Blackspotted Puffer

ID points

• Sparse large black spots on a grey-blue or yellow ground
• Dark snout and a dark ring around the eye, like a mask
• Corners of the mouth always slightly turned up

Basics

Family

Tetraodontidae

Length

25–33 cm

Depth

3-25 m

Regions

Indo-Pacific reefs

Distribution

Coral reefs of the Indo-Pacific

Diet

Coral, sponges and algae

Easily confused with

Guineafowl PufferInk-black body covered in dense, even white spotsPufferfishSwells into a ball with water when alarmed, pushing out short spinesSharpnose PufferLong pointed snout; slimmer than an ordinary puffer

Fun fact

When threatened it does more than inflate: it grinds its teeth to make a warning noise at predators, which makes it the chatterbox of the puffer family.