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Species: Canthigaster rostrata, the Sharpnose-puffer

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tail base: 2 dark stripes end under D & A bases
C yellow, top & bottom margins broadly black
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This Species (23) This Genus (3) Similar Species (2)

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Canthigaster rostrata (Bloch, 1786)

Sharpnose-puffer

Body robust, slightly compressed, inflatable; head large, blunt; snout long and pointed; 1 pair of small hole-like nostrils; nape with crest between eyes and dorsal fin; eyes high on sides of head; jaws are a small beak composed of 4 fused heavy powerful teeth with a central suture on each jaw; a slit-like gill opening in front of the pectoral fin base; a single short- based dorsal fin at rear of body; a similar-shaped anal fin below the dorsal; no pelvic fins; no spines in the fins; dorsal fin 10 (10-11) rays; anal fin 9 rays; pectoral fin 16 (14-16) rays; tail fin rounded to bluntly straight, with 10 main rays; tough scaleless skin, head and body with scattered tiny spinules, no fleshy skin flaps.

Brown upper body, yellowish below; thin blue lines around eye and thin blue bars on snout, blue spots on much of body; tail fin yellow, its upper and lower margins broadly black, that color extending forward on upper and lower body to ends of bases of dorsal and anal fins; flank and central part of tail base white

Size: 12 cm.

Habitat: reefs.

Depth: 1-155 m.

N Carolina to the S Caribbean.

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Species Data Create Report Export as Word File Export as Excel File
Salinity
  • Marine
  • Marine Only
Inshore/Offshore
  • Inshore Only
  • Inshore
Water Column Position
  • Bottom
Habitat
  • Reef and soft bottom
  • Corals
  • Reef (rock/coral/oyster)
  • Reef associated (reef + edges-water column & soft bottom)
  • Soft bottom (mud/sand/gravel/beach/estuary/mangrove/seagrass)
  • Rocks
FishBase Habitat
  • Reef Associated
Feeding Group
  • Omnivore
  • Corallivore
  • Data
Diet
  • Sessile worms
  • Mobile benthic gastropods/bivalves
  • Soft corals/hydroids
  • Mobile benthic worms
  • Benthic microalgae
  • Sea-stars/cucumbers/urchins
  • Data
  • Benthic macroalgae/seagrasses
  • Sponges/seasquirts/bryozoa
  • Mobile benthic crustacea (shrimps/crabs)
Egg Type
  • Data
  • Benthic
  • Pelagic larva
Global Endemism
  • Greater Caribbean endemic
  • West Atlantic Endemic
  • All species.
Regional Endemism
  • Continent + Island (s)
  • All species..
  • Island (s)
  • GC endemic
  • Continent
  • Extends North of GC
Residency
  • Resident
Climate Zone
  • Tropical (10-23N, Nicaragua / Cuba)
  • Subtropical (23-35N, Florida / Carolinas / Bermuda)
  • Equatorial (0-10N, Costa Rica / Venezuela)
IUCN Red List
  • Least concern
  • Listed
CITES
  • Not listed
Length Max
  • 12
Depth Range Min
  • 1
Depth Range Max
  • 155