Arothron hispidus

• Common Names
• Description
• Biology
• Taxonomy
• Similar Species
• More Info
• Further Reading
• Notes

Common Names

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Description

Family Tetraodontidae

Chiefly marine . Many going into and inhabiting brackish and freshwater . Distribution: tropical and subtropical areas of Atlantic, Indian and Pacific. Naked or with short prickles in belly. Jaw teeth fused but separated by a median suture in each jaw, giving rise to 4 fused teeth. Opposite dentaries and premaxillaries separate at midline . Usually 7-18 dorsal soft rays . Anal soft rays usually 7-18. Ribs and epipleurals lacking. Moderately forked to rounded caudal fin. Principal caudal fin rays 10; procurrent rays lacking. Capable of greatly inflating themselves with water. Attains 90 cm maximum length . Some puffers contain tetraodotoxin, especially in the viscera ; in the gonads of some during spawning season . European Community legislation prohibits trading with puffer fish products. Some species seem to comsume about everything, whereas others have preferences for certain invertebrates or algae. Demersal eggs are laid in a nest and presumably defended.The family Tetraodontidae belongs to the Class Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes ) and the Order Tetraodontiformes. It contains 19 genera and 121 species. It may be found in Marine, Brackish, and Freshwater environments and is primarily Marine. Many members of this family are used in the aquarium trade. Reproductively, most members of this family are guarders . The main mode of swimming of adult fish in this family is tetraodontiform. Compared with other fish, the activity level of this family tends to be sluggish. Members of this family have been dated back to the lower Eocene epoch of the Tertiary period. This family may be found from 58° n to 48° s and 115° w to 178° e. Etymology of this family name : Greek, tetra = four + Greek, odous = tooth , teeth

Habitat

Inhabits outer reef slopes to depths of at least 50 m , inner reef flats and lagoons . Juveniles common in weedy areas of estuaries[1]. May be found at depths of 3 to 50 meters.

Typically found in water with a depth of -5,451 to 0 meters (-17,884 to 0 feet).[2]

Biome: Brackish water, saltwater . Reef-associated .

Biology

Diet

Feeds on fleshy , calcareous, or coralline algae , detritus , mollusks, tunicates , sponges, corals , zoanthid anemones, crabs, tube worms and echinoderms .

Migration

Non-migratory.

Behavior

Usually solitary and territorial on sandy to rubble areas.

Taxonomy

Unambiguous Synonyms

1. Crayracion hispidus (Linnaeus, 1758)
2. Dilobomycterus hispidus (Linnaeus, 1758)
3. Takifugu hispidus (Linnaeus, 1758)
4. Tetraodon hispidus Linnaeus, 1758
5. Tetraodon perspicillaris R�ppell, 1829
6. Tetraodon sazanami Tanaka, 1916
7. Tetraodon semistriatus R�ppell, 1837
8. Tetrodon hispidus Linnaeus, 1758
9. Tetrodon laterna Richardson, 1845
10. Tetrodon pusillus Klunzinger, 1871

Notes

Name Status: Accepted Name .

Similar Species

Members of the genus Arothron

There are approximately 28 species in this genus:

A. alboreticulatus · A. caeruleopunctatus (Blue-Spotted Puffer) · A. carduus · A. diadematus (Masked Puffer) · A. dorsovittatus · A. erethizon · A. firmamentum (Starry Toadfish) · A. gillbanksii · A. hispidus (Stars-And-Stripes Pufferfish) · A. hispidus perspicillaris · A. immaculatus (Narrow-Lined Toadfish) · A. inconditus (Bellystriped Blaasop) · Chelonodon patoca · A. leopardus (Banded Leopardblowfish) · A. maniilensis · A. manilensis (Narrow-Lined Pufferfish) · A. manillensis · A. mappa (Scribbled Pufferfish) · A. meleagris (White-Spotted Anglerfish) · A. nigripunctatus · A. nigropunctatus (Black-Spotted Pufferfish) · A. nigropunctatus diadematus · A. ophryas · A. reticularis (Reticulated Pufferfish) · A. reticulatus · A. setosus · A. sp · A. stellatus (Staring Blow Fish)

More Info

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Further Reading

• Allen, G.R. and R.C. Steene (1988). Fishes of Christmas Island Indian Ocean. Christmas Island Natural History Association, Christmas Island, Indian Ocean, 6798, Australia. 197 p.
• Allen, G.R. and W.F. Smith-Vaniz (1994). Fishes of the Cocos (Keeling) Islands. Atoll Res. Bull. 412:21 p.
• Bearez, P. (1996). Lista de los peces marinos del Ecuador continental. Rev. Biol. Trop. 44(2):731-741.
• Bulletin - United States National Museum. Washington: Smithsonian Institution Press, [etc.];1877-1971. ENG url p. 128, p. 130.
• Bulletin of the British Museum (Natural History). London: BM(NH) ENG url p. 246.
• Bussing, W.A. (1995). Tetraodontidae. Tamboriles, tamborines, botetes, peces globo, corrotuchos. p. 1629-1637. In W. Fischer, F. Krupp, W. Schneider, C. Sommer, K.E. Carpenter and V. Niem (eds.) Guia FAO para Identification de Especies para lo Fines d
• Cornic, A. (1987). Poissons de l'Ile Maurice. Editions de l'Océan Indien, Stanley Rose Hill, Ile Maurice. 335 p.
• Dangerous marine animals. Cambridge, Md., Cornell Maritime Press, 1959. ENG url p. 114, p. 139.
• David, G. (1985). Pêche de subsistance et milieu naturel: les mangrove de Vanuatu et leur intérêt halieutique. Notes et documents d'océanographie. Mission ORSTOM de Port-Vila, 13: 67 p. multigr.
• Elameto, J.M. (1975). Carolinian names of common fishes in Saipan, Mariana Islands. Micronesia 11(1):1-5.
• Eschmeyer, William N., ed. 1998. Catalog of Fishes. Special Publication of the Center for Biodiversity Research and Information, no. 1, vol 1-3. California Academy of Sciences. San Francisco, California, USA. 2905. ISBN: 0-940228-47-5.
• Essays in the natural sciences in honor of Captain Allan Hancock, on occasion of his birthday, July 26, 1955. Los AngelesUniversity of Southern California Press[1955] ENG url p. 326.
• Fishery bulletin / U.S. Dept. of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Marine Fisheries Service. Washington, D.C.: The Service: ENG url p. 1012, p. 1013.
• Fishery circular / U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Fisheries. [Washington]: The Bureau, 1931-1939. ENG url p. 395, p. 416.
• Francis, M. P. (1993). Checklist of the coastal fishes of Lord Howe, Norfolk, and Kermadec Islands, Southwest Pacific Ocean. Pac. Sci. 47(2):136-170.
• Fricke, R. (1999). Fishes of the Mascarene Islands (Réunion, Mauritius, Rodriguez): an annotated checklist, with descriptions of new species. Koeltz Scientific Books, Koenigstein, Theses Zoologicae, Vol. 31: 759 p.
• Halstead, B.W., P.S. Auerbach and D.R. Campbell (1990). A colour atlas of dangerous marine animals. Wolfe Medical Publications Ltd, W.S. Cowell Ltd, Ipswich, England. 192 p.
• Humann, P. and N. Deloach (1993). Reef fish identification. Galápagos. New World Publications, Inc., Florida. 267 p.
• IGFA (2001). Database of IGFA angling records until 2001. IGFA, Fort Lauderdale, USA.
• Jonklaas, R. (1975). Collecting marine tropicals. T.F.H. Publications, Neptune City, USA. 224 p.
• Kailola, P.J. (1991). The fishes of Papua New Guinea: a revised and annotated checklist. Vol. III. Gobiidae to Molidae. Research Bulletin No. 41, Research Section, Dept. of Fisheries and Marine Resources, Papua New Guinea. 153 p.
• Kapoor, D., R. Dayal and A.G. Ponniah (2002). Fish biodiversity of India. National Bureau of Fish Genetic Resources Lucknow, India.775 p.
• Kuronuma, K. (1961). A check list of fishes of Vietnam. United States Consultants, Inc.; International Cooperation Administration Contract - IV-153. Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources, United States Operations Mission to Vietnam. 66 p.
• Linnaeus, C. (1758). Systema Naturae per Regna Tria Naturae secundum Classes, Ordinus, Genera, Species cum Characteribus, Differentiis Synonymis, Locis. 10th ed., Vol. 1. Holmiae Salvii. 824 p.
• Masuda, H., K. Amaoka, C. Araga, T. Uyeno and T. Yoshino (1984). The fishes of the Japanese Archipelago. Vol. 1 (text). Tokai University Press, Tokyo, Japan. 437 p. (text), 370 pls.
• McCormack, G. (2000). Cook Islands biodiversity and natural heritage database. Sent by Gerald McCormack as RTF document in May 2000 for use in FishBase.
• Miyasaka, A. (1993). A database on scientific and common names of fishes exported from Hawaii. The information was derived from the above mentioned database. A printout of the names is also available from the State of Hawaii, Department of Land and Natural Resources, 1151 Punchbowl Street, Honolulu, Hawaii.
• Morgan, R.C. (1999). Fish names in languages of Tonga and Fiji. Atoll Research Bulletin No. 462:1-8.
• Myers, R.F. (1991). Micronesian reef fishes. Second Ed. Coral Graphics, Barrigada, Guam. 298 p.
• Myers, R.F. (1999). Micronesian reef fishes: a comprehensive guide to the coral reef fishes of Micronesia, 3rd revised and expanded edition. Coral Graphics, Barrigada, Guam. 330 p.
• NOAA technical report NMFS SSRF. Seattle, Wash.: National Marine Fisheries Service; ENG url p. 32.
• Proceedings of the United States National Museum. Washington: Smithsonian Institution Press, [etc.] ENG url p. 421.
• Randall, J.E. (1995). Coastal fishes of Oman. University of Hawaii Press, Honolulu, Hawaii. 439 p.
• Randall, J.E. and C. Anderson (1993). Annotated checklist of the epipelagic and shore fishes of the Maldives Islands. Ichthyol. Bull. of the J.L.B. Smith Inst. of Ichthyol. 59:47.
• Randall, J.E. and Y.H. Sinoto (1978). Rapan fish names. B.P. Bishop Mus. Occas. Pap. 24(15:294-306.
• Randall, J.E., H. Ida, K. Kato, R.L. Pyle and J.L. Earle (1997). Annotated checklist of inshore fishes of the Ogasawara Islands. Nat. Sci. Mus. Monogr. (11):1-74.
• Rau, N. and A. Rau (1980). Commercial marine fishes of the Central Philippines (bony fish). German Agency for Technical Cooperation, Germany. 623 pp.
• Shao, K.-T., S.-C. Shen, T.-S. Chiu and C.-S. Tzeng (1992). Distribution and database of fishes in Taiwan. p. 173-206. In C.-Y. Peng (ed.) Collections of research studies on 'Survey of Taiwan biological resources and information management'. Institute
• Shiino, Sueo M. 1976. List of Common Names of Fishes of the World, Those Prevailing among English-speaking Nations. Science Report of Shima Marineland, no. 4. Shima Marineland. Kashikojima, Shima, Mie, Japan. 262.
• Smith, J.L.B. (1969). Fishes of Inhaca. p. 131-136. In W. Macnae and M. Kalk (eds.) A natural history of Inhaca Island, Moçambique. Witwatersrand University Press, Johannesburg.
• Smith, J.L.B. and M.M. Smith (1963). The fishes of Seychelles. Rhodes University, Grahamstown. 215 p.
• Smith, M.M. and P.C. Heemstra (1986). Tetraodontidae. p. 894-903. In M.M. Smith and P.C. Heemstra (eds.) Smiths' sea fishes. Springer-Verlag, Berlin.
• Tana, T.S. (2050). Review on previous and present ichthyology works on marine fish of Cambodia. To be published in Naga.
• The Biological bulletin. Woods Hole, Mass.: Marine Biological Laboratory, ENG url p. 389.
• The Natural history of Enewetak Atoll / edited by Dennis M. Devaney [et al.]; prepared by Office of Scientific and Technical Information, U.S. Department of Energy. Oak Ridge, Tenn.: U.S. Dept. of Energy, Office of Energy Research, Office of Health and Environmental Research, Ecological Research Division, c1987. ENG url p. 312.
• Thollot, P. (1996). Les poissons de mangrove du lagon sud-ouest de Nouvelle-Calédonie. ORSTOM Éditions, Paris.
• Wass, R. C. (1984). An annotated checklist of the fishes of Samoa. Natl. Ocean. Atmos. Adminis. Tech. Rept., Natl. Mar. Fish. Serv., Spec. Sci. Rept. Fish. (781).

Notes

Contributors

• American Fisheries Society. Common and Scientific Names of Fishes from the United states, Canada, and Mexico Sixth Edition. Special Publication 29.
• Brands, S.J. (comp.) 1989-2006. Systema Naturae 2000. The Taxonomicon. Universal Taxonomic Services, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Accessed April 20, 2007.
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility. Accessed November 15, 2007. http://www.gbif.org Mediated distribution data from 30 providers.

Data Sources

Accessed through GBIF Data Portal November 15, 2007:

• Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum, Bishop Museum Natural History Specimen Data
• Canadian Museum of Nature, Canadian Museum of Nature Fish Collection
• FishBase, FishBase DiGIR Provider - Philippine Server
• Institute of Marine and Coastal Sciences, Rutgers University, AIMS - Baited Remote Underwater Video Station
• Institute of Marine and Coastal Sciences, Rutgers University, Bishop Museum Data
• Institute of Marine and Coastal Sciences, Rutgers University, Marine and Coastal Management - Demersal Surveys
• Institute of Marine and Coastal Sciences, Rutgers University, South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity - Fish Collection
• Institute of Marine and Coastal Sciences, Rutgers University, iziko South African Museum - Fish Collection
• Los Angeles County Museum of Natural History, Vertebrate specimens
• Museum national d'histoire naturelle, Ichtyologie
• Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard University, MCZ Fish Collection
• National Chemical Laboratory, IndOBIS, Indian Ocean Node of OBIS
• Royal Ontario Museum, Fish specimens
• Senckenberg, Collection Pisces
• The Swedish Museum of Natural History
• , Fishes
• UNIBIO, IBUNAM, CNPE/Coleccion Nacional de Peces

Identifiers

• Biodiversity Heritage Library NamebankID: 2487595
• Catalogue of Life Accepted Name Code: Fis-25619
• Fishbase Species ID: 5425
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility Taxonkey: 14168066
• Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) Taxonomic Serial Number (TSN): 173309
• Zipcode Zoo Species Identifier: 103093

Footnotes

1. Smith, M.M. and P.C. Heemstra (1986). Tetraodontidae. p. 894-903. In M.M. Smith and P.C. Heemstra (eds.) Smiths' sea fishes. Springer-Verlag, Berlin. [back]
2. Mean = -824.640 meters (-2,705.512 feet), Standard Deviation = 1,405.060 based on 424 observations. Ocean depth information for each observation from British Oceanographic Data Centre. [back]

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