Scorpaenopsis papuensis
Papua Scorpionfish
Scorpaenopsis papuensis, Raja Ampat, Indonesia, Photo: Andrew Green
Scorpaenopsis papuensis, Bali, Indonesia, Photo: Ian Shaw
Scorpaenopsis papuensis, Murion Is, WA, Photo: Andrew Green
Scorpaenopsis papuensis, Raja Ampat, Indonesia, Photo: Andrew Green
Scorpaenopsis papuensis, Raja Ampat, Indonesia, Photo: Andrew Green
Similar Species
Distribution
Tropical Indo-Pacific
Description
Moderately-humped back and prominent skin tassels on underside of head. Very similar S. oxycephala (Smallscale Scorpionfish) has smaller scales, and S. venosa (Raggy Scorpionfish) may have large cirri above eyes. Field identification difficult.
Information
Max Size: 25 cm
Sea Temperature Range: 20.6-30.4°C
Depth: 4-40m
Habitat Generalization Index: N/A
Also referred to as the SGI (Species Generalisation Index), this describes the habitat niche breadth of the species. Species with values less than 15 are found in a relatively narrow range of reef habitat types (specialists), while those over 25 may be found on most hard substrates within their range (generalists). Learn more here.
Conservation and Rarity
IUCN Status: Not Evaluated
Occurrence: Infrequent (1.6% of sites)
Occurrence describes how often the species is found on surveys within its distribution. It is calculated as the % of reef sites surveyed by RLS divers across all the ecoregions in which the species has been observed
Abundance: Solitary (1 per transect)
Abundance is calculated as the average number of individuals recorded per RLS transect, where present.
Edit by: RD Stuart-Smith, GJ Edgar, AJ Green, IV Shaw. 2015. Tropical Marine Fishes of Australia. Reed New Holland