Scorpaenodes Varipinnis

''Scorpaenodes'' is a widespread genus of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Scorpaenidae, the scorpionfishes. The fishes in this genus are found to the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Ocean.

Taxonomy

''Scorpaenodes'' was first formally described as a genus in 1857 by the Dutch physician, herpetologist and ichthyologist Pieter Bleeker , Bleeker designated ''Scorpaena polylepsis'' as its type species by monotypy. He had originally described this species from Western Sumatra in 1851. ''S. polylepsis'' was later shown to be junior synonym of ''Scorpaena guamensis'' which had been described from Guam by Jean René Constant Quoy and Joseph Paul Gaimard in 1824 from Guam. This genus is classified within the tribe Scorpaenini, in the subfamily Scorpaeninae of the family Scorpaenidae. The genus name ''Scorpaenodes'' means having the form of ''Scorpaena'' the genus Bleeker originally placed the type species in.

Species

There are currently 29 recognized species in this genus:
* ''Scorpaenodes africanus'' Pfaff, 1933
* '' Scorpaenodes albaiensis'' ( Evermann & Seale, 1907) (Long-fingered scorpionfish)
* '' Scorpaenodes arenai'' Torchio, 1962 (Messina scorpionfish)
* '' Scorpaenodes barrybrowni'' Pitassy & C. C. Baldwin, 2016 (Stellate scorpionfish) Baldwin, C.C., Pitassy, D.E. & Robertson, D.R. (2016): A new deep-reef scorpionfish (Teleostei, Scorpaenidae, ''Scorpaenodes'') from the southern Caribbean with comments on depth distributions and relationships of western Atlantic members of the genus. ''ZooKeys, 606: 141–158.''
* '' Scorpaenodes bathycolus'' G. R. Allen & Erdmann, 2012 Allen, G.R. & Erdmann, M.V. (2012): Reef Fishes of the East Indies. ''Reef Fishes of the East Indies.'' Volumes I-III. Tropical Reef Research, Perth, Australia. 1292pp. University of Hawai'i Press. .
* '' Scorpaenodes caribbaeus'' Meek & Hildebrand, 1928 (Reef scorpionfish)
* '' Scorpaenodes corallinus'' J. L. B. Smith, 1957
* '' Scorpaenodes elongatus'' Cadenat, 1950 (African spotted scorpionfish)
* '' Scorpaenodes englerti'' Eschmeyer & G. R. Allen, 1971 (Englert's scorpionfish)
* '' Scorpaenodes evides'' ( D. S. Jordan & W. F. Thompson, 1914) (Cheek-spot scorpionfish) Motomura, H., Arbsuwan, S. & Musikasinthorn, P. (2010)
''Thysanichthys evides'', a Senior Synonym of ''Sebastella littoralis'', and a Valid Species of ''Scorpaenodes'' (Actinopterygii: Scorpaenidae).
''Species Diversity, 15 (2): 71–81.''
* ''Scorpaenodes guamensis'' ( Quoy & Gaimard, 1824) (Guam scorpionfish) Motomura, H., Causse, R. & Struthers, C.D. (2016): Redescription of the Indo-Pacific scorpionfish ''Scorpaenodes guamensis'' (Quoy & Gaimard 1824) (Scorpaenidae), a senior synonym of seven nominal species. ''Zootaxa, 4067 (3): 345–360.''
* '' Scorpaenodes hirsutus'' (J. L. B. Smith, 1957) (Hairy scorpionfish)
* '' Scorpaenodes immaculatus'' Poss & Collette, 1990
* '' Scorpaenodes insularis'' Eschmeyer, 1971
* '' Scorpaenodes investigatoris'' Rama Rao, 1972
* ''Scorpaenodes kelloggi'' (Oliver Peebles Jenkins, O. P. Jenkins, 1903) (Kellogg's scorpionfish)
* ''Scorpaenodes minor'' (J. L. B. Smith, 1958) (Minor scorpionfish)
* ''Scorpaenodes muciparus'' ( Alfred William Alcock, Alcock, 1889)
* '' Scorpaenodes parvipinnis'' ( A. Garrett, 1864) (Low-fin scorpionfish)
* '' Scorpaenodes quadrispinosus'' D. W. Greenfield & Matsuura, 2002 (Four-spine scorpionfish)
* '' Scorpaenodes rubrivinctus'' Poss, McCosker & C. C. Baldwin, 2010
* '' Scorpaenodes scaber'' ( E. P. Ramsay & J. D. Ogilby, 1886) (Pygmy scorpionfish)
* '' Scorpaenodes smithi'' Eschmeyer & Rama Rao, 1972 (Little scorpionfish)
* '' Scorpaenodes steenei'' G. R. Allen, 1977 (Steene's scorpionfish)
* '' Scorpaenodes steinitzi'' Klausewitz & Frøiland, 1970
* '' Scorpaenodes tredecimspinosus'' ( Metzelaar, 1919) (Deep-reef scorpionfish)
* '' Scorpaenodes tribulosus'' Eschmeyer, 1969
* '' Scorpaenodes varipinnis'' J. L. B. Smith, 1957 (Blotch-fin scorpionfish)
* '' Scorpaenodes xyris'' (D. S. Jordan & C. H. Gilbert, 1882) (Rainbow scorpionfish)

Characteristics

''Scorpaenodes'' scorpionfishes have a very bony head which is defended by numerous spines and lacks an occipital pit. There is a longitudinal suborbital ridge which has 1-4 spines and may have another row of spines underneath those. There are teeth on the centre of the roof of the mouth but not on its sides. The dorsal fin has 13 spines and between 8 and 10 soft rays while the anal fin has 3 spines and 4 or 5 soft rays, the posteriormost dorsal and anal soft rays are branched. There are 15-20 fin rays in the pectoral fin with the lower rays being branched and the central rays being the longest. The scales are rough and typically extend onto the head. There are small spiny rays at top and bottom of the base of caudal fin. The largest species is ''S. africanus'' which has a maximum published total length of , however most species are less than in length.

Distribution and habitat

''Scorpaenodes'' scorpionfishes have a circum-tropical distribution and are found in the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans. They are found in coastal waters on coral and rocky reefs and other hard substrates.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q2206037

Scorpaenini

Taxa named by Pieter Bleeker
Venomous fish
Marine fish genera