The bennett's sharpnose puffer

bennett's sharpnose puffer

Scientific name	Canthigaster bennetti
Descriptor	Bleeker
Year of description	1854
IUCN category (World)	LC
Family	Tetraodontidae
Genus	Canthigaster

Introduction

Canthigaster bennetti, commonly known as bennett's sharpnose puffer, is a salt water fish.

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Who is it?

Morphology

Type

pufferfish
Average size

9 cm
Maximum size

10 cm
Pattern

ponctuations

Type

pufferfish
Average size

9 cm
Maximum size

10 cm
Pattern

ponctuations

How to recognize the bennett's sharpnose puffer ?

Puffer fish

This species belongs to the group of pufferfish. These fish are nicknamed like this because they have the ability to inflate themselves when they feel threatened.

To achieve this inflation, they swallow water and fill their stomach to more than double their volume. This is made possible by their stretchy skin. This subterfuge makes them look much more impressive to their predators. They are also much more complicated to swallow. This change in shape becomes a disadvantage for these fish that, once inflated, can hardly move.

The bennett's sharpnose puffer measures between 9 and 10 cm. This fish is multicolore with a predominantly rouge, noir, marron and blanc body. The also has rouge and bleu ponctuations.

Behaviour & Life cycle

diet

omnivorous with alguivorous tendency
Sociability

living in a group or alone
territorial

Yes
Way of living

diurnal

The bennett's sharpnose puffer is a fish living in a group or alone naturally found at mid-depth and near the bottom. This species is omnivorous with alguivorous tendency .

This species is territorial and does not appreciate the presence of intruders nearby, especially animals with similar behavior. It can also be virulent toward conspecifics. However, the bennett's sharpnose puffer has little concern for non-territorial animals.

Reproduction

Reproduction

ovipare qui pond sur substrat découvert
Polygamy

Yes

The bennett's sharpnose puffer is a fish ovipare qui pond sur substrat découvert. In this species, the dominant males are polygamous and reproduce each season with several females.

Harmless species

This species does not represent any particular threats to humans when encountered in its natural environment.

Where to find it?

Origin

Great Barrier Reef Philippine Sea South East Asian Seas Indonesian seas East Indian Ocean western Indian Ocean Western Tropical Pacific Ocean

islands

Bali Mauritius Réunion Lombok Maldives New Caledonia Nusa Penida French Polynesia Zanzibar Archipelago

Conservation status of populations (IUCN)

World : LC

Where to see this species?

What is its habitat?

Natural environment characteristics

Temperature

25 - 29 °C
Depth

1 - 15 m

Biotope presentation

The bennett's sharpnose puffer is most often found at a depth between 1m and 15m. However, it is not impossible to find this species at other depths.

Species of the same biotope

valentini's sharpnose puffer Tetraodontidae

To go further

Species of the same family

To read on the web

Sources & Contributions

Participation & Validation

The Fishipedia team and specialist contributors are committed to providing high-quality content. However, although the information comes from scientific sources or testimonials from specialists, the cards may contain inaccuracies.

Benoit Chartrer

Translation

Translation done with the valuable contribution of our translators, who make this information available to a wider audience. We sincerely thank them for their commitment.