Sculpin Sunday - Rosy Lip Sculpin

Welcome back to my continuing series on Sclupins of the Pacific Northwest. This week I have for you a sculpin with a bit of flare for the dramatic the Rosy Lip Sculpin, Ascelichthys rhodorus.

This sculpin are a little bit bigger than most of their cousins growing up to 15 cm (16 inches). Generally they live no deeper than about 15 meters (50 feet) on soft sandy or muddy bottoms, hiding among wood, rocks and kelp leaves.

Rosy Lip’s typically have dark colouration across their bodies. However what makes them identifiable from other sculpins is there bluey irridencet glow as well as a vibrant red strip on the top of their dorsal fin and of course those namesake red lips. Rosy-lip Sculpins are able to survive for several hours out of water on moist surfaces and will appear almost jet black in colour.

Rosy-lip Sculpins can live for up to five years. These fish lay eggs twice a year both in winter and spring. The eggs can be either pink or green and typically found under rocks near to the shore.

Photographing this fish can be a challenge due to where they live. Shallow sandy or muddy substrates can create a lot of backscatter in the water and cause your images to be filled with particulate. Be mindful of your fin kicks as to not kick up even more stuff into the water column, it may take a long time to settle if your in a bay or low current areas.

Happy Sunday everyone and thanks for reading.

Scott

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