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| Oceanic puffer | ||||||||||||||
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| Lagocephalus lagocephalus lagocephalus (Linnaeus, 1758) |
The oceanic puffer, Lagocephalus lagocephalus lagocephalus, is a pufferfish of the family Tetraodontidae, found in all tropical and subtropical oceans, at depths of between 10 and 475 m. Its length is up to 61 cm.
The oceanic puffer is primarily an oceanic pelagic species but may enter estuaries. It feeds on crustaceans and squids.
Coloration of adults is dark green, brownish grey, or blue above, white below. Juveniles have about 9 bars on the back, from the eye to the dorsal fin. There are dark spots on the front and middle of the belly and on the side near the pectoral base in specimens less than 33 cm.
It is thought to be responsible for fatal poisoning, therefore it should not be eaten.
References
- lagocephalus "Lagocephalus lagocephalus lagocephalus". FishBase. Ed. Ranier Froese and Daniel Pauly. May 2006 version. N.p.: FishBase, 2006.
- Tony Ayling & Geoffrey Cox, Collins Guide to the Sea Fishes of New Zealand, (William Collins Publishers Ltd, Auckland, New Zealand 1982) ISBN 0-00-216987-8
