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Horn-nosed Boxfish
Rhynchostracion rhinorhynchos (Bleeker, 1852)
Above and below: A Horn-nosed Boxfish caught in Malaysian marine waters, 2003. Photo © J. McMaster. View larger image.
The Horn-nosed Boxfish has a carapace that is pentagonal in cross-section. The body ridges are relatively sharp-edged, and lack spines. There is a distinct bump on snout.
This species is whitish with black spots on the back and caudal peduncle. Large fish are darker with more dark spots.
The Horn-nosed Boxfish grows to 35 cm in length.
It is found on coral reefs and flat bottoms to a depth of 50 m.
The Horn-nosed Boxfish occurs in tropical marine waters of the Indo-West Pacific from East Africa to Indonesia, north to Japan and south to Australia.
In Australia it is known from off north-western Western Australia to the Gulf of Carpentaria, Queensland.
View a map of the collecting localities of specimens in the Australian Museum Fish Collection.
Further reading
- Allen, G.R. 1997. Marine Fishes of Tropical Australia and South-east Asia. Western Australian Museum. Pp. 292.
- Allen, G.R. & R. Swainston. 1988. The Marine Fishes of North-Western Australia. A Field Guide for Anglers and Divers. Western Australian Museum. Pp. 201.
- Gloerfelt-Tarp, T & P.J. Kailola. 1984. Trawled Fishes of southern Indonesia and north-western Australia. Jakarta: Directorate General of Fisheries (Indonesia), German Agency for Technical Cooperation, Australian Development Assistance Bureau. Pp. 406.
- Matsuura, K. 2001. Ostraciidae in Carpenter, K.E. & V.H. Niem (Eds). FAO Species Identification Guide for Fishery Purposes. The Living Marine Resources of the Western Central Pacific. Volume 6. Bony Fishes part 4 (Labridae to Latimeriidae), estuarine crocodiles, sea turtles, sea snakes and marine mammals. FAO, Rome. Pp. iii-v, 3381-4218.
- Randall, J.E., Allen, G.R. & R.C. Steene. 1997. Fishes of the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea. Crawford House Press. Pp. 557.
