Hello friends, I have a scorpionfish (Scorpaena plumieri)  for you all today with his classic grumpy face, big mouth, and ornate decorations, that we found late at night out on the reef.

I’ve been searching high and low looking for scorpionfish with our blue-lights at night but am not finding any, it’s a case of when you don’t want them they are everywhere and when you need one you can’t find one to save your life!

Most species of scorpionfish are bottom-dwellers that feed on crustaceans and smaller fish. Many inhabit shallow waters, but a few live as deep as 2,200 m (7,200 ft). Most scorpionfish, such as the stonefish, wait in disguise for prey to pass them by before swallowing, while lionfish often ambush their prey. Like many perciform fishes, scorpionfish are suction feeders that capture prey by rapidly projecting a suction field generated by expansion of the fish’s buccal cavity. MORE