Inimicus

Inimicus was first described as a genus in 1904 by the American ichthyologists David Starr Jordan and Edwin Chapin Starks with the type species designated as Pelor japonicum, which had been described by Georges Cuvier in 1829 from the seas of China and Japan.{{Cof genus | genus = Inimicus | access-date = 6 April 2022}} It is one of two genera in the tribe Choridactylini within the subfamily Synanceiinae of the family Scorpaenidae.{{cite book |title=Fishes of the World |edition=5th |author1=J. S. Nelson |author2=T. C. Grande |author3=M. V. H. Wilson |year=2016 |pages=468–475 |publisher=Wiley |isbn=978-1-118-34233-6 |url=https://sites.google.com/site/fotw5th/ |access-date=2022-04-06 |archive-date=2019-04-08 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190408194051/https://sites.google.com/site/fotw5th/ |url-status=dead }} However, some authorities classify this taxon as a subfamily Choridactylinae within the family Synanceiidae. The genus name inimicus is Latin for "foe" or "enemy", Fishermen feared these fishes because of their venomous spines.{{cite web | url = https://etyfish.org/perciformes10/ | title = Order Perciformes (Part 10): Suborder Scorpaenoidei: Families Apistidae, Tetrarogidae, Synanceiidae, Aploacrinidae, Perryenidae, Eschmeyeridae, Pataceidae, Gnathanacanthidae, Congiopodidae and Zanclorhynchidae | work = The ETYFish Project Fish Name Etymology Database | editor1= Christopher Scharpf | editor2 = Kenneth J. Lazara | name-list-style = amp |date = 10 March 2022 | access-date = 6 April 2022 | publisher = Christopher Scharpf and Kenneth J. Lazara}}

The members of the genus Inimicus are nearly identical in appearance and behavior, and often confused with one another. There are currently 10 recognized species in this genus:{{FishBase genus | genus = Inimicus| month = December | year = 2012}}

NE: Not Evaluated

Species no longer recognized:

• Inimicus barbatus {{small|(De Vis, 1884)}} is a jr. synonym of Inimicus caledonicusEschmeyer, W.N. (ed.) 2004 Catalog of fishes. Updated database version of January 2004. Catalog databases as made available to FishBase in January 2004.
• Inimicus dactylus {{small|(Cornic, 1987)}} is a jr. synonym of Inimicus filamentosusFricke, R. 1999 Fishes of the Mascarene Islands (Réunion, Mauritius, Rodriguez): an annotated checklist, with descriptions of new species. Koeltz Scientific Books, Koenigstein, Theses Zoologicae, Vol. 31: 759 p.

Members of the genus Inimicus are distributed mainly in warm tropical waters in the coastal regions of Indo-Pacific oceans. Their range does however extend a little into the subtropical zone. The waters of the Red Sea off the coast of Egypt appear to mark the westernmost limit of their range, while specimens have been reported as far to the east as New Caledonia. The northern coast of New South Wales, Australia marks the southernmost extent of their range, which extends as far to the north as Japan's Aomori, the northernmost prefecture of Japan's main island.{{cite book|title=The world encyclopedia of fishes|author=Wheeler, Alwyne C.|year=1985|publisher=Macdonald & Company|location=London}}{{cite web |title = Bulletin of Aomori Prefectural Fisheries Research Center |url = http://jsnfri.fra.affrc.go.jp/pref/aomori/suisi/kennkyu/4/pdf/all.pdf |year=2004 |publisher = Aomori Prefectural Fisheries Research Center |access-date = 2016-04-07 }} Inimicus are benthic fishes, living mainly on the bottom of mangrove swamps and coral reefs, at depths between 5 and 450 meters.{{cite book|title=The fishes of New Guinea|author=Munro, Ian Stafford Ross|year=1967|publisher=Department of Agriculture, Stock and Fisheries|location=Port Moresby, Papua and New Guinea}}{{cite book|title=Micronesian reef fishes : a field guide for divers and aquarists|author=Myers, Robert F.|year=1999|publisher=Coral Graphics|location=Barrigada, Territory of Guam, USA}}

Adults are typically 13–25 centimeters in length, and can weigh up to 480 grams. The body color can be a dull yellow, gray, brown, or rust in color with light blotches, and very similar to that of the surrounding sandy or coral seabed in which they are found. This coloration acts as a camouflage which renders them extremely difficult to detect in their natural habitat. The skin is without scales except along the lateral line, and is covered with venomous spines and wartlike glands which give it a knobby appearance. The head is flattened, depressed and concave. The eyes, mouth and nostrils project upwards and outwards from the dorsal aspect of the head. Sexual dimorphism in this genus was once unreported; however, it has been confirmed that Inimicus sinensis is sexually dimorphic.{{Cite journal |last1=Delloro |first1=E. S. |last2=Motomura |first2=H. |last3=Babaran |first3=R. P. |date=2019 |title=Sexual dimorphism in the Spotted Stinger Inimicus sinensis (Valenciennes, 1833) and notes on pore structures on the body |journal=Philippine Journal of Systematic Biology |volume=12 |issue=2}}

Fin morphology:

• dorsal fin: composed of 15 to 17 spines and 7 to 9 soft rays.{{cite journal|author=Mandritsa, S.A.|title=New species of the genus Inimicus (Scorpaeniformes, Synanceiidae) from the Coral sea|journal=J. Ichthyol|volume=31|issue=2|pages=76–79|year=1991}}
• caudal fin: composed of 2–4 spines and 4–14 soft rays, with dark bands at basal and subterminal positions.
• pelvic fin: composed of one spine and 3–5 soft rays.
• pectoral fin: composed of 10–12 rays. The two most caudal rays of each pectoral fin are detached from the rest of the fin, and angled in a ventral direction. The fish employ these two rays to prop up the forward part of their body, as well as to "walk" along the bottom of the substrate.{{cite journal

|author=William A. Gosline

|title=Function and structure in the paired fins of scorpaeniform fishes

|journal=Journal Environmental Biology of Fishes

|volume=40

|issue=3

|pages=219–226

|date=July 1994

|doi=10.1007/BF00002508

|hdl=2027.42/42637

|s2cid=30229791

|hdl-access=free

}}World Database of Marine Species: [http://www.seadb.net/schedule.php?ids=694 Spiny devil fish] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120304131009/http://www.seadb.net/schedule.php?ids=694 |date=2012-03-04 }}. Accessed 03-22-2010.{{cite journal

|author=Scott Michael

|title=Speak of the devil: fish in the genus Inimicus

|journal=SeaScope

|volume=18

|date=Winter 2001

|url=http://www.instantocean.com/sites/InstantOcean/knowledge/seascope/past/SS_Vol18_2001.pdf

|access-date=2010-03-27

|url-status=dead

|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110713043740/http://www.instantocean.com/sites/InstantOcean/knowledge/seascope/past/SS_Vol18_2001.pdf

|archive-date=2011-07-13

}}WetWebMedia.com: [http://www.wetwebmedia.com/inimicines.htm The Ghoulfish/Scorpion/Stonefishes of the Subfamily Choridactylinae (Inimicinae)], by Bob Fenner. Accessed 03-27-2010. The ventral surface of the pectoral fins bears broad black bands containing smaller, lighter spots at the basal and distal ends. In I. filamentosus, these bands are attenuated, while the bands of I. sinensis have yellow spots on them. This is a key feature for distinguishing the two species, which are otherwise nearly identical.

Inimicus are piscivorous ambush predators. They are nocturnal and typically lie partially buried on the sea floor or on a coral head during the day, covering themselves with sand and other debris to further camouflage themselves. They have no known natural predators. When threatened, they spread their brilliantly colored pectoral and caudal fins as a warning. Once dug in, they are very reluctant to leave their hiding places. When they do move, they display an unusual mechanism of subcarangiform locomotion---they crawl slowly along the seabed, employing the four lower rays (two on each side) of their pectoral fins as legs.

The paired pectoral fins of these fishes are a remarkable example of their adaptation to life in a benthic environment. No longer useful or necessary for aiding the animal in maneuvering within the water column, the fins have taken on a number of other functions useful to life as a demersal fish. Among these include probing for food items, propping the forward part of the body away from the bottom, and the aforementioned subcarangiform locomotion.

Inimicus is not the only fish that demonstrate this type of ambulation; it has been extensively described in other related benthic Scorpaeniformes fish such as the Sea robin, Flying gurnards, and the Tub Gurnard, Chelidonichthys lucerna. This type of locomotion, based on voluntary and coordinated movements of paired pectoral fins, is believed by some to be a precursor to the later development of similar ambulation in terrestrial vertebrates.{{cite journal

|author1=Marc Jamon |author2=Sabine Renous |author3=Jean Pierre Gasc |author4=Vincent Bels |author5=John Davenport |title=Evidence of force exchanges during the six-legged walking of the bottom-dwelling fish, Chelidonichthys lucerna

|journal=Journal of Experimental Zoology Part A: Ecological Genetics and Physiology

|volume=307A

|issue=9

|pages=542–547

|date=July 2007

|pmid=17620306

|doi=10.1002/jez.401

|url=http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/114286722/abstract

|access-date=2010-03-22|doi-access=free

}}{{dead link|date=February 2019|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}

{{Unreferenced section|date=April 2010}}

Like all known members of the family Synanceiidae, all members of the genus Inimicus possess a complex and extremely potent venom. It is stored in glands at the bases of needle-like spines in their dorsal fins. Upon contact with the dorsal fin, the fish can deliver a very painful, potentially fatal, sting. The genus name means enemy in Latin.{{cite web |title=Inimicus sinensis, Spotted ghoul |url=https://www.fishbase.se/summary/10537 |website=FishBase |access-date=24 March 2021}}

Despite the obvious risks, one species of Inimicus, I. japonicum, is commercially cultured in Japan. It is used as a food fish there, and it also has applications in Chinese medicine.{{Citation needed|date=April 2010}}

Envenomation by Inimicus species is characterized by immediate and severe local pain. Medical aid must be sought at the earliest opportunity after envenomation. Recommended first aid treatment includes immersion of the affected area in hot water.[http://www.carpa.org.au/Ref%20Manual%204th%20Ed/Emergency%20&%20assessment/Marine_stings_bites.pdf Marine Bites and Stings] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140321003850/http://www.carpa.org.au/Ref%20Manual%204th%20Ed/Emergency%20%26%20assessment/Marine_stings_bites.pdf |date=2014-03-21 }} Dr Mark Little Immersing the injured area in water at a temperature of at least {{convert|45|°C|°F|0|lk=on}} can partially denature the proteolytic enzymes in the venom. Some relief can also be obtained by infiltrating the envenomation site with a local anesthetic. For more extreme cases, an intramuscular injection of a specific horse-derived antivenom can be lifesaving.{{cite journal|last=Taylor|first=G.|title=Toxic fish spine injury: Lessons from 11 years experience|journal=South Pacific Underwater Medicine Society Journal|volume=30|issue=1|year=2000|issn=0813-1988 |oclc=16986801|url=http://archive.rubicon-foundation.org/5828|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080629013653/http://archive.rubicon-foundation.org/5828|url-status=usurped|archive-date=June 29, 2008|access-date=2010-03-22}} Tetanus toxoid vaccine should also be administered, if indicated. Surviving victims often suffer localized tissue necrosis and nerve damage, leading to atrophy of adjoining muscle tissues.

Image:Spiny Devilfish - Inimicus Didactylus.jpg|Inimicus didactylus (goblinfish or popeyed sea goblin)

File:Inimicus didactylus 01.JPG|Inimicus didactylus (goblinfish or popeyed sea goblin)

File:Inimicus Filamentus.jpg|Inimicus filamentosus (filament-finned stinger or two-stick stingfish)

Click [http://zipcodezoo.com/Key/Animalia/Inimicus_Genus.asp here] to see more photographs of various specimens of the genus Inimicus.

{{Reflist}}

• {{cite book

|title=Fishes of the Scorpionfish subfamily Choridactylinae from the Western Pacific and the Indian Ocean

|author1=William N. Eschmeyer |author2=Kaza V. Rama-Rao |author3=Leon E. Hallacher |series=Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences |year=1979

|publisher=California Academy of Sciences, Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences, vol. 41(21)

|location=San Francisco

|pages=475–500

|url=http://catalogue.nla.gov.au/Record/4495251

}}

• {{cite book

|title=Guide to Sea Fishes of Australia

|author1=Rudie H. Kuiter

|year=1996

|publisher=New Holland

|location=Frenchs Forest, NSW

|url=http://catalogue.nla.gov.au/Record/1148339

}}

• {{cite book

|title=Fishes of the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea

|author1=John E. Randall

|author2=Gerald R. Allen

|author3=Roger C. Steene

|year=1997

|publisher=Crawford House Press

|location=Bathurst, NSW

|isbn=9781863330121

|url=http://catalogue.nla.gov.au/Record/2601874

}}

• {{cite book

|title=Coral Reef Fishes: Caribbean, Indian Ocean, and Pacific Ocean Including the Red Sea (Collins Pocket Guide)

|author1=Ewald Lieske

|author2=Robert Myers

|year=1994

|publisher=Harpercollins Publishers

}}

• Zipcodezoo.com: [http://zipcodezoo.com/Key/Animalia/Inimicus_Genus.asp genus Inimicus]

{{Taxonbar|from=Q2484367}}

Category:Choridactylini

Category:Marine fish genera

Category:Taxa named by David Starr Jordan

Category:Taxa named by Edwin Chapin Starks