Fish Geek's Pick-Of-The-Week: Red Hawaiian Turkey Fish, Of Course!

Red Hawaiian Turkey Fish, by Scott Rettig

Red Hawaiian Turkey Fish

Hawaiian: nohu pinao

Latin: Pterois sphex

Beautiful red and white stripes and frilly fins and spines make the Red Hawaiian Turkey fish a gorgeous fish to spot on the reef. To find them in the daytime, look under ledges or on the ceilings of lava tubes. We see juveniles that are only one or two inches long, much smaller than the usual scuba diver expects, and we often spot their long white spines first, mistaking them for shrimp! Sometimes also known as the Red Hawaiian Lionfish, the Turkeyfish all belong in the Scorpionfish family (nohu). The Species name in Hawaiian, "pinao", means "dragonfly", while the Latin (actually Greek) "sphex" means "wasp", for the painful sting from the venomous spines.

John P. Hoover says, "At night they glide forth, with fins extended, hunting for small crabs or shrimps. Lucky daytime divers may see them swimming openly in the late afternoon or early morning. The spines are venomous; these fishes should not be played with or handled."

Robyn says, "Our beautiful endemic red lionfish are rare and special when we see the (mostly juvenile) individuals on the Kohala Coast. But they are a bit of a 'hard sell' to our divers used to huge invasive Caribbean Lionfish. We need to immediately change their perception by saying, 'No wait: These are special. These are endemic. And here on the Kohala Coast they are small and rare. THIS is why we love them.' "

Indeed, sometimes our scuba divers have heard of the problems an invasive lionfish has caused the environments of the Atlantic and Caribbean seas, and the eradication attempts of divers there. But this is not that fish! Our species is native to Hawaii, and much loved on the rare times we spot them.

Kama'aina? Endemic!

Size: Largest seen about 8", but we usually see to about 2".

Depth:They enjoy shallow ledges.

White List? Not legal to take in West Hawaii. Apparently these were so popular in aquariums that the area sites are pretty well stripped, and their rareness is why we get so excited!