Scorpaenopsis eschmeyeri Randall & Greenfield 2004


Scorpaenopsis eschmeyeri, at Ra, Fiji, May 2016. Source: Mark Rosenstein / iNaturalist.org. License: CC by Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike

Summary:
A variegated reddish to yellowish-red  scorpionfish with irregular reddish, yellowish and whitish blotches, the darkest blotches usually above the tip of the upper opercular spine.

Cite this page as:
Scorpaenopsis eschmeyeri in Fishes of Australia, accessed 30 Mar 2024, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/3670

Scorpaenopsis eschmeyeri Randall & Greenfield 2004

More Info


Distribution

Torres Strait and the Great Barrier Reef, Queensland, and reefs in the Coral Sea, to the Solitary Islands, northern New South Wales. The species also occurs in Fiji, the Chesterfield Islands in the Coral Sea, and New Caledonia.

Features

Dorsal fin XII, 9; Anal fin III, 5; Pectoral fin 17-18; Longitudinal scale series 44--48. 
Body depth 2.8-3.05 in SL; head length (HL) 2.2-2.3 in SL; snout length 3.0-3.15 in HL; orbit diameter 4.65-4.95 in HL; nearly one-half of orbit extending above dorsal profile of head; interorbital width 6.75-7.2 in HL. Pair of interorbital ridges flaring posteriorly, then curving medially to join slight incurved ridge at front of occipital pit; median interorbital ridge extending half way back in interorbital space; occipital pit shallow and not flat. Coronal spines and pretympanic spines absent. Suborbital pit not well developed; suborbital ridge with 4 spines, the first on lacrimal; two ventral spines on lacrimal, one directed mainly anteriorly and the other curving posteriorly. 
First dorsal spine 1.9-2.4 in second spine; third dorsal spine longest, 2.2-2.7 in HL; eleventh dorsal spine 1.55-2.0 in twelfth spine; second anal spine 1.65-2.0 in HL. Supraoccipital tentacle absent. 

Colour

Body variable in colour, the darkest blotches usually above tip of upper opercular spine, two on lateral line, two obliquely above and forward of these, two in soft portion of dorsal fin, and one in anal fin.

Etymology

The species is named in honour of William N. Eschmeyer, in recognition of his research on the Scorpaenidae.

Species Citation

Scorpaenopsis eschmeyeri Randall & Greenfield, 2004, Proc. Cal. Acad. Sci. 55(19): 385, Figs. 1-2. Type locality: Rabi Island, northwestern shore, 16°26.701'S, 179°56.261'W, Vanua Levu, Fiji, depth 1-2 m.

Resources

Atlas of Living Australia

Scorpaenopsis eschmeyeri Randall & Greenfield 2004

References


Allen, G.R., Steene, R.C. & Orchard, M. 2007. Fishes of Christmas Island. Christmas Island : Christmas Island Natural History Association 2 edn, 284 pp.  

Fricke, R., Kulbicki, M. & Wantiez, L. 2011. Checklist of the fishes of New Caledonia, and their distribution in the Southwest Pacific Ocean (Pisces). Stuttgarter Beiträge zur Naturkunde. Serie A (Biologie) Neue Serie 4: 341-463 

Johnson, J.W. 2010. Fishes of the Moreton Bay Marine Park and adjacent continental shelf waters, Queensland, Australia. pp. 299-353 in Davie, P.J.F. & Phillips, J.A. Proceedings of the Thirteenth International Marine Biological Workshop, The Marine Fauna and Flora of Moreton Bay. Memoirs of the Queensland Museum 54(3) 

Motomura, H., Béarez, P. & Causse, R. 2011. Review of Indo-Pacific specimens of the subfamily Scorpaeninae (Scorpaenidae), deposited in the Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle, Paris, with description of a new species of Neomerinthe. Cybium 33(1): 55-73 

Motomura, H. & Matsuura, K. 2016. Scorpaenopsis eschmeyeri . The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016: e.T69918815A70009970. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T69918815A70009970.en. Downloaded on 17 February 2020.

Randall, J.E. & Eschmeyer, W.N. 2001. Revision of the Indo-Pacific scorpionfish genus Scorpaenopsis, with descriptions of eight new species. Indo-Pacific Fishes 34: 1-79

Randall, J.E. & Greenfield, D.W. 2004. Two new scorpionfishes (Scorpaenidae) from the South Pacific. Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences 55(9): 384-394. See ref at BHL

Quick Facts


CAAB Code:37287108

Conservation:IUCN Least Concern

Danger:Venomous spines

Depth:1-24 m

Feeding:0-60 m

Habitat:Reef associated

Max Size:11.5 cm SL

Species Image Gallery

Species Maps

CAAB distribution map