The anatomy of the feeding apparatus of fishes, including the oral and pharyngeal jaws, is closely linked with ecology. Elements of the jaws can undergo drastic changes during development as species transition from larval diets to specialized adult diets. The timing of feeding apparatus specialization can be crucial for species that differentiate into specialized foraging habitats. The family Sciaenidae is a species-rich group of nearshore fishes with varied, specialized diets as adults and can be classified into three broad foraging guilds: benthic, generalist, and pelagic. Ontogenetic trajectories of jaw development have been evaluated for sciaenids in the Northwestern Atlantic but have not been evaluated for sciaenids in the Northeastern Pacific. Here, we examine jaw development of the White Croaker, Genyonemus lineatus, a generalist sciaenid that ranges from Baja, Mexico to Northern California, USA, and is exploited recreationally. A developmental series of G. lineatus, ranging from 4.1 to 43.2 mm TL, was cleared and stained. Anatomical features of the oral and pharyngeal jaws and gill arches were measured to assess development of the feeding apparatus. The observed patterns for G. lineatus then were compared against sciaenids from the Northwestern Atlantic from benthic, generalist, and pelagic guilds to test whether Northeastern Pacific sciaenids share similar developmental trajectories. Ecomorphological studies such as this one are robust and applicable to fisheries management. Once links are established between an individual species’ anatomy and stage-specific ecology, essential fish habitat requirements can be forecast for less studied, but exploited, fishes throughout their life history.