Peppered spinefoot
A venomous rabbitfish with tiny pale spots and a forked tail.
The peppered spinefoot (Siganus punctatissimus), or finespotted rabbitfish, is a marine ray-finned fish from the family Siganidae. Its range covers the Indo-West Pacific region.
This species was first scientifically described in 1929 by American ichthyologists Henry Weed Fowler and Barton Appler Bean, based on a specimen from Masinloc Bay in the Philippines. Its scientific name *punctatissimus* means "very spotted," referring to the tiny grey dots covering its body.
The fish has a deep, laterally compressed body, with a standard length just over twice its depth. The head’s dorsal profile is slightly convex, with a shallow indentation before the eye and another under the chin, giving it a protruding snout. The front nostril has a low rim that extends into a wide flap reaching halfway to the rear nostril. A recumbent spine lies embedded in the nape in front of the dorsal fin. Like all rabbitfish, it has 13 spines and 10 soft rays in the dorsal fin, and 7 spines and 9 soft rays in the anal fin; these spines are sturdy and contain venom glands. The caudal fin is strongly forked, especially in adults, with thin, pointed lobes. Maximum total length is 35 cm (14 in), though 25 cm (9.8 in) is more typical. Its overall color is dark purplish-brown, with tiny, close-set pale dots covering the head and body. The yellowish caudal fin has a brownish margin.
The peppered spinefoot is widely distributed across the western Pacific, from western Indonesia north to the southern Ryukyu Islands, east to the Solomon Islands and Micronesia, and south to the reefs of the Western Australia shelf and the northern Great Barrier Reef off northern Queensland. It lives at depths of 12 to 30 m (39 to 98 ft) in lagoon and channel reefs, usually near reef slopes and harbors.
Adults form pairs and feed on benthic macroalgae. The habitat and behavior of juveniles are unknown. The species produces venom in its fin spines; a study of a related rabbitfish found its venom similar to that of stonefish.
The peppered spinefoot is caught by trawling and sold in small quantities in fish markets in the Philippines.
Quick Facts
- Taxon
- Siganus punctatissimus
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
The peppered spinefoot was first formally described in 1929 by American ichthyologists Henry Weed Fowler and Barton Appler Bean, with the type locality given as Masinloc Bay in Zambales Province, Philippines. Its specific name punctatissimus means 'very spotted,' a reference to the body being covered in tiny grey spots. The species has a deep and laterally compressed body, with a weakly convex dorsal head profile and a protruding snout created by indentations in front of the eye and under the chin. The front nostril has a low rim that expands into a wide flap extending halfway to the rear nostril. A recumbent spine is embedded in the nape in front of the dorsal fin. Like all rabbitfishes, the dorsal fin has 13 spines and 10 soft rays, while the anal fin has 7 spines and 9 soft rays; these spines are robust and contain venom glands. The caudal fin is strongly forked, especially in adults, with thin, pointed lobes. The overall color is dark purplish-brown, with the head and body covered in tiny, close-set pale dots, and the yellowish caudal fin has a brownish margin.
Reader's Guide
The peppered spinefoot is a marine ray-finned fish of the family Siganidae, found in the Indo-West Pacific region. Its distribution spans from western Indonesia north to the southern Ryukyu Islands, east to Solomon Islands and Micronesia, and south to the reefs of the Western Australia shelf and the northern Great Barrier Reef off northern Queensland. It inhabits lagoon and channel reefs at depths between 12 and 30 meters, typically near reef slopes and harbors. Adults live in pairs and feed on benthic macroalgae, though the habitat and behavior of juveniles are not known. The species produces venom in the spines of its fins; a study of a congener found that rabbitfish venom is similar to that of stonefishes. It is caught by trawling and sold in small quantities in fish markets in the Philippines. The species attains a maximum total length of 35 cm, though 25 cm is more typical.
Did You Know?
- The peppered spinefoot has a recumbent spine embedded in the nape in front of the dorsal fin.
- Adults live as pairs and feed on benthic macroalgae.
- Its venom is similar to that of stonefishes, according to a study of a congener.
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