The long-spined bullhead (''Taurulus bubalis''), also known as the long-spined sea-scorpion, and the long-spined scorpion fish is a

coastal fish Coastal fish, also called inshore fish or neritic fish, inhabit the sea between the shoreline and the edge of the continental shelf. Since the continental shelf is usually less than deep, it follows that pelagic coastal fish are generally ep ...

of the sculpin family

Cottidae The Cottidae are a family of fish in the superfamily Cottoidea, the sculpins. It is the largest sculpin family, with about 275 species in 70 genera.Kane, E. A. and T. E. Higham. (2012)Life in the flow lane: differences in pectoral fin morphology ...

, inhabiting marine waters of Europe.

Taxonomy

The longspined bullhead was first formally described as ''Cottus bubalis'' in 1786 by the Swedish

biologist A biologist is a scientist who conducts research in biology. Biologists are interested in studying life on Earth, whether it is an individual Cell (biology), cell, a multicellular organism, or a Community (ecology), community of Biological inter ...

Bengt Anders Euphrasén Bengt Anders Euphrasén (born 1756 in the parish of Habo, historical province of Västergötland, Sweden; died 25 December 1796 in Stockholm) was a Swedish botanist. Euphrasén studied at the veterinary school in Skara and then entered Uppsala U ...

with its type locality given as

Bohuslän Bohuslän () is a Provinces of Sweden, Swedish province in Götaland, on the northernmost part of the country's west coast. It is bordered by Dalsland to the northeast, Västergötland to the southeast, the Skagerrak arm of the North Sea to the ...

in Sweden. In 1907 the Russian

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 ...

Valerii Ivanovich Gratzianov The gens Valeria was a patrician family at ancient Rome, prominent from the very beginning of the Republic to the latest period of the Empire. Publius Valerius Poplicola was one of the consuls in 509 BC, the year that saw the overthrow of the ...

classified this species in the

monospecific In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispe ...

subgenus In biology, a subgenus ( subgenera) is a taxonomic rank directly below genus. In the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, a subgeneric name can be used independently or included in a species name, in parentheses, placed between the ge ...

''Taurulus'' of the genus ''

Myoxocephalus ''Myoxocephalus'' is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Cottidae, the typical sculpins. They are found in the northern Pacific, Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, with a few species in lakes. Taxonomy ''Myoxocephalus'' was firs ...

'', ''Taurulus'' is now recognised as a valid genus. The 5th edition of ''

Fishes of the World ''Fishes of the World'' is a standard reference for the systematics of fishes. It was first written in 1976 by the American ichthyologist Joseph S. Nelson (1937–2011). Now in its fifth edition (2016), the work is a comprehensive overview of t ...

'' classifies this genus in the

subfamily In biological classification, a subfamily (Latin: ', plural ') is an auxiliary (intermediate) taxonomic rank, next below family but more inclusive than genus. Standard nomenclature rules end botanical subfamily names with "-oideae", and zo ...

Cottinae Cottinae is a subfamily of ray-finned fishes belonging to the Family (biology), family Cottidae, the typical sculpins. The subfamily has species throughout the northern hemisphere in both marine and freshwater habitats. Genera The following gener ...

of the family Cottidae but other authorities classify it in the subfamily Myoxocephalinae of the family

Psychrolutidae The fish family Psychrolutidae (commonly known as blobfishes, flathead sculpins, or tadpole sculpins) contains over 35 recognized species in 8 genera. This family consists of bottom-dwelling marine sculpins shaped like tadpoles, with large heads ...

Description

The longspined bullhead is a small fish with a thick, tapering body and a large head and resembles the

shorthorn sculpin ''Myoxocephalus scorpius'', typically known as the shorthorn sculpin or bull-rout, is a species of fish in the family Cottidae. It is a demersal species of the Northern Atlantic and adjacent subarctic and Arctic seas.

(''Myoxocephalus scorpius''). It has two spines on each side on the gill cover, the front one extending further than the rear one. The skin is not clad in scales. There is a row of bony tubercles running along the flank on the lateral line and there are backward sloping bony tubercles on the crown of the head. It has a variety of colours ranging from shades of brown or olive green, with cream blotches and four dark, vertical bands. The belly is pale bluish-green but becomes suffused with red in males in the breeding season.

Behaviour

Bullhead are

predators Predation is a biological interaction in which one organism, the predator, kills and eats another organism, its prey. It is one of a family of common feeding behaviours that includes parasitism and micropredation (which usually do not kill ...

that will eat prawns, molluscs and small fish such as

gobies Gobiidae or gobies is a family of bony fish in the order Gobiiformes, one of the largest fish families comprising over 2,000 species in more than 200 genera. Most of gobiid fish are relatively small, typically less than in length, and the fam ...

and

blennies Blennies (from the Greek and , mucus, slime) are a diverse clade of ray-finned fish in the suborder Blennioidei of the percomorph order Blenniiformes. They inhabit marine, brackish, and occasionally freshwater habitats, and generally share simi ...

. Despite their small size they are aggressive and will attack fish bigger than themselves. They lie in wait for prey,

camouflage Camouflage is the use of any combination of materials, coloration, or illumination for concealment, either by making animals or objects hard to see, or by disguising them as something else. Examples include the leopard's spotted coat, the b ...

d against rocks and weed before striking out at anything that passes. Like all fish in the family

, the bullhead does not have a swim bladder, meaning that it sinks as soon as it stops swimming. Breeding takes place in early spring and fertilisation is internal, the

eggs An egg is an organic vessel in which an embryo begins to develop. Egg, EGG or eggs may also refer to: Biology * Egg cell, the female reproductive cell (gamete) in oogamous organisms Food * Eggs as food Places * Egg, Austria * Egg, Switzerland ...

are laid in

algae Algae ( , ; : alga ) is an informal term for any organisms of a large and diverse group of photosynthesis, photosynthetic organisms that are not plants, and includes species from multiple distinct clades. Such organisms range from unicellular ...

and are guarded by the adults. Once the fry hatch, they go offshore for a while, before returning to the coast. The reproduction of this species has not been fully studied however. They can be found from tidal areas to down, though they are most common at the coast.The Pocket Guide to Saltwater Fishes of Britain and Europe

Other names

Other English names for this species include sea scorpion, bullhead, rockfish, rock sculpin, scorpion fish, clobberhead.

References

* * : ''Taurulus bubalis''
Long-spined Bullhead
(ukonline, aquarium-pages) {{Taxonbar, from=Q1507426 longspined bullhead Marine fish of Europe longspined bullhead