Decoy scorpionfish

Iracundus signifer

Fish
IUCN: Least concern

Usual depth25–101 m
Water temperature24–28 °C
Best monthsFebruary, April, and October
How commonRare

Photo credit: (c) Robin White, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist

About this species

The decoy scorpionfish is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Scorpaenidae, the scorpionfishes. It is native to the Western Indian and Pacific oceans. A non-migratory species, I. signifer can be observed in close association with coral reefs at depths of from 10 to 70 metres. This species grows to a length of 13 centimeters (5.1 in) TL. This species is the only known member of its genus and can be distinguished by its unique prey-luring behavior.

Text from the Wikipedia article “Decoy scorpionfish”, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the article

Where and when

Where it has been recorded

Worldwide

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Best months

Worldwide (open data)

January: 7 records
February: 9 records
March: 5 records
April: 10 records
May: 6 records
June: 9 records
July: 7 records
August: 7 records
September: 4 records
October: 14 records
November: 6 records
December: 4 records

Depth and water temperature

Depth

Mostly recorded at 25–101 m · Deepest record: 216 m

20–30 m: 13 records
30–40 m: 5 records
40–50 m: 2 records
50–60 m: 1 records
60–70 m: 1 records
70–80 m: 0 records
80–90 m: 0 records
90–100 m: 0 records
100–110 m: 2 records
110–120 m: 0 records
120–130 m: 0 records
130+ m: 1 records

Water temperature

Recorded in surface water of 24–28 °C

22–24 °C: 15 records
24–26 °C: 19 records
26–28 °C: 8 records
28–30 °C: 1 records

Photos

Names and classification

English: Decoy scorpionfish, decoy scorpionfish

Names in 3 more languages

French: Poisson-scorpion à piége
Japanese: Hatatatekasago, ハタタテカサゴ
Simplified Chinese: 南非紀鮋, 斑點紅鮋, 石狗公, 石頭魚

Other scientific names: Iracundus sinifer, Scorpaena asperella, Sebastapistes asperella

Similar species

Lionfish
Pterois volitans
Spotted coral croucher
Caracanthus maculatus
Pygmy coral croucher
Caracanthus unipinna
Zebra turkeyfish
Dendrochirus zebra
Mozambique scorpionfish
Parascorpaena mossambica
Plaintail Firefish
Pterois russelii

Sources and credits

Names and taxonomy: WoRMS (CC BY 4.0) and the GBIF Backbone (CC BY 4.0). Photos: iNaturalist observers, each under the licence shown (CC0, CC BY or CC BY-SA).

Depth, temperature, months and maps: records from OBIS and GBIF under CC0 or CC BY.
Descriptions: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA, each linked to its article.
Conservation status as published by GBIF (IUCN Red List).
63 open-data records from 1903 to 2011.
Species data updated November 3, 2026.

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