Thai National Parks

Species of Thailand

White-spotted puffer

Arothron hispidus, Carolus Linnaeus, 1758

The white-spotted puffer (Arothron hispidus) is a medium to large-sized puffer fish, it can reach 50 cm length. It is light grey in color, or greyish or yellowish, and clearly covered with more or less regular white points, that become concentric contrasting white and dark grey lines that radiate around the eyes and pectoral fins. The ventral part is white. The "shoulder" (around the pectoral fins) is dark. It also has concentric contrasting white and dark grey lines that radiate around the eyes and pectoral fins.

Its distribution extends through the Indo-Pacific area, Red Sea included, to the eastern Pacific Ocean. It can be found at depths of three to 35 metres. Its habitat types include reefs, lagoons, estuaries, and tidepools. Its diet includes calcareous or coralline algae, molluscs, tunicates, sponges, corals, zoanthids, crabs, polychaetes, starfish, urchins, krill, and silversides.

The adult is nocturnal and solitary. It is territorial, becoming somewhat aggressive.

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Scientific classification

Kingdom
Animalia
Phylum
Chordata
Class
Actinopterygii
Order
Tetraodontiformes
Family
Tetraodontidae
Genus
Arothron
Species
Arothron hispidus

Common names

  • English:
    • Broadbarred toadfish
    • Pufferfish
    • Stars and stripes puffer
    • Stripe belly puffer
    • Whitespotted blaasop
    • White-spotted blow fish
    • White-spotted puffer
  • Spanish:
    • Botete panza rayada
    • Botete pintado
    • Tamboril verde de puntos blancos
  • French:
    • Ballon à épaule Noire
    • Ballon pintade
    • Bourse-du-sable
    • Compère à taches blanches
    • Poisson-ballon à taches blanches
    • Poisson-ballon pintade

Synonyms

  • Tetraodon sazanami, Shigeho Tanaka (1916)
  • Tetrodon pusillus, Carl Benjamin Klunzinger (1871)
  • Tetrodon laterna, John Richardson (1845)
  • Tetraodon semistriatus, Eduard Rüppell (1837)
  • Tetraodon perspicillaris, Eduard Rüppell (1829)
  • Tetrodon hispidus, Carolus Linnaeus (1758)
  • Tetraodon hispidus, Carolus Linnaeus (1758)
  • Takifugu hispidus, Carolus Linnaeus (1758)
  • Dilobomycterus hispidus, Carolus Linnaeus (1758)
  • Crayracion hispidus, Carolus Linnaeus (1758)

Conservation status

Least Concern (IUCN3.1)

Least Concern (IUCN3.1)

Photos

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White-spotted puffer
White-spotted puffer
White-spotted puffer
White-spotted puffer
Arothron hispidus

Range Map