Boxfish

Boxfish

Taxobox
name = Boxfishes



image_caption = Honeycomb cowfish, "Acanthostracion polygonius".
regnum = Animalia
phylum = Chordata
classis = Actinopterygii
ordo = Tetraodontiformes
familia = Ostraciidae
subdivision_ranks = Genera
subdivision = See text.
The boxfishes are a family, Ostraciidae, their scientific name is, "Ostraction Meleagris", of squared, bony fish belonging to the order Tetraodontiformes, closely related to the pufferfishes and filefishes. They come in a variety of different colors, and are notable for the hexagonal or "honeycomb" patterns in their skin and skeletons. They swim in a rowing manner. Fish in the family are known variously as boxfishes, cofferfishes, cowfishes and trunkfishes.

Boxfishes occupy the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific oceans, generally at middle latitudes, although the common or buffalo trunkfish ("Lactophrys trigonus") which lives mainly in Florida waters may be found as far north as Cape Cod. The cowfish variety "Lactophrys quadricornis" can grow to be 50 cm or less in size, but are generally smaller at higher latitudes.

The hexagonal plate-like scales of these fish are fused together into a solid, triangular, box-like carapace, from which the fins and tail protrude. Young boxfishes are more rounded in shape and may exhibit bright colors. Because of their body scale structure, boxfishes are limited to slow movements.

List of genus and species

* Genus "Acanthostracion"
** "Acanthostracion guineensis" (Bleeker, 1865).
** Island cowfish, "Acanthostracion notacanthus" (Bleeker, 1863).
** Honeycomb cowfish, "Acanthostracion polygonius" Poey, 1876.
** Scrawled cowfish, "Acanthostracion quadricornis" (Linnaeus, 1758).
* Genus "Lactophrys"
** Spotted trunkfish, "Lactophrys bicaudalis" (Linnaeus, 1758).
** Buffalo trunkfish, "Lactophrys trigonus" (Linnaeus, 1758).
** Smooth trunkfish, "Lactophrys triqueter" (Linnaeus, 1758).
* Genus "Lactoria"
** Longhorn cowfish, "Lactoria cornuta" (Linnaeus, 1758).
** Roundbelly cowfish, "Lactoria diaphana" (Bloch & Schneider, 1801).
** Thornback cowfish, "Lactoria fornasini" (Bianconi, 1846).
** "Lactoria paschae" (Rendahl, 1921).
* Genus "Ostracion"
** Yellow boxfish, "Ostracion cubicus" Linnaeus, 1758.
** Bluetail trunkfish, "Ostracion cyanurus" Rüppell, 1828.
** "Ostracion immaculatus" Temminck & Schlegel, 1850.
** Whitespotted boxfish, "Ostracion meleagris" Shaw, 1796.
** Shortnose boxfish, "Ostracion nasus" Bloch, 1785.
** Horn-nosed boxfish, "Ostracion rhinorhynchos" Bleeker, 1852.
** Reticulate boxfish, "Ostracion solorensis" Bleeker, 1853.
** Roughskin trunkfish, "Ostracion trachys" Randall, 1975.
** Whitley's box, "Ostracion whitleyi" Fowler, 1931.
* Genus "Paracanthostracion"
** "Paracanthostracion lindsayi" (Phillipps, 1932).
* Genus "Tetrosomus"
** Triangular boxfish, "Tetrosomus concatenatus" (Bloch, 1785).
** Humpback turretfish, "Tetrosomus gibbosus" (Linnaeus, 1758).
** Smallspine turretfish, "Tetrosomus reipublicae" (Ogilby, 1913).
** "Tetrosomus stellifer" (Bloch & Schneider, 1801).

References

*
* Zim, Herbert, and Shomemaker, Hurst. "Fishes". Golden Press, New York (1955).


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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Boxfish — Box fish , n. (Zo[ o]l.) The trunkfish. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • boxfish — Trunkfish Trunk fish , n. (Zo[ o]l.) Any one of several species of plectognath fishes, belonging to the genus {Ostracion}, or the family {Ostraciontid[ae]}, having an angular body covered with a rigid integument consisting of bony scales. Some of …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • boxfish — /boks fish /, n., pl. boxfishes, (esp. collectively) boxfish. trunkfish. [1830 40; BOX1 + FISH] * * * ▪ fish also called  trunkfish , or  cowfish   any of a small group of shallow water marine fishes of the family Ostraciontidae (or Ostraciidae) …   Universalium

  • boxfish — noun Any of the family Ostraciidae of squared, bony fish, closely related to the pufferfish and filefish …   Wiktionary

  • boxfish — noun (plural same or boxfishes) a tropical marine fish with a shell of bony plates covered in spines enclosing the body. [Tetrosomus gibbosus and other species.] …   English new terms dictionary

  • boxfish —   Makukana, pahu …   English-Hawaiian dictionary

  • boxfish — noun any of numerous small tropical fishes having body and head encased in bony plates • Syn: ↑trunkfish • Hypernyms: ↑plectognath, ↑plectognath fish • Hyponyms: ↑cowfish, ↑Lactophrys quadricornis …   Useful english dictionary

  • Yellow boxfish — Yellow boxfish, Ostracion cubicus Scientific classification Kingdom: Animalia …   Wikipedia

  • black-spotted boxfish — juodadėmė dėžiažuvė statusas T sritis zoologija | vardynas taksono rangas rūšis atitikmenys: lot. Ostracion tuberculatus angl. black spotted boxfish; blue spotted boxfish; ocellated boxfish rus. бугорчатый кузовок ryšiai: platesnis terminas –… …   Žuvų pavadinimų žodynas

  • blue-spotted boxfish — juodadėmė dėžiažuvė statusas T sritis zoologija | vardynas taksono rangas rūšis atitikmenys: lot. Ostracion tuberculatus angl. black spotted boxfish; blue spotted boxfish; ocellated boxfish rus. бугорчатый кузовок ryšiai: platesnis terminas –… …   Žuvų pavadinimų žodynas

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