California scorpionfish

Scorpaena guttata is a species of fish in the scorpionfish family known by the common name California scorpionfish. It is native to the eastern Pacific Ocean, where it can be found along the coast of California and Baja California. Its distribution extends from around Santa Cruz, California, to Punta Abreojos in Baja California Sur, and out to Guadalupe Island. It is also found in the Gulf of California. Another common name is spotted scorpionfish.

Distribution

Scorpaena guttata is found in the eastern Pacific Ocean where it occurs from Santa Cruz in central California south along the coast of Baja California to Todos Santos, Baja California Sur with a small isolated population reportedly resident in the northern Sea of Cortez.

This is a demersal marine fish which may venture to ocean depths up to 183 metres (600 ft), but it is usually in shallower waters, up to about 30 metres (98 ft). It is found along rocky bottoms just offshore or in bays. It inhabits underwater caves. It does not necessarily stay in one territory; mark and recapture experiments observed individuals traveling up to 200 kilometres (120 mi), with one moving from near Santa Cruz Island in the Channel Islands to Long Beach over the course of about 14 months. Another fish traveled at a speed of about 2.2 kilometres (1.4 mi) per day.