that orient themselves vertically with head downward among branching corals or urchins; similar to Centriscus strigatus (Pl. 17-1), but tail has different shape; Great Barrier Reef and throughout S.E. Asia; Indo-W. Pacific; to 14 cm. (CENTRISCIDAE)
2 MULTI-BANDED PIPEFISH
Doryrhamphus multiannulatus (Regan, 1903)
Inhabits coral reef crevices; similar to D. dactyliophorus (Pl. 17-11), but has more numerous dark bands; N.W. Australia; Indian Ocean and Red Sea; to 18 cm. (SYNGNATHIDAE)
3 ORANGE-BANDED PIPEFISH
Doryhamphus pessuliferus (Fowler, 1938)
Inhabits coral reef crevices; similar to D. dactyliophorus (Pl. 17-11), but has orange instead of white background colour; Indonesia (N. Sulawesi) and Philippines; to 15 cm. (SYNGNATHIDAE)
4 BLUE-STRIPED PIPEFISH
Doryrhamphus excisus excisus Kaup, 1856
Inhabits coral reef crevices; distinguished by reddish fanshaped tail; found throughout the region; Indo-E. Pacific; to 7 cm. (SYNGNATHIDAE)
5 RUBBLE PIPEFISH
Corythoichthys haematopterus (Bleeker, 1851)
Inhabits coral reefs, usually on rubble bottoms; similar to 6 below, but dark markings are usually less distinct on rear part of body; N.W. Australia and throughout S.E. Asia; Indo-W. Pacific; to 20 cm. (SYNGNATHIDAE)
6 RINGED PIPEFISH
Corythoichthys intestinalis (Ramsay, 1881)
Inhabits coral reefs, usually on rubble bottoms; similar to 5 above, but dark markings are usually more distinct on rear part of body; Great Barrier Reef, N.W. Australia and throughout S.E. Asia; mainly W. Pacific; to 16 cm. (SYNGNATHIDAE)
7 SCHULTZ’S PIPEFISH
Corythoichthys schultzi Herald, 1953
Inhabits coral reefs, usually on rubble bottoms; similar to 5 and 6 above, but has much longer snout; Great Barrier Reef, offshore reefs of N.W. Australia and throughout S.E. Asia; Indo-W. Pacific; to 15 cm. (SYNGNATHIDAE)
8 BROWN-BANDED PIPEFISH
Corythoichthys ampler Dawson & Randall, 1975
Inhabits coral reefs; distinguished by broad brown bars with narrower white bars between; Great Barrier Reef and throughout S.E. Asia; Indo-W. Pacific; to 9 cm. (SYNGNATHIDAE)
9 GLITTERING PIPEFISH
Halicampus nitidus (Gunther, 1873)
Inhabits coral reefs; distinguished by short smout and white background colour with numerous narrow brown bars; Great Barrier Reef, offshore reefs of N.W. Australia and throughout S.E. Asia; mainly W. Pacific; to 7.5 cm. (SYNGNATHIDAE)
10 WHITE PIPEFISH
Siokunichthys nigrolineatus Dawson, 1983
Inhabits coral reefs; lives among polyps of mushroom corals; distinguished by overall white colour; Indonesia, Philippines, and New Guinea; to 8 cm. (SYNGNATHIDAE)
11 CLEARFIN LIONFISH
Pterois radiata Cuvier, 1829
Inhabits coral reef caves and ledges; distinguished by broad brown bars on body separated by narrow white lines, horizontal band on tail base, and enlarged filamentous pectoral fins; offshore reefs of N.W. Australia and throughout S.E. Asia; Indo-C. Pacific; to 20 cm. (SCORPAENIDAE)
12 DOUBLESPOT LIONFISH
Dendrochirus biocellatus (Fowler, 1938)
Inhabits coral reef caves and ledges; distinguished by elongate “whiskers” and pair of pale-rimmed dark spots on rear part of dorsal fin; offshore reefs of N.W. Australia and throughout S.E. Asia; Indo-C. Pacific; to 13 cm. (SCORPAENIDAE)
13 WEEDY SCORPIONFISH
Rhinopias aphanes Eschmeyer, 1973
Inhabits coral reefs; distinguished by bold maze-like pattern and filamentous tentacles on head and body; Great Barrier Reef and New Guinea; W. Pacific; to 24 cm. (SCORPAENIDAE)
14 MCADAM’S SCORPIONFISH
Parascorpaena mcadamsi (Fowler, 1938)
Inhabits coral reef crevices; distinguished by 12 dorsal spines, second spine above upper jaw curves outward and hooks forward, and black spot at rear of spiny part of dorsal fin; offshore reefs of N.W. Australia and throughout S.E. Asia; Indo-W. Pacific; to 6 cm. (SCORPAENIDAE)
15 SHORT-FINNED SCORPIONFISH
Scorpaenodes parvipinnis (Garrett, 1864)
Inhabits coral reef crevices; distinguished by 13 dorsal spines and relatively low spiny part of dorsal fin; Great Barrier Reef, offshore reefs of N.W. Australia, and throughout S.E. Asia; Indo-C. Pacific; to 13 cm. (SCORPAENIDAE)
16 HAIRY SCORPIONFISH
Scorpaenodes hirsutus (Smith, 1957)
Inhabits coral reef crevices, usually on outer slopes; distinguished by 13 dorsal spines, dark blotch at front of dorsal fin, and another on basal half of pectoral fin; Great Barrier Reef and throughout S.E. Asia; Indo-C. Pacific; to 5 cm. (SCORPAENIDAE)
17 SMALLSCALE SCORPIONFISH
Scorpaenopsis oxycephala (Bleeker, 1849)
Inhabits coral reefs; rests in the open and is most commonly observed scorpionfish; similar to S. venosa (Pl. 20-10), but usually has 20 pectoral rays instead of 17-18; Great Barrier Reef, offshore reefs of N.W. Australia, and throughout S.E. Asia; Indo-W. Pacific; to 30 cm. (SCORPAENIDAE)
18 YELLOW-SPOTTED SCORPIONFISH
Sebastapistes cyanostigma (Bleeker, 1856)
Inhabits coral heads (often Pocillopora); distinguished by large yellow blotches and tiny pale spots on side; Great Barrier Reef, offshore reefs of N.W. Australia, and throughout S.E. Asia; Indo-C. Pacific; to 7 cm. (SCORPAENIDAE)
19 REEF STONEFISH
Synanceja verrucosa Bloch & Schneider, 1801)
Inhabits coral reefs, among rocks or under slabs of dead coral; wound from venomous dorsal and anal-fin spines may cause serious injury or death; similar to S. horrida (Pl. 19-8), but found more offshore in clear water; found throughout the region; Indo-W. Pacific; to 35 cm. (SCORPAENIDAE)
PLATE 19: SCORPIONFISHES (FAMILY SCORPAENIDAE)
1 DWARF LIONFISH
Dendrochirus brachypterus (Cuvier, 1829)
Inhabits coral reefs, distinguished by large pectoral fins without elongate, free filamantous rays, similar to 2 below, but has more prominent
