Parapterois macrura

Classification (WoRMS)

Full classification as recorded by WoRMS: Kingdom: Animalia · Phylum: Chordata · Class: Teleostei · Order: Perciformes · Family: Scorpaenidae · Genus: Parapterois.

Accepted name: Parapterois macrura · Authority: (Alcock, 1896) · Taxonomic status: accepted · AphiaID: 712538.

Synonyms and superseded combinations recorded for this taxon: Pterois macrura Alcock, 1896.

Source: World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) — https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=712538 (CC BY 4.0). Accessed 2026-09-23.

Biology and life history (FishBase)

Measured values published by FishBase for Parapterois macrura. Only fields the database actually holds for this species are shown; these are database values, not aquarium guidance.

Maximum length: 12.399999618530273 cm · Depth range: 64–430 m · Habitat zone: benthopelagic · Body shape: fusiform / normal · Vulnerability index: 10 of 100 · Aquarium trade: never/rarely.

Source: FishBase species summary (SpecCode 65830) — https://www.fishbase.se/summary/Parapterois-macrura.html (CC BY-NC 3.0 — non-commercial use only). Accessed 2026-09-23.

Conservation status (IUCN Red List)

The IUCN Red List assesses Parapterois macrura (Alcock, 1896) as Least Concern (code LC). No trend, population estimate or threat analysis is given here, because none is available from this source without the Red List API; follow the source link for the full assessment, including its date.

Source: IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (taxon 114177681) — https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/114177681/0; GBIF IUCN Red List category endpoint (taxonKey 4286395) — https://api.gbif.org/v1/species/4286395/iucnRedListCategory. Accessed 2026-09-23.

Description and natural history (Wikipedia)

Parapterois macrura was first formally described as Pterois macrura in 1896 by the English naturalist Alfred William Alcock with the type locality given as the Malabar Coast off Calicut. The specific name macrura means "large tail", an allusion to the filamentous extension of the upper caudal fin ray, which is as long as the body from the eye back.

Parapterois macrura generally grows to a length of 11 cm.

P. macrura and P. heterura differ in that P. heterura has scales in a pit between the posterior nostrils while P. macrura does not (except for a population of P. heterura found off the coasts of West India, South Africa, and Mozambique, which may be a different species). These species do not differ much in fin spine, fin ray, gill raker counts, and most body proportions. Their differences lie in a small difference in head proportions. Also, in adults, the upper margin of the eye of P. heterura is below the base of the first dorsal fin spine, while it is above in P. macrura (this trait is not consistent in juveniles, in which the eye margin may be below in both species).

Parapterois macrura is found in the northwestern Indian Ocean in the Arabian Sea and has been recorded from the coast of Somalia, Oman, Pakistan and southwestern India. It is found at depths between 64 and 130 m and its habitat preference is thought to similar to that of P. heterura, sheltered coastal bays to deeper waters where there are fine sand or silt substrates.

Source: Wikipedia: Parapterois macrura — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parapterois_macrura (CC BY-SA 4.0). Accessed 2026-09-23.