A haplotype-resolved genome assembly of the bocaccio rockfish, Sebastes paucispinis

Rockfishes (genus Sebastes) are one of the most diverse clades amongst teleosts (ray-finned fishes). The genus includes more than 110 species which are distributed broadly across the North Pacific Ocean, North and South Atlantic Ocean, and Southeastern Pacific Ocean. Rockfishes exhibit particularly high diversity along the western coast of the United States, where their abundance plays a critical role in local marine ecosystems and fisheries. Sebastes paucispinis ("bocaccio") is a rockfish species most commonly found off the coast of California. In 2005, Bocaccio were federally declared overfished following massive depletion by commercial and recreational fisheries from the 1980s to early 2000s. Implementation of significant restrictions has bolstered recovery of critical rockfish populations along the California and Oregon coasts, but the impact of anthropogenic stressors on bocaccio, and other Sebastes species, has yet to be fully evaluated. Here, we present the first de novo reference-quality genome assembly of Sebastes paucispinis, as part of the California Conservation Genomics Project.