The Whiskered Stingfishes (Family Synanceiidae: Subfamily Minoinae)
by Scott W. Michael

The painted stingfish (Minous pictus) uses its modifed pectoral rays to crawl along the bottom. Photo by Scott Michael.

"It was furry, had whiskers, and moved over the bottom just like a mouse? Do you know what it was?" My first response to this question was "Put down the crack pipe!" A furry, mouse-like fish lurking on the seafloor off the Philippines? It was a night dive and we had been exploring some of the best muck diving near Anilao. A place called Basura, which I am told literally means dump! This fish, which was observed "crawling" over the open sand/silt substrate, was a painted stingfish (Minous pictus). In this Coral Realm you will learn more about these unusual muck-dwellers.
This article includes a video clip of the stingfish.

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