Apistinae, the wasp scorpionfishes, is a

subfamily In biological classification, a subfamily (Latin: ', plural ') is an auxiliary (intermediate) taxonomic rank, next below family but more inclusive than genus. Standard nomenclature rules end subfamily botanical names with "-oideae", and zoologi ...

venomous Venom or zootoxin is a type of toxin produced by an animal that is actively delivered through a wound by means of a bite, sting, or similar action. The toxin is delivered through a specially evolved ''venom apparatus'', such as fangs or a sti ...

, marine

ray-finned fishes Actinopterygii (; ), members of which are known as ray-finned fishes, is a class of bony fish. They comprise over 50% of living vertebrate species. The ray-finned fishes are so called because their fins are webs of skin supported by bony or h ...

belonging to the

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

Scorpaenidae The Scorpaenidae (also known as scorpionfish) are a family of mostly marine fish that includes many of the world's most venomous species. As their name suggests, scorpionfish have a type of "sting" in the form of sharp spines coated with venom ...

, the scorpionfishes and related species. These fishes are native to the

Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by th ...

and the western

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

Taxonomy

Apistinae, or Apsitidae, was first formally recognised as a taxonomic grouping in 1859 by the American ichthyologist Theodore Gill. The 5th edition of Fishes of the World treats this as a subfamily of the scorpionfish

, although other authorities treat it as a valid family, the Apistidae. The name of the subfamily is based on the genus name ''Apistus'', which means "untrustworthy" or "perfidious", a name

Cuvier Jean Léopold Nicolas Frédéric, Baron Cuvier (; 23 August 1769 – 13 May 1832), known as Georges Cuvier, was a French naturalist and zoologist, sometimes referred to as the "founding father of paleontology". Cuvier was a major figure in nat ...

explained as being due to the long and mobile spines around the eyes, which he described as “very offensive weapons that these fish use when you least expect it”. A recent study placed the wasp scorpionfishes into an expanded stonefish clade (Synanceiidae) because all of these fish have a lachrymal saber that can project a switch-blade-like mechanism out from underneath their eye.

Genera

Apistinae contains the following 3

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispec ...

genera: * ''

Apistops ''Apistops'' is a monotypic genus of wasp scorpionfishes belonging to the subfamily Apistinae in the family Scorpaenidae, the scorpionfishes and their relatives. Its only species is the short-armed waspfish (''Apistops caloundra''), also known as ...

'' Ogilby, 1911 * ''

Apistus ''Apistus'' is a monotypic genus of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the subfamily Apistinae, the wasp scorpionfishes, part of the family Scorpaenidae, the scorpionfishes and their relatives. Its only species is the ''Apistus carinatus'' whi ...

, 1829 * ''

Cheroscorpaena The humpback waspfish, (''Cheroscorpaena tridactyla''), is a species of wasp scorpionfish found only in the Gulf of Papua where it is an inhabitant of coral reefs. This species grows to a length of TL.Mees G.F. (1964):A new fish of the family ...

'' Mees, 1964

Characteristics

Apistinae species have either 1 or 3 lower

pectoral fin Fins are distinctive anatomical features composed of bony spines or rays protruding from the body of a fish. They are covered with skin and joined together either in a webbed fashion, as seen in most bony fish, or similar to a flipper, as ...

rays which are free of the fin membrane and a

swimbladder The swim bladder, gas bladder, fish maw, or air bladder is an internal gas-filled organ that contributes to the ability of many bony fish (but not cartilaginous fish) to control their buoyancy, and thus to stay at their current water depth w ...

with 2 lobes. They are fairly small fishes reaching lengths of TL in the

humpback waspfish The humpback waspfish, (''Cheroscorpaena tridactyla''), is a species of wasp scorpionfish found only in the Gulf of Papua where it is an inhabitant of coral reefs. This species grows to a length of TL.Mees G.F. (1964):A new fish of the family ...

to TL in the

ocellated waspfish ''Apistus'' is a monotypic genus of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the subfamily Apistinae, the wasp scorpionfishes, part of the family Scorpaenidae, the scorpionfishes and their relatives. Its only species is the ''Apistus carinatus'' whi ...

Distribution and habitat

Apistinae species are found in the Indian and Pacific Oceans from the Red Sea and the eastern coast of Africa east in to the western Pacific Ocean, north to Japan and south to Australia. They are demersal species of the continental shelf and may be found over soft substrates or on reefs.

References

External links

Photos of Apistus carinatus (Bearded waspfish or Longfin waspfish)

{{Taxonbar, from=Q389032 Scorpaenidae Ray-finned fish families