About Synanceia horrida (Linnaeus, 1766)
Synanceia horrida is a dull-colored benthic fish, with body color ranging from brownish-grey to reddish or greenish-brown. Its skin lacks scales, is covered in warts, and often has filamentous algae growths on its surface. The head of this species is flattened, with small, widely spaced eyes that are positioned high on the head and face upwards. A deep pit lies behind and below each eye. It has a large, nearly vertical mouth with a wide gape, and fringing cirrhi along its lips. Its pectoral fins are large and fleshy. The dorsal fin holds 13 or 14 spines and 6 soft rays, with the second through fourth spines longer than the rest. The anal fin has 3 spines and 5 soft rays. This species can grow to a maximum total length of 60 cm (24 inches).
Synanceia horrida, also called the estuarine stonefish, lives in the Indo-Pacific region, with a range stretching from India's eastern coast to Papua New Guinea, north to southern Japan, and south to Australia. Within Australia, it occurs from Shark Bay in Western Australia, along the tropical northern coast, to Coffs Harbour in New South Wales. It inhabits sheltered inshore reefs and estuaries, and is often found in very shallow water among coral rubble and rocks on reef flats, as well as in seagrass beds.
