Ectreposebastes imus
No common name
Collection Details
Specimens
Photos
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Records
Taxonomic Hierarchy
Actinopterygii (Ray-finned Fishes)
Scorpaeniformes (Lionfish, Stonefish and others)
Setarchidae (Deep-sea Bristly Scorpionfishes)
Ectreposebastes
Ectreposebastes imus
Description
This species account was compiled from
Composite (multiple sources) (McEachran, J.D. and J.D. Fechhelm. Fishes of the Gulf of Mexico. University of Texas Press, Austin.)
and processed using AI-assisted text extraction.
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Characters
Head and snout are relatively large, and eye is of moderate size. Teeth are small; arranged in narrow rows; and present in jaws, palatine, and vomer. Preorbital bone has 3 spines over maxilla, with first greatly reduced and others strongly developed. Suborbital ridge lacks spinous points. Nasal, preocular, parietal, upper and lower posttemporal, cleithral, supracleithral, and pterotic spines are present. Preoperculum has 5 spines, with third the largest, fifth the smallest, and all about equally spaced. Gill rakers on first arch number 6 or 7 on upper limb and 9 to 11 on lower limb. Small slit is present behind fourth gill arch. Measurements are expressed as percent of SL: snout length 13%–15%, interorbital width 10%–15%, body depth 27%–52%. Orbit diameter is about half of snout length. Pectoral fin has 18 to 20 rays, with upper 1 or 2 rays unbranched, middle rays branched, and lower rays unbranched. Dorsal fin has 12 spines and 9 or 10 rays. Anal fin has 3 spines and 6 (rarely 5 or 7) rays. Scales are small, cycloid, and present on head and body. Lateral line is covered by scales. Vertebrae number 24, and pyloric caeca number four or five. Gas bladder is absent or rudimentary.
Ectreposebastes imus is black. Adults are maroon and black, and juveniles are black. Mouth cavity is black with patches of bright orange and red in life.
Distribution
northern Gulf of Mexico
northern Gulf of Mexico
Habitat Associations
tropical to warm temperate Atlantic and the eastern and Central Pacific, between 274 and 732 m
Adult specimens are occasionally captured in midwater nets
Biology
Food consists of amphipods and midwater shrimps (Sergestes sp.)
Maximum known size is 171 mm SL
Among all scorpionfishes, it is structurally best adapted for mid-water existence (Ref. 11015). Benthopelagic (Ref. 58302). Feeds mainly on crustaceans, amphipods and sergestid shrimps (Ref. 28023). Anterolateral glandular grooves with venom gland at least in anal-fin spines (Ref. 57406).
IUCN Red List Status: Least Concern (LC), assessed 2013-07-15.
Commercial or Environmental Importance
Fisheries: minor commercial.
References
Eschmeyer and Collette 1966
Eschmeyer 1969b
Uyeno and Sato 1983b
Poss and Eschmeyer 2002
Masuda, H., K. Amaoka, C. Araga, T. Uyeno and T. Yoshino (1984) The fishes of the Japanese Archipelago. Vol. 1. Tokai University Press, Tokyo, Japan. 437 p. (text).
Eschmeyer, W.N. and L.J. Dempster (1990) Scorpaenidae. p. 665-679. In J.C. Quero, J.C. Hureau, C. Karrer, A. Post and L. Saldanha (eds.) Check-list of the fishes of the eastern tropical Atlantic (CLOFETA). JNICT, Lisbon; SEI, Paris; and UNESCO, Paris. Vol. 2.
Eschmeyer, W.N. and J.E. Randall (1975) The scorpaenid fishes of the Hawaiian Islands, including new species and new records (Pisces: Scorpaenidae). Proc. Calif. Acad. Sci. 40(11):265-334.
Eschmeyer, W.N. and B.B. Collette (1966) The scorpionfish subfamily Setarchinae, including the genus Ectreposebastes. Bull. Mar. Sci. 16(2):349-375.
Uyeno, T., K. Matsuura and E. Fujii (eds.) (1983) Fishes trawled off Suriname and French Guiana. Japan Marine Fishery Resource Research Center, Tokyo, Japan. 519 p.
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