Sculpin Sunday - Smoothhead Sculpin

Welcome to Sculpin Sunday everyone! Today I'd like to introduce you to a very cool member of the sculpin family. Sculpins for those of you how are not familiar with them are a family of bottom dwelling marine fishes that mostly reside in the Pacific Northwest from Alaska to to northern California.

There are several species that live in fresh water as well on the coastal regions of British Columbia and even a few that live in some in land lakes.

Today's family member is the Smoothhead sculpin, Artedius lateralis. Smoothhead Sculpins are similar to their slighly small cousins the Scalyhead Sculpin, Artedius harringtoni and tend to be more drab in their colouration, but depeding on where you are diving and the reefs the Smoothhead is found their can be some beautiful exceptions. These little fish tend to be found on the bottom near reefs rather than on the reef like Scalyheads. They also venture into shallower water, often being found under rocks at low tide.

Smoothheads have a longer, flatter snout than either Scalyhead or Padded Sculpins. As the common name implies, they don't have scales on the head but they can have a lot of threadlike cirri. They have two or three cirri at the corner of the mouth, and these are often fairly thick or flattened. The scaled area is narrow, with only about 3 -5 scales in each oblique row in the anterior part.

Finding and capturing images of these fish is a fun way to learn about new species but also a finding new ways keep you dives fun if your diving the same areas all the time. Keep your eyes pealed and your camera ready you never know what you might find.

Enjoy your Sunday and happy shooting.

Scott.

For more stories and images - http://www.scottstevensonphotography.ca/