General Information

COMMON NAMES: Black-blotched Porcupinefish, Blotched Porcupinefish, Shortspine Porcupinefish; German Masken Igelfisch; French Porc-épic à Taches Auréolées, Porc-épic à Epine Courte GLOBAL DISTRIBUTION: NATIVE e.Africa - Tuamotus; n. to s.Japan; s. to New Caledonia COOK ISLANDS STATUS: Native; Marine, near-shore, SIGNIFICANCE LIST: Favoured by some in South, requires careful prepar; Injurous spines - moderate KEY FEATURES: To 50cm SL. Rotund with spines. Pale brown above, shading to white below; dark-brown cheek bar to eye; 4 dorsal dark-brown blotches edged white. Dark spot at base of many posterior spines. Fins & tail yellowish, unspotted. SIMILAR SPECIES: see Balloonfish (Diodon holocanthus).

Cook Islands Distribution

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Southern Group: Present    Makatea:
RR	MG	AT	MK	MT	AK	PL	TK	MN
P

Northern Group:
TN	MH	RK	PK	NS	SW

Diodon liturosus Shaw, 1804
SYNONYMS: Diodon maculatus [of authors]; Diodon bleekeri [of authors]

TAXONOMY: ANIMALIA; CHORDATA; GNATHOSTOMATA (Jawed Vertebrates); PISCES; OSTEICHTHYES; Tetraodontiformes; Tetraodontoidei; Tetraodontoidea; DIODONTIDAE

Vouchers:
Rarotonga: Photo ID S.Afsenius?? (SA00).

References:
text p.268 Myers (1991 2nd Ed.) Fishes of Micronesia
plate 144/F Myers (1991 2nd Ed.) Fishes of Micronesia
p.480 Randall et al. (1990) Fishes of the Great Barrier Reef....
p.656 Burgess et al. (1988) Atlas of Marine Aquarium Fishes (TFH)
plate 138-11 Lieske & Myers (1996) Coral Reef Fishes
plate 105-14 Allen (1997) Marine Fishes of Tropical Australia....

Data Update History (information):
zTX, zB02, zM02, zD02

Web Resources

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