Chilomycterus reticulatus
Spotfin Porcupinefish | Few-spined Porcupinefish | Fewspine Porcupinefish | Porcupinefish | Spotfin Burrfish | Spotted Burrfish | Spottedfin Burrfish | Chilomycterus affinis
Chilomycterus reticulatus, Galapagos Islands, Ecuador, Photo: Graham Edgar
Chilomycterus reticulatus, WA, Australia, Photo: Rick Stuart-Smith
Chilomycterus reticulatus, Galapagos Islands, Ecuador, Photo: Graham Edgar
Similar Species
Same Genus
Distribution
Temperate Australasia, Tropical Atlantic/Caribbean, Tropical Eastern Pacific, Tropical Indo-Pacific
Description
Brown to grey body with dense spotting on back, becoming less dense on underside, spots on fins. Very similar to another widespread species Diodon hystrix, but has shorter, less dense and immobile spines. Juveniles blue with black spots, and pelagic, usually sheltering with floating weeds.
Information
Max Size: 55 cm
Sea Temperature Range: 20.1-31.7°C
Depth: 1 - 141 m
Habitat Generalization Index: 1.44
Also referred to as the SGI (Species Generalisation Index), this describes the habitat niche breadth of the species. Species with values less than 15 are found in a relatively narrow range of reef habitat types (specialists), while those over 25 may be found on most hard substrates within their range (generalists). Learn more here.
Conservation and Rarity
IUCN Status: Not Evaluated
Occurrence: Infrequent (3.2% of sites)
Occurrence describes how often the species is found on surveys within its distribution. It is calculated as the % of reef sites surveyed by RLS divers across all the ecoregions in which the species has been observed
Abundance: Few (2 per transect)
Abundance is calculated as the average number of individuals recorded per RLS transect, where present.
Edit by: Joe Shields