Deepwater Scorpionfish

The channelled rockfish has a body which has a depth that is equivalent to 28-37% of its standard length, with the larger fish having less deep bodies than the smaller fish. There are 11-13 spines and 9-11 soft rays in the dorsal fin and the anal fin has 3 spines and 4-6 soft rays. The lateral line is almost continuous and is a trough covered by thin membranous scales, which are deciduous. The second spine on the preoperculum is longer and better developed than the first and the third which are of similar length. Living specimens are pinkish red to orange with reddish black spots on the head and body. In smaller individuals the colour is more reddish grey with black spots and the smallest fishes, c. 40 mm (1.6 in), have dark colouration concentrated in a patch above the pectoral fin and below the soft rayed part of the dorsal fin, with a smaller amount of dark colour on the caudal peduncle. This species grows to a maximum total length of 31.4 cm (12.4 in).

The channelled rockfish has the widest distribution of any scorpaenid. It has a circumglobal range on continental shelves in tropical and warm temperate oceans. In the eastern Atlantic it is found from Madeira south to South Africa, In the western Atlantic it is found from off southern Rhode Island south to northern Brazil, including the Gulf of Mexico. It occurs along the Pacific coasts of the Americas from southern British Columbia to Chile and across the Pacific and Indian Ocean to the east coast of Africa. Despite this wide range there is very little genetic difference between widely separated populations of the channelled rockfish. It is a benthopelagic species which has a depth range of 150 to 780 m (490 to 2,560 ft) over soft bottoms and with a water temperature between 5.5 to 12.5 °C (41.9 to 54.5 °F).