All fish / Synanceiidae

Reef Stonefish

Synanceia verrucosa

Also known as stonefish, reef stonefish, warty stonefish, synanceja verrucosa, synanceia verrucosa, stone fish, devil fish, ปลาหิน, ikan batu, オニダルマオコゼ, 玫瑰毒鲉, 石头鱼

A squat, lumpy ambush predator covered in warty skin and often algae, so it looks just like a rock or a lump of rubble. Specialist keepers value it for its remarkable camouflage and lightning-fast strike at prey.

Care at a glance

Care level

Hard

Temperament

Aggressive

Adult size

30 cm

Temperature

24 to 28 °C

pH

8.1 to 8.4

Smallest tank

300 litres

Keep as

Keep singly

Diet

Carnivore: live or freshly thawed fish, prawns and shrimp, usually offered on a feeding stick

Swims

Bottom of the tank

Lifespan

5 to 10 years

Water

Marine (saltwater)

Wild range

Indo-Pacific, from the Red Sea and East Africa to French Polynesia and southern Japan to Queensland

Breeding

It scatters large gelatinous egg masses that float near the surface, and the larvae are planktonic. It has not been bred in home aquariums.

Good to know

Its dorsal spines carry one of the strongest venoms of any fish and a sting can kill a person, so handle it only with tools and keep antivenom information to hand. It will swallow any tankmate that fits in its mouth, and in some places keeping it may need a dangerous animals licence.