Spot-fin porcupinefish
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| Spot-fin porcupinefish | ||||||||||||||
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| Diodon hystrix Linnaeus, 1758 |
Also known as the porcupinefish.[1]
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[edit] Range
The spot-fin porcupinefish is circumtropical[2]:
- Eastern Pacific: San Diego to Chile including the Galapagos Islands.
- Atlantic ocean: Bermuda, Massachusetts and northern Gulf of Mexico to Brazil in the west, 30°N to 23°S in the east.
- Western Indian Ocean: Red Sea to Madagascar, Reunion and Mauritius.
- The Mediterranean sea.
[edit] Description
Diodon hystrix may be up to 91cm long and weigh as much as 2.8kg. It is coloured tan with dark spots above and pale below, and has many long, moveable spines. It is largely nocturnal.
[edit] Diet
Sea urchins, gastropods and hermit crabs.
[edit] Habitat
Juveniles are pelagic up to the time that they are about 20cm in length. Adults favour lagoons and seaward reefs, sheltering under ledges or in caves during the day. Although classified as benthic, they may sometimes be found hovering high in the water.[1]
[edit] Hazards
Diodon hystrix are poisonous to eat, possibly due to the accumulation of tetrodotoxin.
[edit] In the Aquarium
Has been documented to achieve a life-span of 10 years and attain a length of 69 cm in a public aquarium.
[edit] References
- ^ a b Lieske, E. and Myers, R.F. (2004) Coral reef guide; Red Sea London, HarperCollins ISBN 0-00-715986-2
- ^ "diodon hystrix". FishBase. Ed. Ranier Froese and Daniel Pauly. 6 2007 version. N.p.: FishBase, 2007.
