Flavimaculosus Puffer

Torquigener flavimaculosus

Rapid body inflation when threatened

Tropical
Regional distribution
Marine fish
Indian Ocean
Africa
Medium
Tropical fish

Torquigener flavimaculosus is a pufferfish of the family Tetraodontidae, capable of very rapid body inflation when threatened. Native to the Western Indian Ocean, it is also found in the Indo Pacific from the Persian Gulf to the Seychelles. Recorded first in the Mediterranean Sea in 1987, following a likely migration through the Suez Canal, it is now expanding westward.

Class: Teleosts
Order: Puffers, Triggerfishes, and Allies
Family: Tetraodontidae
Genus: Torquigener
Maximum length: 16 cm
Water: Marine
Distribution: Western Indian Ocean: northern Red Sea and Kenya; a recent emigrant to the Mediterranean Sea via the Suez Canal. Also reported from the Persian Gulf and Seychelles.
Conservation status: LCLeast Concern

Report a correction