Lactophrys trigonus
Trunkfish
Collection Details
Specimens
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Records
Taxonomic Hierarchy
Actinopterygii (Ray-finned Fishes)
Tetraodontiformes (Pufferfishes and Allies)
Ostraciidae (Boxfishes)
Lactophrys
Lactophrys trigonus (Trunkfish)
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.
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Characters
Spine on each side of anal fin; bony armor incomplete behind dorsal fin base; mouth low on head; jaw teeth incisor-like with sharp-pointed cusps in a single row; anterior naris with thick flap on posterior margin; posterior naris at end of short tube; eye projects slightly above dorsal margin of head; preorbital spine lacking; gill opening slightly longer than pectoral fin base; gill rakers on first arch number 17 or 18; head length 27%–33% SL; snout length 23%–25% SL; eye diameter 8%–13% SL; pectoral fin length 17%–21% SL; maximum body depth 48%–58% SL; pectoral fin with 11 to 13 rays; dorsal, anal, and caudal fins each with 10 rays; carapace patterned with small, concentrically arranged tubercles; ventral ridge of carapace bears a spine extending to level of anus; carapace usually incomplete behind dorsal fin but followed by one or two separate bony plates
Greenish to tannish with small, diffuse white spots; hexagonal plates behind base of pectoral fin dark-edged, forming chainlike markings
Distribution
Western Atlantic from Massachusetts and Bermuda to Brazil, including the northern Gulf of Mexico, the Bahamas, and the Antilles
Northern Gulf of Mexico
Habitat Associations
Sea-grass beds
Biology
Polychaetes, sea urchins, bivalve mollusks, crabs, and sessile tunicates
450 mm TL
Inhabits seagrass beds, coral rubble areas, and offshore reefs down to about 50 m. Feeds on a wide variety of small benthic invertebrates such as mollusks, crustaceans, worms and sessile tunicates, as well as some sea grasses (Ref. 3696). Highly esteemed food fish in the Caribbean (Ref. 3696).
Reproductive mode: dioecism; fertilization: external; nonguarders (open water/substratum egg scatterers); parental care: none.
IUCN Red List Status: Least Concern (LC), assessed 2011-06-07. Resilience: High (Fec assumed to be > 10,000).
Commercial or Environmental Importance
Fisheries: commercial; gamefish; aquarium: commercial.
References
Longley and Hildebrand 1941
Böhlke and Chaplin 1968
Randall 1968a
Randall 1996
Robins and Ray 1986
Boschung 1992
Smith 1997
Smith-Vaniz et al. 1999
Matsuura 2002d
Randall, J.E. (1967) Food habits of reef fishes of the West Indies. Stud. Trop. Oceanogr. Miami 5:665-847.
Breder, C.M. and D.E. Rosen (1966) Modes of reproduction in fishes. T.F.H. Publications, Neptune City, New Jersey. 941 p.
Tyler, J.C. (1978) Ostraciidae. In W. Fischer (ed.) FAO species identification sheets for fishery purposes. West Atlantic (Fishing Area 31). Vol. 3. [pag. var.]. FAO, Rome.
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.
IGFA (2001) Database of IGFA angling records until 2001. IGFA, Fort Lauderdale, USA.
Patzner, R.A. (2008) Reproductive strategies of fish. pp. 311-350. In Rocha, M.J., A. Arukwe and B.G. Kapoor (eds). Fish reproduction: cytology, biology and ecology. Science Publisher, Inc. Oxford. 631 p.
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