rockfish

rockfish, member of the large family Scorpaenidae (rockfishes and scorpionfishes), carnivorous fish inhabiting all seas and especially abundant in the temperate waters of the Pacific. Rockfishes are found among rocks and reefs. Of commercial importance are the black and orange rockfishes and the bocaccio of the Pacific coast and the rosefish (called also red, or ocean, perch and the John Dory) of the Atlantic. In the West Indies are found the lion-fishes and the scorpionfishes, the latter vividly marked in red, blue, and green and equipped with poisonous dorsal fin spines, which have venom glands in their grooves. The name rockfish is also applied to various other fishes that frequent rocky places. The unrelated striped bass is sometimes called rockfish. Rockfishes and scorpionfishes are classified in the phylum Chordata, subphylum Vertebrata, class Osteichthyes, order Perciformes, family Scorpaenidae.

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rockfish

 or stonefish

Name applied to species in the scorpion-fish family (Scorpaenidae), including the lionfish, redfish, and zebra fish. In North America the name is also applied to the eastern mudminnow (Umbra pygmaea, family Umbridae), one of several hardy fishes of cool, mud-bottomed ponds, lakes, and streams. Eastern mudminnows frequently bury themselves, tail first, in the mud. They are often used as bait.