''Scorpaenopsis oxycephalus'', the tasseled scorpionfish, or small-scaled scorpionfish, is a

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

venom Venom or zootoxin is a type of toxin produced by an animal that is actively delivered through a wound by means of a bite, sting, or similar action. The toxin is delivered through a specially evolved ''venom apparatus'', such as fangs or a sti ...

ous marine

ray-finned fish Actinopterygii (; ), members of which are known as ray-finned fish or actinopterygians, is a class of bony fish that comprise over 50% of living vertebrate species. They are so called because of their lightly built fins made of webbings of sk ...

belonging to the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Scorpaenidae The Scorpaenidae (also known as scorpionfish) are a family (biology), family of mostly ocean, marine fish that includes many of the world's most venomous species. As their name suggests, scorpionfish have a type of "sting" in the form of sharp ...

, the scorpionfishes. It has a wide distribution in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the largest species in its genus.

Taxonomy

''Scorpaenopsis oxycephalus'' was first formally described as ''Scorpaena oxycephalus'' in 1849 by the Dutch

physician A physician, medical practitioner (British English), medical doctor, or simply doctor is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through the Medical education, study, Med ...

herpetologist Herpetology (from Ancient Greek ἑρπετόν ''herpetón'', meaning "reptile" or "creeping animal") is a branch of zoology concerned with the study of amphibians (including frogs, salamanders, and caecilians (Gymnophiona)) and reptiles (in ...

and

ichthyologist Ichthyology is the branch of zoology devoted to the study of fish, including bony fish (Osteichthyes), cartilaginous fish (Chondrichthyes), and jawless fish (Agnatha). According to FishBase, 35,800 species of fish had been described as of March 2 ...

Pieter Bleeker Pieter Bleeker (10 July 1819 – 24 January 1878) was a Dutch medical doctor, Ichthyology, ichthyologist, and Herpetology, herpetologist. He was famous for the ''Atlas Ichthyologique des Indes Orientales Néêrlandaises'', his monumental work on ...

with the type locality given as

Jakarta Jakarta (; , Betawi language, Betawi: ''Jakartè''), officially the Special Capital Region of Jakarta (; ''DKI Jakarta'') and formerly known as Batavia, Dutch East Indies, Batavia until 1949, is the capital and largest city of Indonesia and ...

Java Java is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea (a part of Pacific Ocean) to the north. With a population of 156.9 million people (including Madura) in mid 2024, proje ...

. The

specific name Specific name may refer to: * in Database management systems, a system-assigned name that is unique within a particular database In taxonomy, either of these two meanings, each with its own set of rules: * Specific name (botany), the two-part (bino ...

is a compound of ''oxy'' which means "sharp" and ''cephalus'' meaning "head", an allusion to the long snout of this fish.

Description

''Scorpaenopsis oxycephalus'' has an elongate body which becomes compressed towards the rear with a narrow ontraorbital space. The upper posttemporal and upper opercular spines are simple. The occipital pit is either absent or very shallow. It has a very long snout and in adults there are numerous tentacles which form a beard around the mouth. There are 12 spines and 9 soft rays in the

dorsal fin A dorsal fin is a fin on the back of most marine and freshwater vertebrates. Dorsal fins have evolved independently several times through convergent evolution adapting to marine environments, so the fins are not all homologous. They are found ...

and 3 spines and 5 soft rays in the

anal fin Fins are moving appendages protruding from the body of fish that interact with water to generate thrust and help the fish swim. Apart from the tail or caudal fin, fish fins have no direct connection with the back bone and are supported o ...

. The supraocular and postocular spines are widely merged in adults so that only the tip of the supraocular spine shows, and these flare outwards to create a ridge over the rear half of the eye. This species attains a maximum published

total length Fish measurement is the measuring of individual fish and various parts of their anatomies, for data used in many areas of ichthyology, including taxonomy and fishery biology. Overall length Standard length (SL) is the length of a fish measured f ...

of , the largest species in the

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

'' Scorpaenopsis''. This scorpionfish has mottled and variable patterning of reddish-brown marked with white patches, and frequently with a darker triangular area underneath the eye that extends back over the cheek.

Distribution and habitat

''Scorpaenopsis oxycephalus'' has a wide Indo-Pacific distribution which extends from the Red Sea south to

Sodwana Bay Sodwana Bay is a bay in South Africa on the KwaZulu Natal north coast, between St. Lucia and Lake Sibhayi. It is in the Sodwana Bay National Park, and the Maputaland Marine Reserve, and is a popular recreational diving destination. The term i ...

in South Africa and through the Indian Ocean and

Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf, sometimes called the Arabian Gulf, is a Mediterranean seas, mediterranean sea in West Asia. The body of water is an extension of the Arabian Sea and the larger Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.Un ...

east to

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; , fossilized , also known as Papua or historically ) is the List of islands by area, world's second-largest island, with an area of . Located in Melanesia in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is ...

, south to Australia and north to Taiwan and, probably, the

Ryukyu Islands The , also known as the or the , are a chain of Japanese islands that stretch southwest from Kyushu to Geography of Taiwan, Taiwan: the Ryukyu Islands are divided into the Satsunan Islands (Ōsumi Islands, Ōsumi, Tokara Islands, Tokara and A ...

of southern Japan. In Australian waters this species is found on the Northwest Shelf off

Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...

, at

Cartier Island Cartier Island is an uninhabited and unvegetated sand cay in a platform reef in the Timor Sea, north of Australia and south of Indonesia. It is within the Territory of Ashmore and Cartier Islands, an external territory of Australia. The land ar ...

in the

Timor Sea The Timor Sea (, , or ) is a relatively shallow sea in the Indian Ocean bounded to the north by the island of Timor with Timor-Leste to the north, Indonesia to the northwest, Arafura Sea to the east, and to the south by Australia. The Sunda Tr ...

and on the

Great Barrier Reef The Great Barrier Reef is the world's largest coral reef system, composed of over 2,900 individual reefs and 900 islands stretching for over over an area of approximately . The reef is located in the Coral Sea, off the coast of Queensland, ...

off

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

, as well as at

Christmas Island Christmas Island, officially the Territory of Christmas Island, is an States and territories of Australia#External territories, Australian external territory in the Indian Ocean comprising the island of the same name. It is about south o ...

. It has been reported from False Bay in South Africa. They inhabit reef slopes from only 1 to 35 meters.

Biology

''Scorpaenopsis oxycephalus'' is a solitary species. It is a nocturnal ambush predator feeding on fishes and crustaceans. When in shallow waters, swimmers may accidentally tread on them which may cause painful injury from the venomous spines. This species has unique vibrant orange colours and markings that allow it to camouflage itself well in between the rocky reefs.

Utilisation

''Scorpaenopsis oxycephalus'' is sometimes caught by spear fishers and as

bycatch Bycatch (or by-catch), in the fishing industry, is a fish or other marine species that is caught unintentionally while fishing for specific species or sizes of wildlife. Bycatch is either the wrong species, the wrong sex, or is undersized or juve ...

in trawls. It occasionally makes its way into the

aquarium An aquarium (: aquariums or aquaria) is a vivarium of any size having at least one transparent side in which aquatic plants or animals are kept and displayed. fishkeeping, Fishkeepers use aquaria to keep fish, invertebrates, amphibians, aquati ...

trade.

Gallery

Pez escorpión de cabeza plana (Scorpaenopsis oxycephala), Anilao, Filipinas, 2023-08-25, DD 202-203 FS.jpg, Front view of ''S. oxycephala'' Pez escorpión de cabeza plana (Scorpaenopsis oxycephala), Anilao, Filipinas, 2023-08-25, DD 199.jpg, Side view of ''S. oxycephala'' Pez escorpión de cabeza plana (Scorpaenopsis oxycephala), Anilao, Filipinas, 2023-08-25, DD 170.jpg, Exemplar in Anilao, Philippines Scorpaenopsis oxycephala.jpg, Illustration

References

* *

External links

* {{Taxonbar, from=Q2091162 oxycephalus Taxa named by Pieter Bleeker Fish described in 1849