Honolulu Star-Advertiser © Susan Scott
August 18, 1997
“Look,” one of my snorkeling partners said, pointing to a bumpy, fist-sized rock in the sand near a large coral head, just feet from the shore. I immediately saw what he had found and showed another friend, new to the islands.
She couldn’t see it.
“Look exactly where I point,” I told her.
“Are we looking under that rock or on top of it?” she asked.
“We’re looking at the rock itself. Look hard.”
We were standing in chest-deep water. She dropped her face to the surface, then after a few moments, popped back up. “I don’t see anything.”
“OK, watch closely.” I dove down and waved my hand near the brown, algae-covered rock. Like magic, it came alive. A pair of yellow, orange and red fins appeared at its sides, like colorful airplane wings. It darted under the coral head in a couple of quick hops.
My friend was laughing when I surfaced. “I could have stood here all day and not seen that fish. What is it?”
The fish was a devil scorpionfish, or nohu omakaha, and my friend was not unusual in missing it. These scorpionfish, common on reefs throughout Hawaii and the tropical Pacific, are masters of disguise, bearing weedy-looking skin and often changing color to blend with their surroundings. Every snorkeler and diver has been just inches from such a fish, many times, and never had a clue.
The devil scorpionfish grows up to 12 inches long and usually looks like a rock or blob of dead coral that might make a good handhold. But be sure and wave a hand or fin over any rock before you grab it. Scorpionfish get their name from the eight-legged land creatures, whose painful tail stings are memorable. In the fish, the sting is delivered by venomous spines on their back and belly fins.
Devil scorpionfish (and all other types of scorpionfish) use their venomous spines for defense only, never initiating attacks. If you threaten one of these fish, however, it erects its spines and flares out others in warning.
That bright flash of yellow and red from inside the pectoral fins of our little friend in the above story was one of those warnings: “I am dangerous and I am getting annoyed.” Predators, including humans, stung by these scorpionfish, don’t forget that colorful flash — or the pain of the sting.
Fortunately, the sting of the devil scorpionfish is not deadly, nor is any scorpionfish sting in Hawaii. Although they are closely related to the South Pacific’s potentially lethal stonefish, ours don’t pack such a powerful punch.
(Only four deaths, ever, have been recorded worldwide from stonefish. None of these occurred in Australia, where stings from these fish are fairly common.)
Although stings from Hawaii’s scorpionfish won’t kill you, you might feel like you’re dying. These stings hurt like mad, making pain relief a high priority in first aid.
Because heat inactivates at least one of the toxins in the venom, it also relieves some of the pain. If you are stung, soak the hand or foot in nonscalding hot water. (Have someone not in pain check the temperature of the water.)
After the pain is relieved, clean the wound thoroughly. See a doctor for redness or swelling, signs of infection.
After our devil scorpionfish dashed under the coral, my friends and I went snorkeling in deeper water. When we returned an hour later, we found the fish returned to its previous place. There it lay once again, waiting for unsuspecting prey to pass by. When that happens, the fish lunges with lightening-speed and gulps it down whole.
“This is like one of those pictures hidden in a pattern,” my friend said. “Before, I couldn’t see the fish at all; now I can’t NOT see it.”
Maybe the next time, she’ll spot a devil scorpionfish on her own. But then again, maybe she won’t.