2022), indicative distribution maps Keith et al. (2020), https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3546513; Large Marine Ecosystems — NOAA LME Program; Bathymetry — GEBCO Bathymetric Compilation Group (2026), GEBCO_2026 Grid, https://doi.org/10.5285/4f68d5c7-45eb-f999-e063-7086abc036fa; Climate data — Generated using Copernicus Climate Change Service information; Species occurrence data — GBIF.org, Derived dataset "all animals", https://zveriki.com/dataset/dataset.tsv; Terrestrial ecoregions — RESOLVE Ecoregions 2017 (Dinerstein et al., 2017), CC BY 4.0
Potential habitat modelled from GBIF occurrence data. Map © Zveriki.com, licensed under CC BY 4.0.
birth year
Maturity
Jaws count
sq mm
yr
How similar?
Egg size
Male ♂
until the celebration
age as {name}
How do they breed?
On the go from 3.5 to 6 years. Hedgehogs, crows, lizards treat themselves to birthday snacks 6 times a year
What if eaten?
Neither
zoo-plankton
What do they eat?
Where do they live?
Marine world
early young
Hard dental structures used to bite, tear, or scrape food.
Freshwater
Duration
saline marine habitat
This is me
Gamers
crushing
Teeth count
How are they built?
marine
shallow near the shore, water rises and falls, crabs live here
mm
Theoretical lifespan
cold water rises from the depths, lots of fish
ml
Stars
Link copied
coastal marine zone — shelf, neritic zone
My age?
wk
My size?
Asexual
swap
Forehead bulge size
active predation
Rabbits, falcons, red-eared turtles hang out for 6-9 years and party on their birthday four times a year
Where do they take shelter?
celebrated their {n} birthday
When you would have been born if you lived as {name}
Littoral Zone
Daddies
Lifespan maximum
from development to end of fast growth
Hermaphrodite ⚥
North America and Greenland, from tundra to forests
embryo
Length
kg
Observations
◉{N} more on tap