{"id":1450,"date":"2014-02-04T19:19:55","date_gmt":"2014-02-04T19:19:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.housingcamera.com\/blog\/?p=1450"},"modified":"2014-07-15T15:20:58","modified_gmt":"2014-07-15T15:20:58","slug":"marine-behaviour-identifying-scorpionfish","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.housingcamera.com\/blog\/underwater-photography\/marine-behaviour-identifying-scorpionfish","title":{"rendered":"Marine Behaviour – Identifying Scorpionfish"},"content":{"rendered":"

Marine Behaviour – Identifying Scorpionfish<\/h2>\n

\"Very<\/a>
Very large Tassled Scorpionfish (Scorpaenopsis
oxycephala) taken during a night dive in Menjangan Island, Bali<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/p>\n

Found in the most conspicuous place on the reef<\/strong>, these masters of disguise\u00a0and trickery assimilate into their surroundings complete with matching\u00a0features. They either blend in or have bright warning colours that send\u00a0signals to would-be-predators that they are poisonous and equally\u00a0distasteful. Born with fins but they don’t really swim, these fish spring\u00a0forward to ambush prey and move around by way of \u2018crawling.\u2019<\/p>\n

In the search of\u00a0this group of bizarre and awesome predators, I set out on a\u00a0mission to document this elusive species of Scorpionfish, the world’s most\u00a0venomous fish.<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Tassled<\/a>
Tassled Scorpionfish (Scorpaenopsis oxycephala)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/p>\n

Knowing the reef helps<\/strong> especially in identifying objects that don\u2019t belong.\u00a0They lurk about on the rocks, crevices and reef tops. In some places in\u00a0Indonesia, they lurk in volcanic sand, half buried. I told my buddy that we\u00a0would be looking for toxic predators and he gave me a strange look. Having\u00a0an objective prior to the dives will allow dive buddies to keep a lookout for\u00a0your subject no matter how bleak it may seem.<\/p>\n

Combing the reef without an objective might cause you to miss the nicely\u00a0camouflaged Scorpionfish amongst the cluster of tunicate or sponges but\u00a0having a trained vision for symmetrical shapes, picking out\u00a0the unmistakable form will soon become second nature. The silently-still\u00a0predator is armed and ready, with toxic spines, it became obvious for\u00a0anyone to steer clear. Approaching it from the side or front allows the fish to\u00a0accept your presence. They will dart if they don’t.<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Taenianotus<\/a>
Taenianotus triacanthus (Leafy Scorpionfish)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/p>\n

Hovering above or beside it without touching the reef is the art of\u00a0suspension<\/strong> I\u2019d learnt from not wearing a wetsuit nor gloves in the tropics. It\u00a0forces me to regulate my breathing pattern and be still for the subjects I\u00a0shoot. It gets harder to stay steady when my heart is palpitating with\u00a0excitement as I frame the deadly fish on my screen.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Inimicus<\/a>
Inimicus didactylus (Devil Scorpionfish) in Lembeh
Straits, Sulawesi<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/p>\n

Not all ‘beautiful’ and vibrantly coloured fish are pleasing to the eyes<\/strong>. There\u00a0is a specie closer to the Stonefish family, that is monstrous-looking and the\u00a0kind that would inspire Hollywood’s production of alien movies. It’s called\u00a0the Devilfish (Inimicus didactylus), complete with dorsal javelins in place of\u00a0fins; pelvic fins that evolved into a 2-pronged garden rake used for\u00a0locomotion on the seabed and a skeletal face that looks so evil, you’d\u00a0probably wonder it spawned an army to ambush you. If it wasn’t for its\u00a0smallish size of 20 – 26cm, it would have been a harrowing\u00a0experience seeing something so horrific and to imagine that such a creature\u00a0would emerge from the sand midway in my dive. Found burrowed in sandy\u00a0bottom, the Devil Scorpionfish is well camouflaged with only its\u00a0eyes and mouth exposed on the sand’s surface. The dorsal spikes are\u00a0tucked down as it lies completely still, in wait of a passing juicy morsel to\u00a0pounce on. The inner pectoral fins are brightly coloured and though this\u00a0specie may look mottled and knobbly, it is the Creator\u2019s masterpiece.<\/p>\n

\"Inimicus<\/a>
Inimicus didactylus in Tenggol Island, Terengganu<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Inimicus<\/a>
Inimicus didactylus (Devil Scorpionfish), Tenggol
Island, Terengganu<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/p>\n

Splashed with colours on its body<\/strong>, the patches of distinctive colours\u00a0become the giveaway on the volcanic sands of Lembeh Straits in Northern\u00a0Sulawesi, another destination I’ve chosen to document weird and bizarre\u00a0creatures. Even the Lionfish and Leaf Fish are part of the Scorpionfish\u00a0family. Closer to home, the Devilfish lies in wait in the sands of Tenggol\u00a0Island and upon discovering its hiding place, it chose to walk away from the\u00a0glaring video light of my camera setup! Watch video here:-<\/p>\n

http:\/\/youtu.be\/OJeL6Pfsww0<\/a><\/p>\n

Splashed with mottled patches of colours on its body, the Devilfish would\u00a0much rather have feet any day.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Inimicus<\/a>
Inimicus didactylus (Devil Scorpionfish)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/p>\n

Very little is known about the dangers<\/strong> of the hidden monster but having\u00a0pictures to caution other divers from putting their hands indiscriminately on\u00a0the reef would help prevent a nasty wound or otherwise, have a holiday cut\u00a0short for a trip to the emergency room.
\nCombing the reefs of Mabul, Tenggol, Bali and the sandy bottom in Lembeh\u00a0Straits, you can capture these stunning and stunting fish. These pictures\u00a0give you an idea of its surroundings and where they are usually found so
\nthat you can set out to photograph them. Be wary where you put your hands\u00a0on the reef because most often, Stonefish and Scorpionfish lurk in pairs. I\u00a0discovered other toxic creatures along the way and have them caught on\u00a0video to show you what people seldom see. Watch out for my next piece on\u00a0octopi encounter!<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Humpback<\/a>
Humpback Scorpionfish<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/p>\n

\"Pteroidichthys<\/a>
Pteroidichthys amboinensis (Ambon Scorpionfish),
about 4cm in size<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Marine Behaviour – Identifying Scorpionfish Found in the most conspicuous place on the reef, these masters of disguise\u00a0and trickery assimilate into their surroundings complete with matching\u00a0features. They either blend in or have bright warning colours that send\u00a0signals to would-be-predators that they are poisonous and equally\u00a0distasteful. Born with fins but they don’t really swim, these fish<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":519,"featured_media":1490,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_bbp_topic_count":0,"_bbp_reply_count":0,"_bbp_total_topic_count":0,"_bbp_total_reply_count":0,"_bbp_voice_count":0,"_bbp_anonymous_reply_count":0,"_bbp_topic_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_reply_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_forum_subforum_count":0,"_rtcl_gb_attr":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[134,1],"tags":[109,108,23],"ppma_author":[260],"class_list":["post-1450","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-guides-tutorials","category-underwater-photography","tag-lionfish","tag-scorpion-fish","tag-underwater-photos"],"yoast_head":"\nMarine Behaviour - Identifying Scorpionfish | Mozaik UW<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Marine Behaviour - Identifying Scorpionfish Found in the most conspicuous place on the reef, these masters of disguise\u00a0and trickery assimilate into their\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.housingcamera.com\/blog\/underwater-photography\/marine-behaviour-identifying-scorpionfish\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Marine Behaviour - 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