Stott's Goatfish, Upeneichthys stotti Hutchins 1990
Stott's Goatfish, Upeneichthys stotti. Source: Australian National Fish Collection, CSIRO. License: CC by Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike
Summary:
A pinkish orange goatfish becoming more yellowish below and more silvery on the lower half of the head, with two rows of purplish spots from above the pectoral-fin base to the caudal peduncle, and three yellow stripes from the snout to the rear of the head, the spaces between the yellowish stripes pale silvery purple, forming 3-4 pale stripes on the head. The species also has whitish barbels, and pinkish-orange fins with irregular yellowish markings and bluish spots on the dorsal and caudal fins - the spots on the second dorsal arranged more longitudinally on the outer half of the fin.
Cite this page as:
Bray, D.J. 2025, Upeneichthys stotti in Fishes of Australia, accessed 11 Jul 2026, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/1193
Stott's Goatfish, Upeneichthys stotti Hutchins 1990
More Info
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Features |
Dorsal fin VIII, 9 (last soft fin ray branched to base); Anal fin 1, 7 (last soft fin ray branched to base); Pectoral fin 14-16 (upper two rays unbranched); Pelvic fin 1, 5; Principal caudal fin rays 15 (uppermost and lowermost rays unbranched); Upper procurrent caudal rays 10-11, lower procurrent rays 10-11; Lateral line scales 26-28 (pored scales on caudal fin base not included); Scales above lateral line to origin of first dorsal fin 2.5; Scales below lateral line to origin of anal fin 5.5; Median predorsal scales 11-13; Horizontal scale rows on cheek 3; Gill rakers 6 + 17; Branchiostegal rays 4; Vertebrae 10 + 14. Body moderately elongate and compressed, depth 2.9-3.3 in SL; |
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Colour |
Fresh coloration: head and body pinkish orange, lower half of head more silvery, and lower half of body more yellowish: body with two longitudinal series of purplish spots, extending from just above pectoral base to caudal peduncle; snout with three yellow stripes continuing posteriorly towards rear margin of head, spaces between yellowish stripes pale silvery purple, forming 3-4 pale stripes on head; barbels whitish with yellow tips; all fins pinkish orange, first dorsaL second dorsaL and caudal fins with irregular yellowish markings and bluish spots, spots of second dorsal arranged more longitudinally on outer half. |
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Similar Species |
Differs from the similar Upeneichthys porosus in the distinctive coloration of its snout, different fin proportions, and attaining a smaller maximum size. U. porosus has oblique lines extending anteriorly from the eye to the upper jaw (vs. more horizontally arranged lines extending to the dorsal profile of the snout in U. stotti), and U. porosus also has some rather irregular blue cross bars on the dorsal surface of the head; U. stotti possesses shorter fin rays in the second dorsal and anal fins (longest ray 2,2-2,6 and 2,5-2,8 respectively, both in head length, versus 1,1-2,4 and 1,7-2,6 for U. porosus), and a longer first dorsal base (0,9-1.5 in head length versus 1.5-2,1); U. stotti reaches a known maximum length of 138 mm SL (vs. at least 280 mm SL in U. porosus). |
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Etymology |
The species is named "stotti in recognition of the assistance given by Mr Chris Stott who, while an honorary field assistant with the Western Australian Museum, was involved in the collection of two paratypes". |
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Species Citation |
Upeneichthys stotti Hutchins 1990, Records of the Western Australian Museum 14(4): 484, Fig. 1. Type locality: North-east of Rottnest Island, Western Australia (31"58'S, 115°34'E), trawled at 33 m. |
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Author |
Bray, D.J. 2025 |
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Resources |
Stott's Goatfish, Upeneichthys stotti Hutchins 1990
References
Hoschke, A., Whisson, G. & Moore, G.I. 2019. Complete list of fishes from Rottnest Island, pp. 150-161 in Whisson, G. & Hoschke, A. (eds). The Rottnest Island fish book. 2nd ed. Perth : Aqua Research and Monitoring Services.
Hutchins, J.B. 1990. Description of a new species of mullid fish from south-western Australia, with comments on Upeneichthys lineatus. Records of the Western Australian Museum 14(4): 483-493 figs 1-4. (described as Upeneichhtys lineatus porosus) See ref online
Hutchins, J.B. 1994. A survey of the nearshore reef fish fauna of Western Australia's west and south coasts — The Leeuwin Province. Records of the Western Australian Museum, Supplement 46: 1-66 figs 1-6.
Hutchins, J.B. 1997. Checklist of fishes of the Houtman Abrolhos Islands, Western Australia. pp. 239-253 in Wells, F. (ed.) The Marine Fauna and Flora of the Houtman Abrolhos Islands, Western Australia. Perth : Western Australian Museum.
Mees, G.F. 1964. Additions to the fish fauna of Western Australia. 4. Western Australian Fisheries. Bulletin 9(4): 31-55 (misidentified as Upeneichthys porosus)
Platell, M.E. & Potter, I.C. 2001. Partitioning of food resources amongst 18 abundant benthic carnivorous fish species in marine waters on the lower west coast of Australia. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 261: 31-54.
Platell, M.E., Potter, I.C. & Clarke, K.R. 1998. Do the habitats, mouth morphology and diets of the mullids Upeneichthys stotti and U. lineatus in coastal waters of south-western Australia differ? Journal of Fish Biology 52(2): 398-418
