Humpback scorpionfish
| Humpback scorpionfish | ||||||||||||
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Humpback scorpionfish ( Scorpaenopsis diabolus ) |
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| Scorpaenopsis diabolus | ||||||||||||
| ( Cuvier , 1829) |
The humpback scorpionfish ( Scorpaenopsis diabolus ), also known as the false stonefish , is a fish from the scorpion fish family (Scorpaenidae). It lives in the Red Sea and the tropical Indo-Pacific from East Africa to southern Japan , Hawaii , French Polynesia , New Caledonia and the Great Barrier Reef .
features
The humpback dragon head has a stocky, slightly high-backed body that is surrounded by 45 vertical rows of scales. The head and the crack in the mouth are large, the eyes small and set high. The humpback scorpionfish is usually more or less spotted. There are 2 to 3 spines on the tear bone , the first pointing forward, the others, standing close together, pointing downwards or backwards. The bony eye socket has four or more spines and usually more than 8 or 10 point-shaped, differently sized bumps that are not in a row. There is a shallow pit below the eye. The fish reach a length of 30 centimeters.
The insides of the pectoral fins are brightly colored, with orange and white bands and black spots. In the event of a malfunction, the pectoral fins are spread so that the colorful insides become visible. The hard rays of the dorsal fin contain a painful poison.
Fins formula : dorsal XII / 8–10, anal III / 5–6, pectoral 18
Way of life
The humpback scorpionfish lives solitary on the ground, especially in rocky habitats at depths of one to 70 meters, but also on sandy soils. Often it is partially buried. It feeds mainly on fish, such as lip fish and parrot fish . The reproductive biology of the species is largely unknown.
literature
- Hans A. Baensch / Robert A. Patzner: Mergus Sea Water Atlas Volume 6 Non-Perciformes (Non-Perciformes) , Mergus-Verlag, Melle, ISBN 3-88244-116-X
Web links
- Humpback Scorpionfish on Fishbase.org (English)