Canthidermis sufflamen
Ocean Triggerfish
Collection Details
Specimens
Photos
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Records
Taxonomic Hierarchy
Actinopterygii (Ray-finned Fishes)
Tetraodontiformes (Pufferfishes and Allies)
Balistidae (Triggerfishes)
Canthidermis
Canthidermis sufflamen (Ocean Triggerfish)
Description
This species account was compiled from
Composite (multiple sources) (McEachran, J.D. and J.D. Fechhelm. Fishes of the Gulf of Mexico. University of Texas Press, Austin.)
and processed using AI-assisted text extraction.
It may contain errors in spelling, punctuation, or formatting.
When citing, please reference the original source rather than this page.
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Characters
Very rough scales, lacks tympanum, deep groove in front of eye, jaw teeth with scalloped biting surfaces, lateral teeth diagonally oriented and converging medially, upper jaw with two rows of teeth (8 outer, 6 inner), lower jaw with single row of teeth, gill opening slitlike and above pectoral fin base, gill rakers on first arch 32-36, head length 34%-39% SL, snout length 23%-26% SL, eye diameter 7%-11% SL, pectoral fin length 13%-16% SL, body depth 50%-55% SL, pectoral fin with 15 or 16 rays, first dorsal fin serrated, second dorsal fin with 25-28 rays, anal fin with 23-25 rays, scales in horizontal series 53-58, vertebrae count not mentioned
Brownish gray with a large dark brown spot at base of pectoral fin
Distribution
Western Atlantic from Massachusetts and Bermuda to northern South America, including the entire Gulf of Mexico, the Bahamas, and the Antilles
Habitat Associations
Pelagic, most common over offshore reefs in clear water
Offshore reefs
Biology
Large zooplankton
Maximum known size is 600 mm TL
Common near drop-offs of seaward reefs (Ref. 9710). Occasionally in shallow water. Solitary or in small groups in open water. Often associated with Sargassum (Ref. 9710). Feeds mainly on large zooplankton. Minimum depth reported from Ref. 13121.
Reproductive mode: dioecism; fertilization: external. Distinct pairing (Ref. 205).
IUCN Red List Status: Least Concern (LC), assessed 2011-06-07. Resilience: Medium (Preliminary K or Fecundity.).
Commercial or Environmental Importance
Fisheries: commercial; gamefish; aquarium: commercial.
References
Randall 1968a
Randall 1996
Robins and Ray 1986
Schaldach et al. 1997
Smith 1997
Smith-Vaniz et al. 1999
Matsuura 2002b
Randall, J.E. (1967) Food habits of reef fishes of the West Indies. Stud. Trop. Oceanogr. Miami 5:665-847.
Thresher, R.E. (1984) Reproduction in reef fishes. T.F.H. Publications, Inc. Ltd., Neptune City, New Jersey. 399 p.
Robins, C.R. and G.C. Ray (1986) A field guide to Atlantic coast fishes of North America. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, U.S.A. 354 p.
Lieske, E. and R. Myers (1994) Collins Pocket Guide. Coral reef fishes. Indo-Pacific & Caribbean including the Red Sea. Haper Collins Publishers, 400 p.
Randall, J.E. (1996) Caribbean reef fishes. Third Edition - revised and enlarged. T.F.H. Publications, Inc. Ltd., Hong Kong. 3nd ed. 368 p.
Figueiredo, J.L. and N.A. Menezes (2000) Manual de peixes marinhos do sudeste do Brasil. VI.Teleostei (5). Museu de Zoologia, Universidade de São Paulo. Brazil. 116 p.
SCRFA, Science and Conservation of Fish Aggregations (2018) SCRFA database. Web online database. https://www.scrfa.org/database/: SCRFA. [2013-onwards].
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