Common Name
Longspine Scorpionfish
Year Described
Goode & Bean, 1896
Identification
Dorsal Fin: XII, 9.5
Anal Fin: III, 5
Pectoral Fin: 16-18
Pelvic Fin: I, 5
Vertebrae:
Scale rows above lateral line: 45-50
Body deep (deepest at gill opening) with a huge head. Snout about equal to eye diameter. Dorsal profile convex. Ventral profile flattened. Eye and mouth large. Head with multiple strong ridges and short spines. Lacrimal bone with a pair of downward-pointed spines (point more anteriorly) and one lateral spine. A strong cheek ridge is present (with 4 spines). Preopercle with a few strong spines (second spine small or missing). Hypohyals without an extended ventral process. Body covered in ctenoid scales. Lateral line complete. Spiny dorsal fin fairly high, with an elongated third spine. Soft dorsal fin is truncate posteriorly. Pectoral fin fanlike, with the middle rays being the longest. Pectoral rays all unbranched. Caudal fin truncate.
Color
Pale pink to orange with obscure darker red to golden mottling. Markings often golden on the dorsum and bright red on flanks. Can fade or darken with mood. Scattered darker spots, especially along lateral line. Belly pale. Dorsal, anal, pectoral and caudal fins with red or orange spots along fin rays and on membranes. Eye gold and red.
Size
Maximum size to 25cm SL.
Habitat
Bottom living over soft or hard bottoms from 80-440m.
Range
Disjunct distribution: one population from South Carolina to the Gulf of Mexico and the other from Panama to Brazil.
References
Poss, S.G. 2002. Scorpaenidae. In: FAO Species Identification Guide to Fishes of the Western Atlantic. (ed. Carpenter K), pp. 1232-1265. UN FAO Publishers, Rome.