Reef triggerfish
Rhinecanthus rectangulus
- Saltwater
- Least Concern
- Max length
- 30 cm
- Class
- Teleostei
- Order
- Tetraodontiformes
- Family
- Balistidae
- Genus
- Rhinecanthus
- Indian Ocean, Eastern
- Indian Ocean, Western
- Pacific, Eastern Central
- Pacific, Northwest
- Pacific, Western Central
About the reef triggerfish
The reef triggerfish (Rhinecanthus rectangulus), also known as the rectangular triggerfish, wedgetail triggerfish or by its Hawaiian name humuhumunukunukuāpuaʻa (pronounced [ˈhumuˈhumuˈnukuˈnukuˈwaːpuˈwɐʔə], meaning 'triggerfish with a snout like a pig', also spelled humuhumunukunukuapua'a or just humuhumu for short), is one of several species of triggerfish. It is found in coral reefs in the entirety of the Western Pacific Ocean from North to South and Eastern Central Pacific. It is also found in the Indian Ocean from East to West and the Southeast Atlantic Ocean. It exists in 0 to 50 meters in depth.
Behaviour
The reef triggerfish has a terminal mouth that sits directly at the end of its snout. It has heavy teeth and incisors, and most of its food content is algae that is scraped off surfaces. It also feeds on crustaceans such as isopods from the sandy ocean floors. When foraging for food it remains close to its home or forages in shallow reefs away from living coral. This fish is considered a facultative omnivore because while it eats plants and animals it can sustain itself on a diet of either.
Description from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA.
Where the reef triggerfish lives
Distribution data from GBIF (DOI: 10.15468/dl.8rzs8d).
Also known as
- Wedge-tail triggerfish
- Rectangular triggerfish
- Baliste écharpe
- Baliste Picasso à bandeau
- Diamant-Picassodrückerfisch
- Kilfläckstryckare
- Cangulo-havaiano
- Gelapte snellervis
- Kiilasäppikala
- Ékfoltos Picasso-hal
- Ikan kambing matahari
- Jebung subang merah
- Углохвостый спинорог
- タスキモンガラ
- اسماك الشعاب المرجانيه
- فریباماهی آبسنگ
- Humuhumunukunukuāpuaʻa
- რიფის ზურგრქოსანი
- ปลาวัวปะการัง
- 斜帶吻棘魨