A RHINO in your reef! RHINOPIAS Species Spotlight

For this weeks species spotlight we are featuring a rather unique fish, one that we don’t see very often, Rhinopias frondosa. Everyone here at the shop was rather excited to see this fish, especially since we thought the shipment only contained lionfish.

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Also known as the Weedy Scorpionfish, Rhinopias frondosa can be found all over the South Pacific and as far as Africa. The one currently in our shop came from Vietnam. These fish are found either on a soft sandy bottom or near rocks and algae where it can use it’s camouflage to blend in. Rhinopias are found at a depth of 10 to 300 feet but are occasionally found down to 900 feet. They are solitary fish that are not often collected making them rare in the aquarium hobby.

Rhinopias don’t swim around like other fish. They will use their pelvic and pectoral fins to walk along the bottom. Once they find a spot that is to their liking they sit stationary only swaying back and forth with the natural current. This swaying movement along with the seaweed like tassles and patterning allows them to blend in with their surroundings making them the perfect ambush predator. All that is left is to wait around for an unsuspecting fish to swim by and dinner is served.

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Rhinopias are fairly easily adapted to aquarium life as long as their specific care requirements are met. Since they don’t swim a lot, a 30 gallon aquarium is the minimum size we recommend. They do produce quite a bit of waste so a good filtration system is a must. Rockwork should be kept to a minimum to allow the Rhinopias plenty of sandy substrate. Tankmates should be limited to peaceful fish and those larger than the Rhinopias, although a species tank with no other fish is the ideal setup. They reach a maximum length of nine inches so keep that in mind when deciding tank mates.

Feeding a Rhinopias is a bit more difficult than your average fish. At first the Rhinopias might not take to frozen foods, like silversides. If so, live food must be offered. The easiest way to provide live food is to purchase freshwater Mollies. They can be acclimated to saltwater, as long as they are gut loaded with a good quality marine fish food prior to feeding, they are a good short term food source for a Rhinopias. To train your Rhinopias to eat frozen food might take a bit of time. The technique we use here at the shop it to take some fishing line and poke it through the length of a thawed silverside making sure to start from the tail. You can then place the fish in the Rhinopias tank and use the fishing line to move the silverside around as if it is alive. This usually gets the fishes attention and with a little luck it will be on frozen food in no time. Once adjusted to frozen silversides you can attempt to transition your Rhinopias on to fresh seafood. This is a much more affordable alternative than frozen silversides.

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A few last notes on Rhinopias. One really important thing to note is they are venomous. Their dorsal spines contain a venom that can be very painful if your are stung. Some people can have allergic reactions to the venom that can be quite serious. Always be extremely cautious when handling a Rhinopias or when cleaning their tank. Another thing to note is Rhinopias will shed their outer layer of skin as a way to clean itself of any algae or parasites. When this happens their eyes become cloudy. If you see this happen do not panic, it is a sign of a healthy fish.

That’s about it for Rhinopias frondosa, an equally rare and unique fish.

Click here for more pictures!