The European bass is a primarily ocean-going fish native to the waters off Europe's western and southern and Africa's northern coasts, though it can also be found in shallow coastal waters and river mouths during the summer months. It is one of only six species in its family, Moronidae, collectively called the temperate basses.
It is both fished and raised commercially, and is considered to be the most important fish currently cultured in the Mediterranean. In Ireland and the United Kingdom, the popular restaurant fish sold and consumed as sea bass is exclusively the European bass. In North America it is widely known by one of its Italian names, branzino.
European bass are a slow-growing species that takes several years to reach full adulthood. An adult European seabass usually weighs around 5 kg (11 lb). European bass can reach sizes of up to 1 m (3 ft 3 in) in length and 12 kg (26 lb) in weight, though the most common size is only about half of that at 0.5 m (1 ft 8 in). Individuals are silvery grey in color and sometimes a dark-bluish color on the back.
Juveniles form schools and feed on invertebrates, while adults are less social and prefer to consume other fish. They are generally found in the littoral zone near the banks of rivers, lagoons, and estuaries during the summer, and migrate offshore during the winter. European sea bass feed on prawns, crabs and small fish. Though it is a sought-after gamefish, it is listed as Least Concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature because it is widespread and there are no known major threats.