Bull rout and sea scorpion
Photos: Tiit Hunt
Translation: Liis
Nolgus
| Bull rout, Short-spined bullhead, Short-spined sea scorpion, Father lasher, Shorthorn sculpin |
Nolgus |
| Sea scorpion, Long-spined sea scorpion, Long-spined bullhead, Rockfish etc |
Meripühvel |
The spawning period of both the short-spined bullheads or bull routs and the long-spined bullheads or sea scorpions continues in February in Estonian coastal waters. Why write of the two above separately from the sculpin? Their spawning locations differ. The sculpin spawns on sand but our two acquiantances of today prefer stony bottoms; that makes it easier for fishermen to distinguish them.
Read about the four-horn sculpin:
The Cottidae family fish are large-eyed and big-headed and spiny; some individuals have more "horns", others fewer. The short body tapers off sharply and has no scale cover but instead bone plates or small studs. The breast fins are fan-like, the other fins large and high. Individuals differ widely in colour. They are up to thirty centimetres long and weigh up to four hundred grammes.
Bull rout
Similarly to the sculpin, the male fish of the Cottidae guard the spawned roe until it is hatched.
The sea scorpion is smaller than the bull rout, up to 18 centimetres long, but more colourful, some males have almost "carnival gaudy“ colours. The head has several paired convoluted spines – names like bullhead and sea scorpion are well founded.
Both species have a similar menu: shellfish, Polychaeta worms, sometimes algae. But predator behaviour has also been noted.
They are bottom-living fish and difficult pry off from fishing nets; on being touched they open the gill covers and make a low, groaning noise by tensing their muscles. Scientists believe that the Cottidae use these sound for communication. Fascinating creatures in our shore waters
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