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Whitespotted Anglerfish
Phyllophryne scortea McCulloch & Waite, 1918
All images: A Whitespotted Anglerfish at a depth of 8 m, Edithburgh jetty, South Australia, February 2004. View larger image.
Head of a Whitespotted Anglerfish. Note the puffy-looking skin on the second and third dorsal fin spines. View larger image.
The Whitespotted Anglerfish is a slightly compressed, deep-bodied fish. It has a dorsal fin that is divided into four parts. The illicium protrudes from on the tip of the snout and is the first spine of the dorsal fin. It is followed by two separate spines that are covered by puffy-looking skin. The posterior surface of the second spine is concave. The fourth part of the dorsal fin comprises 15 to 16 rays.
This species is variable in colour. It can be yellow, orange, brown or black. It sometimes has white patches on the body and a yellowish band from the eye to the mouth. There may be cutaneous appendages (skin flaps) on the body.
It grows to 10 cm in length.
The Whitespotted Anglerfish lives on the sea floor and is usually found on coastal rocky reefs. It is endemic to Australia, occurring from Tasmania to south-western Western Australia.
View a map of the collecting localities of specimens in the Australian Museum Fish Collection.
This species is also known as the Smooth Anglerfish.
Further reading
- Pietsch, T.W. in Gomon, M.F., Glover, C.J.M. & R.H. Kuiter (Eds). 1994. The Fishes of Australia's South Coast. State Print, Adelaide. Pp. 992.
- Hutchins, B. & R. Swainston. 1986. Sea Fishes of Southern Australia. Complete Field Guide for Anglers and Divers. Swainston Publishing. Pp. 180.
- Kuiter, R.H. 1996. Guide to Sea Fishes of Australia. New Holland. Pp. 433.
- Kuiter, R.H. 2000. Coastal Fishes of South-eastern Australia. Gary Allen. Pp. 437.
