Whiteface waspfish
Richardsonichthys leucogaster
- Usual depth25–305 m
- Water temperature25–29 °C
- Best monthsApril, September, and October
- How commonRare
About this species
Richardsonichthys, is a monotypic genus of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the subfamily Tetraroginae, the waspfishes, which is classified as part of the family Scorpaenidae, the scorpionfishes and their relatives. The only species in the genus is the whiteface waspfish, also known as the whitebelly roguefish, rouge fish, Torres Strait soldier fish or Richardson's waspfish. This species is native to reefs of the Indian Ocean and the western Pacific Ocean.
Text from the Wikipedia article “Richardsonichthys”, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the article
Where and when
Where it has been recorded
Worldwide
Loading the map
Best months
Worldwide (open data)
- January: 7 records
- February: 5 records
- March: 5 records
- April: 13 records
- May: 4 records
- June: 5 records
- July: 6 records
- August: 2 records
- September: 17 records
- October: 13 records
- November: 12 records
- December: 1 records
Depth and water temperature
Depth
Mostly recorded at 25–305 m · Deepest record: 325 m
Water temperature
Recorded in surface water of 25–29 °C
Names and classification
- English
- Whiteface waspfish, Rouge Fish, Torres Strait Soldier Fish, White-bellied Roguefish, Whitebellied Rougefish, Whitebelly Roguefish, whiteface waspfish
Names in 2 more languages
- Japanese
- Umanohoshihaokoze, ウマノホシハオコゼ
- Thai
- ปลามังกรหัวโต, ปลาหัวโขน
Other scientific names: Apistes leucogaster, Tetraroge darnleyensis, Tetraroge leucogaster
Similar species
- waspfish
Paracentropogon longispinis
Cockatoo FishAblabys taenianotus
- Redskinfish
Ablabys binotatus
- Spiny Leaf-fish
Ablabys macracanthus
- Onespot Waspfish
Neocentropogon aeglefinus
- Spotless Waspfish
Neocentropogon japonicus
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).
- 131 open-data records from 1848 to 2025.
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