Synanceia Verrucosa

The reef stonefish is a venomous marine fish in the scorpionfish family Scorpaenidae and is considered the most venomous fish in the world. It carries 13 dorsal spines, each with two venom sacs capable of delivering a fatal dose, and is the most widespread stonefish species, found mainly in shallow waters of the Red Sea and the Indo-Pacific from East Africa to French Polynesia, southern Japan and Taiwan. First formally described in 1801, it is the type species of the genus Synanceia, and it has more recently been found in the Mediterranean Sea, likely introduced through aquarium release or migration via the Suez Canal.