Description: A medium-sized scorpionfish, with weakly compressed body, moderately large spiny head, and dorsal fin with strong venomous spinous part followed by soft rays. The eyes are large and the preopercular margin has a characteristic spination pattern, the second spine from above being the longest. Red above and pinkish white below, usually with vertical dark red bards on the side. Young specimens have a dark area near the end of the spinous part of the dorsal fin. The mouth and gill chamber are black.
Global Distribution: Western Atlantic from Canada to Venezuela; Eastern Atlantic from Iceland to South Africa, including islands; in the Mediterranean. View Map
BIOLOGICAL FEATURES
Size: Maximum length 47.0 cm (total length); common length 25.0 cm (TL); maximum published weight: 1.6 kg.
Growth type: Positive allometric (Mendes et al. 2004; Torres et al. 2012).
von Bertallanfy growth parameters:
Reproduction: The reproductive mode is a zygoparous form of oviparity, intermediate between oviparity and viviparity. Larvae and juveniles are pelagic.
Maturity: 32.0 cm.
Behavioural ecology:
Population structure & migrations:
ECOLOGICAL FEATURES
Depth range: FishBase: 50 - 1100 m, usually 150 - 600 m.
Habitat: Bathydemersal. Adults are found on soft or rocky bottom areas of the continental shelf and upper slope.
Feeding habits: They feed on both benthic and pelagic organisms (crustaceans, fishes, cephalopods, and echinoderms).
Trophic level: FishBase: 3.8
FISHERIES
Commercial interest: Commercial species.
Conservation status: Global: Not evaluated.
Europe: Least concern.
Nutritional information & food safety:
Proximate composition per 100 g:
energy value 117.08 kcal (5.9% DRV)
protein 19.10 g (38.2% DRV)
fat 0.74 g (1.1% DRV)
of which saturates 0.20 g (1.0% DRV)
omega-3 (EPA+DHA): 0.268 g (recommended: 0.250 - 2.0 g daily)
REFERENCES
Borges T.C., Olim S., Erzini K. (2003). Weight–length relationships for fish species discarded in commercial fisheries of the Algarve (southern Portugal). Journal of Applied Ichthyology, 19(6): 394-396.
Brito A., Pascual P.J., Falcón J.M., Sancho A., González G. (2002). Peces de las islas Canarias. Catálogo comentado e ilustrado. Francisco Lemos Editor, Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain, 418 pp.
Direcção Regional de Pescas, Madeira.
Ferreira S., Sousa R., Delgado J., Carvalho D., Chada T. (2008). Weight-length relationships for demersal fish species caught off the Madeira archipelago (eastern-central Atlantic). Journal of Applied Ichthyology, 24: 93-95.
IUCN (2014). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2014.1. www.iucnredlist.org
McEachran J.D., Fechhelm J.D. (2006). Fishes of the Gulf of Mexico. Vol. 2. Scorpaeniformes to Tetraodontiformes. University of Texas Press, Texas, USA, 1008 pp.
Mendes B., Fonseca P., Campos A. (2004). Weight–length relationships for 46 fish species of the Portuguese west coast. Journal of Applied Ichthyology, 20(5): 355-361.
Nieto A., Ralph G.M., Comeros-Raynal M.T., Kemp J., GarcÃa Criado M., Allen D.J., Dulvy N.K., Walls R.H.L., Russell B., Pollard D., GarcÃa S., Craig M., Collette B.B., Pollom R., Biscoito M., Labbish Chao N., Abella A., Afonso P., Ãlvarez H., Carpenter K.E., Clò S., Cook R., Costa M.J., Delgado J., Dureuil M., Ellis J.R., Farrell E.D., Fernandes P., Florin A-B., Fordham S., Fowle, S., Gil de Sola L., Gil Herrera J., Goodpaster A., Harvey M., Heessen H., Herler J., Jung A., Karmovskaya E., Keskin C., Knudsen S.W., Kobyliansky S., KovaÄić M., Lawson J.M., Lorance P., McCully Phillips S., Munroe T., Nedreaas K., Nielsen J., Papaconstantinou C., Polidoro B., Pollock C.M., Rijnsdorp A.D., Sayer C., Scott J., Serena F., Smith-Vaniz W.F., Soldo A., Stump E., Williams J.T. (2015). Europen Red List of Marine Fishes. IUCN and European Union, Publications Office of the European Union, Luxembourg, 90 pp.
Pereira J.N., Simas A., Rosa A., Aranha A., Lino S., Constantino E., Monteiro V., Tariche O., Menezes G. (2012). Weight–length relationships for 27 demersal fish species caught off the Cape Verde archipelago (eastern North Atlantic). Journal of Applied Ichthyology, 28(1): 156-159.
Rosa A., Menezes G., Melo O., Pinho M.R. (2006). Weight–length relationships of 33 demersal fish species from Azores archipelago. Fisheries Research, 80(2): 329-332.
Torres M.A., Ramos F., Sobrino I. (2012). Length–weight relationships of 76 fish species from the Gulf of Cadiz (SW Spain). Fisheries Research, 127: 171-175.
