Order TETRAODONTIFORMES: Families TRIODONTIDAE, TRIACANTHIDAE, TRIACANTHODIDAE, DIODONTIDAE and TETRAODONTIDAE

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v. 3.0 – 11 Sept. 2023  view/download PDF

Nomenclatural note: Order Tetraodontiformes historically called Plectognathi (plectos, braided or woven together; gnathos, jaw), referring to suturing (or at least immovable attachment of maxillary to premaxillary (true for all plectognaths except for suborders Triacanthoidei and Triacanthodoidei).  

Family TRIODONTIDAE Threetooth Puffers
one extant species

Triodon Cuvier 1829    tri-, three; odon, tooth, referring to three fused teeth in jaws, the upper jaw with a median suture, the lower jaw without

Triodon macropterus Lesson 1829    macro-, long or large; pterus, fin, allusion not explained, presumably referring to large fin-like dewlap or belly flap reaching from throat to anal fin


Family TRIACANTHIDAE Triplespines
4 genera · 7 species

Pseudotriacanthus Fraser-Brunner 1941    pseudo-, false, i.e., although this genus may resemble Triacanthus (and its one species previously placed in it), such an appearance is false

Pseudotriacanthus strigilifer (Cantor 1849)    strigilis, a scraper; fero, to bear, presumably referring to its scales, each of which “resembles a small curry-comb, which makes the skin in every direction rough to the touch”

Triacanthus Oken 1817    tri-, three; acanthus, thorn or spine, referring to large first dorsal-fin spine and two large pelvic-fin spines, unlike Balistes (Balistidae), original genus of T. biaculeatus, which lacks the pelvic spines

Triacanthus biaculeatus (Bloch 1786)    bi-, two; aculeatus, spined, referring to two sharply pointed pelvic-fin spines

Triacanthus nieuhofii Bleeker 1851    in honor of Johan Nieuhof (1618-1672), Dutch East India Company, who, in 1682, was the first person to describe and illustrate this species, which he called “Hoornvisch”

Tripodichthys Tyler 1968    tripodis, three-legged stand, referring to bathypteroid-like tripodal stance envisioned for the fish resting on its two erect pelvic-fin spines and lower lobe of caudal fin; ichthys, fish

Tripodichthys angustifrons (Hollard 1854)    angustus, narrow; frons, forehead, referring to longer, narrow snout compared to Triacanthus brevirostris (=biaculeatus), its presumed congener at the time

Tripodichthys blochii (Bleeker 1852)    in honor of physician-naturalist Marcus Elieser Bloch (1723–1799), who described its presumed congener Triacanthus biaculeatus in 1786

Tripodichthys oxycephalus (Bleeker 1851)    oxy, sharp or acute; cephalus, head, referring to long, acutely shaped head

Trixiphichthys Fraser-Brunner 1941    tri-, three and xiphos, sword, allusion not explained, presumably referring to large first dorsal-fin spine and two large pelvic-fin spines; ichthys, fish

Trixiphichthys weberi (Chaudhuri 1910)    in honor of ichthyologist Max Weber (1852-1937), whose “observations and remarks … have been very helpful” in Chaudhuri’s description of this species        


Family TRIACANTHODIDAE Spikefishes
11 genera · 24 species

Subfamily HOLLARDINAE

Hollardia Poey 1861    ia, belonging to: physician-naturalist Henri Hollard (1801-1866), “in recognition of the excellent work he published in Anuales des Sciences naturelles” (translation); Hollard described Tripodichthys angustifrons (Triacanthidae) in 1854 and was a pioneer in studying the anatomy and classification of plectognath fishes

Hollardia goslinei Tyler 1968    in honor of ichthyologist William A. Gosline (1915-2002), University of Michigan, who was instrumental, along with other colleagues, in collecting fishes killed by the eruption of Mauna Loa (Island of Hawai‘i) in 1950, including type of this one

Hollardia hollardi Poey 1861    in honor of physician-naturalist Henri Hollard (1801-1866) [see genus]

Hollardia meadi Tyler 1966    in honor of ichthyologist Giles W. Mead (1928-2003), who gave Tyler his “first encouragement and opportunity to study fishes, especially plectognaths”

Parahollardia Fraser-Brunner 1941    para-, near, referring to close relationship with Hollardia

Parahollardia lineata (Longley 1935)    lined, referring to eight longitudinal “streaks of green” on body

Parahollardia schmidti Woods 1959    in honor of herpetologist Karl P. Schmidt (1890-1957), Chief Curator, Department of Zoology, Chicago Natural History Museum (published in a memorial issue of Copeia dedicated to Schmidt)

Subfamily TRIACANTHODINAE

Atrophacanthus Fraser-Brunner 1950    atrophia, rudimentary; acanthus, thorn or spine, referring poor development of last three dorsal-fin spines

Atrophacanthus japonicus (Kamohara 1941)    icus, belonging to Japan, type specimen (destroyed during WW2) dredged off Shikoku, Kochi Prefecture, Japan

Bathyphylax Myers 1934    bathys, deep; phylax, guard, i.e., a guardian of deep water, allusion not explained, perhaps referring to habitat of B. bombifrons (collected at 113 m) and metaphorical all-seeing or guardian nature of its large eyes

Bathyphylax bombifrons Myers 1934    bombus, humming or buzzing; frons, forehead, referring to tubular snout, reminiscent of a resonating wind instrument (George S. Myers, pers. comm. with James C. Tyler, reported in Tyler 1986)

Bathyphylax omen Tyler 1966    Anglo-Saxon word meaning sign, prophecy or augury, referring to phyletic importance of species in this genus as “harbingers” of the long-snouted and conically toothed Halimochirurgus

Bathyphylax pruvosti Santini 2006    in honor of Patrice Pruvost (b. 1966), collection manager of the ichthyological collection of the Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle (Paris), who helped making material from his museum’s collection available to Santini

Halimochirurgus Alcock 1899    halimos, of the sea; chirurgus, surgeon, referring to long tubular snout with small mouth opening of H. centriscoides, “remarkably like the surgical instrument known as a catheter” (per Alcock in a follow-up 1899 publication)

Halimochirurgus alcocki Weber 1913    in honor of physician-naturalist Alfred William Alcock (1859-1933), Superintendent of the Indian Museum (West Bengal, India), who proposed the genus in 1899

Halimochirurgus centriscoides Alcock 1899    oides, having the form of: similar to the shrimpfishes of Centriscus (Syngnathiformes: Centriscidae) in body shape

Johnsonina Myers 1934    -ia, belonging to: financier and philanthropist Eldridge R. Johnson (1899-1986), sponsor of the Johnson-Smithsonian Deep-Sea Expedition of 1933, during which type was collected

Johnsonina eriomma Myers 1934    eri-, very; omma, eye, referring to “enormous” eyes and ocellated spot (eyespot) on body, the latter unique in the family

Macrorhamphosodes Fowler 1934    oides, having the form of: referring to resemblance of M. platycheilus to snipefishes of Macroramphosus (Syngnathiformes: Centriscidae)

Macrorhamphosodes platycheilus Fowler 1934    platys, wide; cheilus, lip, referring to “broadly expanded” upper lip

Macrorhamphosodes uradoi (Kamohara 1933)    of Urado, Tosa Province (now Kochi Prefecture), Japan, where type was found at a fish market

Mephisto Tyler 1966    named for the devil Mephisto, second only to Satan among the fallen archangels and more familiar as Mephistopheles of the Faustian legend, referring to reddish exterior, black interior, and horn-like spines of M. fraserbrunneri

Mephisto albomaculosus Matsuura, Psomadakis & Tun 2018    albus, white; maculosus, spotted, referring to numerous white spots on head and body

Mephisto fraserbrunneri Tyler 1966    in honor of ichthyologist Alec Fraser-Brunner (1906-1986), British Museum (Natural History) and then-director of the Van Kleef Aquarium in Singapore, for his “laudable” series of “Notes on the plectognath fishes,” which, despite their modest title, “in actuality present the pioneering generic revisions of the families of plectognath fishes which form the basis of our present knowledge of the classification of the Order”

Paratriacanthodes Fowler 1934    para-, near, referring to close relationship with Triacanthodes

Paratriacanthodes abei Tyler 1997    in honor of the late Tokiharu Abe (1911-1996), Museum of Tokyo University and the Fish Museum at Tsukiji Fish Market, an “authority on the fishes of Japan, and especially on the tetraodontiform fugus; he always shared his enthusiasm, knowledge, and specimens with other researchers having similar interests”

Paratriacanthodes herrei Myers 1934    in honor of ichthyologist-lichenologist Albert W. Herre (1868-1962), an authority on fishes of the Philippines, where this species was discovered

Paratriacanthodes retrospinis Fowler 1934    retro-, backward; spinis, spine, referring to well-developed retrorse barbs on first dorsal- and pelvic-fin spines

Triacanthodes Bleeker 1857    oides, having the form of: referring to presumed close relationship with Triacanthus (Triacanthidae)

Triacanthodes anomalus (Temminck & Schlegel 1850)    odd or irregular (i.e., different), referring to how this species is “not quite modeled on the same type” (translation) as other species then placed in Triacanthus (Triacanthidae)

Triacanthodes ethiops Alcock 1894    blackened or scorched, allusion not explained, presumably referring to “uniform blue-black” color of small preserved type specimen (probably yellowish to reddish in life)

Triacanthodes indicus Matsuura 1982    Indian, referring to western Indian Ocean, only known area of occurrence

Triacanthodes intermedius Matsuura & Fourmanoir 1984    named for “intermediate condition of character states” between Triacanthodes and Paratriacanthodes

Tydemania Weber 1913    ia, belonging to: Lieut. G. F. Tydeman, commander of the Siboga, Dutch research vessel in the East Indies (1899-1900) and Weber’s “loyal colleague” (translation), from which type of T. navigatoris was collected

Tydemania navigatoris Weber 1913    sailor or mariner, especially the navigator, allusion not explained, perhaps referring to Lieut. G. F. Tydeman, for whom genus is named


Family DIODONTIDAE Porcupinefishes or Burrfishes
7 genera · 19 species

Allomycterus McCulloch 1921    allo-, other (i.e., different); mycterus, nostril, having a bifid nasal tentacle without openings, different from Chilomycterus and Dicotylichthys

Allomycterus pilatus Whitley 1931    armed with a javelin, allusion not explained, perhaps referring to body covered in short, fixed, blade-like spines

Chilomycterus Brisout de Barneville 1846    chilos, lip; mycterus, nostril, referring to nostrils having the appearance of two lips, or formed of two tentacles united at the base

Chilomycterus antennatus (Cuvier 1816)    atus, adjectival suffix: antenna or feeler, referring to large tentacle over eye and tentacles along lower part of sides

Chilomycterus antillarum Jordan & Rutter 1897    of the Antilles, referring to Kingston, Jamaica, type locality (occurs in western Atlantic from North Carolina to Florida, Panama to northern Brazil, and the West Indies)

Chilomycterus mauretanicus (Le Danois 1954)    icus, belonging to: Mauritania, type locality (occurs in eastern Atlantic from Mauritania to Angola, with possible strays to South Africa)

Chilomycterus reticulatus (Linnaeus 1758)    netted or net-like but fish is actually spotted; Linnaeus based description on account in Artedi (1738), which itself was based on Willughby (1686), in which fish is described as “muricatus & reticulatus” (spiny & net-like)

Chilomycterus schoepfii (Walbaum 1792)    in honor of German naturalist and military surgeon Johann David Schöpf (1752-1800), who explored the United States and the Bahamas (1783-1784), studying their natural history; Walbaum’s description is based on Schöpf’s 1788 account of this species

Chilomycterus spinosus (Linnaeus 1758)    spiny, referring to short, stout, triangular, and immovable spines all over body

Cyclichthys Kaup 1855    cyclos, round or circular, presumably referring to shape of C. orbicularis when inflated with water or air; ichthys, fish

Cyclichthys hardenbergi (de Beaufort 1939)    in honor of Dutch biologist Johann Dietrich Frans Hardenberg (1902-1980), Laboratorium voor het Onderzoek der Zee (Batavia), who sent type to de Beaufort for identification

Cyclichthys orbicularis (Bloch 1785)    circular or disc-shaped, referring to body shape when inflated with water or air

Cyclichthys spilostylus (Leis & Randall 1982)    spilos, spot; stylos, pillar or post, referring to contrasting spot at base of each spine

Dicotylichthys Kaup 1855    di-, two and cotyla, cup-shaped cavity or hollow, presumably referring to bifid nostril of adults; ichthys, fish

Dicotylichthys punctulatus Kaup 1855    diminutive of punctum, spot, referring to small black spots on back and abdomen

Diodon Linnaeus 1758    di-, two; odon, tooth, referring to two fused teeth (but separated by a median suture) in jaws

Diodon bocagei (Steindachner 1866)    patronym not explained, probably in honor of José Vicente Barbosa du Bocage (1823-1907), curator of Zoology at the Museum of Natural History in Lisbon (see Luciobarbus bocagei, Cypriniformes: Cyprinidae: Barbinae)

Diodon eydouxii Brisout de Barneville 1846    patronym not identified but almost certainly in honor of Joseph Fortuné Théodore Eydoux (1802-1841), naturalist and naval surgeon, who helped collect type aboard La Bonite during its 1836-1837 circumnavigation of the globe

Diodon holocanthus Linnaeus 1758    holo-, entire; acanthus, thorn or spine, referring to scales modified into spines all over body

Diodon hystrix Linnaeus 1758    porcupine, referring to scales modified into spines all over body

Diodon liturosus Shaw 1804    blotched or patched, referring to “large, crescent-shaped black spot or patch” on nape, a “somewhat oval patch” above pectoral fin, and two transverse ones, the first beneath the eye and the second between eye and pectoral fin

Diodon nicthemerus Cuvier 1818    nyctos, night; hemera, day, referring to blackish-brown above, silvery white below

Lophodiodon Fraser-Brunner 1943    lophos, crest, proposed as a subgenus of Diodon with two-rooted, erectile spines only on front of head

Lophodiodon calori (Bianconi 1854)    patronym not identified but almost certainly in honor of Bianconi’s colleage at University of Bologna, Luigi Calori (1807-1896), physician and human-anatomy professor [presumably a noun in apposition, without the patronymic “i”]

Tragulichthys Whitley 1931    tragula, javelin, referring to numerous sharp spines on body; ichthys, fish

Tragulichthys jaculiferus (Cuvier 1818)    jaculum, dart or javelin; fero-, to bear, referring to numerous sharp spines on body


Family TETRAODONTIDAE Puffers
27 genera · 196 species

Subfamily TETRAODONTINAE

Amblyrhynchotes Troschel 1856    amblys, blunt, rhynchus, snout; –otes, pertaining to or having the nature of, referring to prominent blunt chin

Amblyrhynchote honckenii (Bloch 1785)    in honor of German botanist, aristocrat and “dear friend” (translation) Gerhard August Honckeny (also spelled Honkeny, 1724-1805), who, in some capacity, provided or presented type to Bloch

Arothron Müller 1841    etymology not explained, perhaps a-, without, and rothron, variant or incorrect spelling of rothon, nostril, referring to two finger-like nasal tentacles instead of nasal pores

Arothron caeruleopunctatus Matsuura 1994    caeruleo-, blue; punctatus, spotted, referring to numerous blue spots on head and body

Arothron carduus (Cantor 1849)    thistle, allusion not explained, perhaps referring to “rather long, very fine, hair-like and crowded” spines (spinules) on back

Arothron diadematus (Rüppell 1829)    crowned, referring to brownish-black band over crown of head, through eye and around pectoral fins

Arothron firmamentum (Temminck & Schlegel 1850)    sky or heaven, allusion not explained, probably referring to profusion of small white spots on back and belly (with larger spots on sides), like stars in the night sky

Arothron hispidus (Linnaeus 1758)    rough or bristly, referring to small spinules covering head and body (except around snout and rear of caudal peduncle)

Arothron immaculatus (Bloch & Schneider 1801)    spotless, allusion not explained, presumably referring to body without spots or bands (except for large yellowish-brown to black blotch around pectoral-fin base)

Arothron inconditus Smith 1958    rough, unplanned or crude, but perhaps Smith used it (incorrectly) to mean rough (i.e., bristly), the “whole body spinate”

Arothron manilensis (Marion de Procé 1822)    ensis, suffix denoting place: Manila Bay, Philippines, type locality (occurs in eastern Indian and western Pacific oceans from Myanmar and Indonesia east to Hawaiian Islands, Samoa and Tonga, north to southern Japan, south to Australia and New Caledonia)

Arothron mappa (Lesson 1831)    sheet, from mappa mundi, “sheet of the world” (i.e., map), “countless streaks that crisscross the body surface and flanks in all directions” (translation), like the markings or pathways on a map

Arothron meleagris (Anonymous 1798)    guinea fowl, referring to innumerable white spots on body, which resembles color pattern of a guinea fowl [name coined by Commerçon in an unpublished manuscript, published as a vernacular name by Lacepède in 1798, then latinized in an anonymous book review later that year, from whence the name dates; authorship sometimes given as Bloch & Schneider 1801]

Arothron multilineatus Matsuura 2016    multi-, many; lineatus, lined, referring to many white lines on head and body

Arothron nigropunctatus (Bloch & Schneider 1801)    nigro-, black; punctatus, spotted, referring to scattered black spots on head and body

Arothron reticularis (Bloch & Schneider 1801)    reticular, referring to many brown reticulations (along with lines and spots) on upper body

Arothron stellatus (Anonymous 1798)    starry, referring to stellate base at prickles that cover body [based on unpublished description by Commerçon, published with a vernacular name by Lacepède in 1798, then assigned “stellatus” in an anonymous book review later that year, from whence the name dates; authorship often given as Bloch & Schneider 1801]

Auriglobus Kottelat 1999    aurum, gold, presumably referring to gold to greenish-gold or greenish-gold upper body color of most species; globus, globe or sphere, presumably referring to round shape when inflated with water or air

Auriglobus amabilis (Roberts 1982)    lovely, presumably referring to “highly distinctive” coloration in life, “lime-green dorsally, with a darkened area along the base of the dorsal fin, and a reddish eye”

Auriglobus modestus (Bleeker 1850)    modest or unassuming, allusion not explained, perhaps referring to dull or plain coloration compared to colorfully patterned congeners in Arothron, presumed subgenus at time of description

Auriglobus nefastus (Roberts 1982)    wicked or abominable, referring to its primary diet of fish fins and scales

Auriglobus remotus (Roberts 1982)    remote, referring to type locality (Kinabatangan basin, mouth of Sungai Deramakot, Malaysia)

Auriglobus silus (Roberts 1982)    pug-nosed, allusion not explained, a character that seems to apply to all members of the genus

Carinotetraodon Benl 1957    carino-, keeled, referring to ridges along backs and bellies of males that can be raised when displaying or threatening rivals; Tetraodon, similar to that genus in having short dorsal and anal fins

Carinotetraodon borneensis (Regan 1903)    ensis, suffix denoting place: southern Sarawak, Borneo, only known area of occurrence

Carinotetraodon imitator Britz & Kottelat 1999    referring to color pattern that closely resembles that of C. travancoricus

Carinotetraodon irrubesco Tan 1999    to redden or to blush, referring to red dorsal and caudal fins of mature males

Carinotetraodon lorteti (Tirant 1885)    in honor of teacher and friend Louis Charles Émile Lortet (1836-1909), physician, botanist, zoologist, paleontologist, Egyptologist, anthropologist, and then-Dean of the School of Medicine and Director of its Museum in Lyon, France

Carinotetraodon salivator Lim & Kottelat 1995    one who salivates, referring to distinct pale blotch on lower lip, which resembles a drop of saliva

Carinotetraodon travancoricus (Hora & Nair 1941)    icus, belonging to: central Travancore, Kerala, India, where type locality (Rambha [or Pamba] River) is situated

Chelonodontops Smith 1958    ops, appearance, closely related to Chelonodon (=Leiodon) but differs in having no spines on sides or back, and in the “curious” cup-like nasal tentacle

Chelonodontops alvheimi Psomadakis, Matsuura & Thein 2018    in honor of Oddgeir Alvheim (b. 1944), Institute of Marine Research (Bergen, Norway), for a “lifetime spent at sea on the R/V Dr. Fridtjof Nansen. Among his duties onboard, Oddgeir has made a tremendous effort to document the rich tropical marine fauna from surveyed regions around the world and firstly photographed this new species from a trawl haul off the coast of Myanmar in November 2013.”

Chelonodontops bengalensis Habib, Neogi, Oh, Lee & Kim 2018    ensis, suffix denoting place: Bay of Bengal, Bangladesh, type locality

Chelonodontops laticeps (Smith 1948)    latus, wide; ceps, head, allusion not explained, perhaps referring to “broad” interorbital

Chelonodontops leopardus (Day 1878)    presumably referring to leopard-like pattern of white spots on olive upper body

Chelonodontops patoca (Hamilton 1822)    from Patoka, local name for puffers (this one is called the “great Patoka”) along the Ganges River estuaries of India (occurs in Indo-West Pacific from Madagascar, Persian Gulf, India and Sri Lanka east to French Polynesia, north to southern Japan, south to northern Australia and New Caledonia, in marine, brackish and fresh waters)

Chelonodontops pleurospilus (Regan 1919)    pleuro-, side; spilos, spot, referring to dark spots on sides, which form about three irregular longitudinal series, the spots of the lowest series confluent anteriorly to form a stripe from mouth to lower end of pectoral-fin base

Chonerhinos Bleeker 1854    chonos, funnel; rhinos, snout, referring to funnel-shaped depression at nasal openings

Chonerhinos naritus (Richardson 1848)    referring to nares or nostrils: “It differs also from any other fish we have seen in its nostril, which is single and has an orifice equal in extent to the length and breadth of the cavity.”

Contusus Whitley 1947    grind or crush, allusion not explained, perhaps referring to its tetraodontid teeth, which it uses to crush and even crack open prey items (e.g., crabs)

Contusus brevicaudus Hardy 1981    brevis, short; caudus, tail, referring to “significantly” shorter caudal peduncle compared to C. richei

Contusus richei (Fréminville 1813)    in honor of Claude Riche (1762-1797), naturalist on Bruni d’Entrecasteaux’s 1791 expedition in search of the lost ships of Jean-François de Galaup, comte de La Pérouse, during which type was collected

Dichotomyctere Duméril 1855    dichotomos, cut in two equal parts; mycterus, nostril, allusion not explained, presumably referring to bifid tentacle on each side of nostril of D. fluviatilis

Dichotomyctere erythrotaenia (Bleeker 1853)    erythros, red; taenia, band or ribbon, referring to reddish stripe along upper part of lower, pale-colored area of body

Dichotomyctere fluviatilis (Hamilton 1822)    of a river, referring to occurrence in fresh water (occurs in brackish water also)

Dichotomyctere kretamensis (Inger 1953)    ensis, suffix denoting place: Kretam Kechil River system, Kinabatangan District, East Coast Residency, Malaysia, type locality (also occurs in Indonesia)

Dichotomyctere nigroviridis (Marion de Procé 1822)    nigro-, black, viridis, green, referring to dark spots on green upper body in life

Dichotomyctere ocellatus (Steindachner 1870)    having eye-like spots, referring to 4-6 ocelli on body (highly variable, sometimes joining to form shape of the number 8)

Dichotomyctere sabahensis (Dekkers 1975)    ensis, suffix denoting place: endemic to Sabah and “perhaps to other parts of Borneo”

Ephippion Bibron 1855    saddle, referring to back armed with bony plates, forming a sort of carapace

Ephippion guttifer (Bennett 1831)    gutta, spot; fero, to bear, referring to white spots on upper body

Feroxodon Su, Hardy & Tyler 1986    ferox, ferocious; odon, tooth, referring to its “fierce” biting habits, implicated in several unprovoked attacks on human toes (e.g., in 1979, a girl lost three toes to this puffer near Proserpine, Queensland, Australia)

Feroxodon multistriatus (Richardson 1854)    multi-, many; striatus, striped, referring to numerous thin, brown and white lines on head and body curving toward tail

Guentheridia Gilbert & Starks 1904    idia, belonging to: ichthyologist-herpetologist Albert Günther (1830-1914), who described G. formosa in 1870 and, in 1869 (actually 1868), authored an “admirable summary of the state of our knowledge” of the fishes of Central America, with “valuable discussions of the faunal relations of both marine and freshwater forms”

Guentheridia formosa (Günther 1870)    beautiful, presumably reflecting Günther’s opinion of color pattern of juveniles, with cross lines on head, concentric rings enclosing rings on back, and reticulations on sides (adults are spotted)

Javichthys Hardy 1985    Java, off southern coast of which where J. kailolae appears to be endemic; ichthys, fish

Javichthys kailolae Hardy 1985    in honor of Patricia J. Kailola, The University of the South Pacific (Suva, Fiji), for her interest in and contribution to the knowledge of Indo-Pacific fishes

Lagocephalus Swainson 1839    lagos, hare; cephalus, head, allusion not explained, presumably referring to powerful, hare-like incisor teeth of L. stellatus and L. pennantii (both = lagocephalus) [not tautonymous with Tetraodon lagocephalus Linnaeus 1758 since Swainson did not mention that name]

Lagocephalus cheesemanii (Clarke 1897)    in honor of England-born New Zealand botanist-naturalist Thomas Frederick Cheeseman (1846-1923), Curator of the Auckland Museum, who sent type to Clarke

Lagocephalus guentheri Miranda Ribeiro 1915    in honor of ichthyologist-herpetologist Albert Günther (1830-1914), who described this puffer as a variety of Tetrodon lunaris in 1870

Lagocephalus inermis (Temminck & Schlegel 1850)    unarmed, referring to smooth back and sides (spines on belly only)

Lagocephalus laevigatus (Linnaeus 1766)    smoothed, referring to smooth back and sides (spines on belly only)

Lagocephalus lagocephalus (Linnaeus 1758)    lagos, hare; cephalus, head, allusion not explained, presumably referring to its powerful, hare-like incisor teeth

Lagocephalus lunaris (Bloch & Schneider 1801)    of the moon, referring to lunate caudal fin

Lagocephalus sceleratus (Gmelin 1789)    noxious, an extremely poisonous and potentially deadly fish if eaten by humans; manuscript name coined by Johann Reinhold Forster (1729-1798), naturalist aboard Captain Cook’s second voyage on HMS Resolution, after he, his son, and Captain Cook ate a small portion of this puffer’s liver in New Caledonia and got very sick for three days

Lagocephalus spadiceus (Richardson 1845)    nut-brown, referring to dorsal coloration

Lagocephalus suezensis Clark & Gohar 1953    ensis, suffix denoting place: Gulf of Suez, Suez, Egypt, type locality (occurs in Red Sea and Indo-West Pacific from Myanmar east to Indonesia, north to southern Japan, south to northern Australia, and in the Mediterranean as a Lessepsian immigrant)

Leiodon Swainson 1839    leios, smooth and odon, tooth; Swainson proposed name on p. 194, but changed it to Leisomus (somus, body) on p. 328, indicating on both pages that the genus is distinguished by its smooth body, so perhaps Leiodon is a lapsus for Leisomus (Bleeker 1865, serving as first reviser, selected Leiodon over Leisomus)

Leiodon cutcutia (Hamilton 1822)    etymology not explained, apparent latinization of katkatiya, a local Gangetic name (per Hamilton’s notes as published by Hora in 1929)

Leiodon dapsilis (Whitley 1943)    abundant or plentiful, allusion not explained nor evident[often placed in Chelonodon, here treated as a junior synonym of Leiodon]

Marilyna Hardy 1982    in honor of Hardy’s wife Marilyn, who “spared no efforts in bibliographic research throughout my studies on Australian tetraodontids, and who assisted uncomplainingly at poison stations in the hot, muddy, and potentially dangerous mangrove swamps of North Queensland”

Marilyna darwinii (Castelnau 1873)    in honor of Charles Darwin (1809-1882), the “great naturalist of the age,” for whom Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia (type locality) is named

Marilyna meraukensis (de Beaufort 1955)    ensis, suffix denoting place: Merauke River, southern New Guinea, type locality

Marilyna pleurosticta (Günther 1872)    pleuro-, side; stiktos, spotted or blotched, referring to series of three black round spots on each side of body

Omegophora Whitley 1934    omega, last letter of Greek alphabet; phora, to bear, probably referring to narrow, black, Ω-shaped ring around pectoral-fin base of O. armilla

Omegophora armilla (Waite & McCulloch 1915)    bracelet, referring to narrow black ring around pectoral-fin base

Omegophora cyanopunctata Hardy & Hutchins 1981    cyano-, blue; punctata, spotted, referring to blue spots on cheeks and sides

Pao Kottelat 2013    from local names of pufferfishes in Thai (pla pao) and Lao (pa pao) languages, with pla and pa meaning fish and pao meaning purse

Pao abei (Roberts 1998)    in honor of the late Tokiharu Abe (1911-1996), Zoological Institute of Tokyo University, a “lifelong student of pufferfishes”

Pao baileyi (Sontirat 1985)    in honor of ichthyologist Reeve M. Bailey (1911-2011), Sontirat’s professor at the University of Michigan, who gave him “a lot of knowledge in term[s] of fish anatomy” and was also interested in Thai freshwater fishes

Pao barbatus (Roberts 1998)    bearded, presumably referring to three “bold” black marks on chin

Pao bergii (Popta 1905)    patronym not identified, possibly in honor of Latvian zoologist Friedrich Wilhelm Karl (“Carlos”) Berg (1843-1902), Museo Nacional de Buenos Aires

Pao brevirostris (Benl 1957)    brevis, short; rostris, snout, proposed as a subspecies of P. leiurus with a shorter, blunter snout

Pao cambodgiensis (Chabanaud 1923)    ensis, suffix denoting place: Cambodia, where it is endemic

Pao cochinchinensis (Steindachner 1866)    ensis, suffix denoting place: Cochinchine (now southern Viêt Nam), type locality

Pao fangi (Pellegrin & Chevey 1940)    in honor of Ping-Wen Fang (1903-1944), Metropolitan Museum of Natural History and Biological Laboratory of the Science Society of China, who specialized in the study of Chinese fishes

Pao hilgendorfii (Popta 1905)    patronym not identified, possibly in honor of German zoologist and paleontologist Franz Hilgendorf (1839-1904)

Pao leiurus (Bleeker 1850)    leios, smooth; oura, tail, referring to small spines covering head and body but absent on tail (and snout)

Pao ocellaris (Klausewitz 1957)    having an eye-like spot, referring to large ocellus on sides

Pao palembangensis (Bleeker 1851)    ensis, suffix denoting place: Palembang, Sumatra, Indonesia, type locality

Pao palustris (Saenjundaeng, Vidthayanon & Grudpun 2013)    of a marsh or swamp, referring to its primary habitat of marshlands, swamps and floodplains

Pao suvattii (Sontirat & Soonthornsatit 1985)    in honor of Chote Suvatti (1904-?), former dean of the Faculty of Fisheries, Kasetart University, Bangkok, a “Thai-pioneer” ichthyologist (per Sontirat 1989)

Pao turgidus (Kottelat 2000)    Latin for puffy, swollen, bombastic or pompous, clearly referring to its being a pufferfish

Pelagocephalus Tyler & Paxton 1979    pelagius, of the sea, referring to “envisioned offshore, openwater habitat of the streamlined” P. coheni; cephalus, head, referring both to its “sleek” head and similarity of its name with that of Lagocephalus, “one of the several genera closely related to it”

Pelagocephalus coheni Tyler & Paxton 1979    in honor of Daniel M. Cohen (1930-2017), then-Director of the National Systematics Laboratory of the National Marine Fisheries Service (Washington, D.C.), a “collector of many invaluable Indo-Pacific fishes for the use of others, and a benefactor of both of the authors on many occasions”

Pelagocephalus marki Heemstra & Smith 1981    in honor of Mark Pote, who, in 1979, then a schoolboy, “found an unusual little puffer fish alive in a tide pool at Port Alfred on the southeast coast of South Africa. Despite his efforts to keep it alive, the fish died the next day and was then donated to the J.L.B. Smith Institute of Ichthyology” (now the South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity)

Polyspina Hardy 1983    poly, many; spina, spine, an “extremely” spiny fish, its spine very long and dense over anterior ⅔ of body

Polyspina piosae (Whitley 1955)    of PIOSA, type collected by Whitley while he was attending the Pan Indian Ocean Science Association’s congress in Perth, Western Australia

Reicheltia Hardy 1982    ia, belonging to: John and Bonnie Reichelt, friends who assisted in seine netting along the southern New South Wales coast, whereby new locality records for R. halsteadi were obtained

Reicheltia halsteadi (Whitley 1957)    in honor of physician-biotoxicologist Bruce W. Halstead (1920- 2002), for his studies on poisonous and venomous fishes [biographical footnote: in 1985, Halstead was convicted of fraud, and lost his license to practice medicine, after selling cancer patients a substance that was 99.4% water and contained a brownish sludge made up primarily of coliform bacteria]

Sphoeroides Anonymous 1798    oides, having the form of: sphaera, ball or sphere, referring to round shape when fish is inflated with air or water, especially when viewed from the front [published as a vernacular name by Lacepède in 1798, then latinized in an anonymous book review later that year, from whence the name dates]

Sphoeroides andersonianus Morrow 1957    ianus, belonging to: Wendell W. Anderson, Sr. (1901-1959), investment banker and yachtsman (Detroit, Michigan, USA), for his “stimulation in advancing marine research”; Anderson funded the Yale South American Expedition of 1953, during which type was collected

Sphoeroides angusticeps (Jenyns 1842)    angustus, narrow; –ceps, head, referring to more elongate head compared to S. annulatus (described in same publication)

Sphoeroides annulatus (Jenyns 1842)    ringed, referring to series of broad, oval, dark brownish-black rings, one within the other, on upper body, the outer and largest ring including nearly entire surface of back and sides

Sphoeroides asellus (Müller & Troschel 1849)    small ass or donkey, allusion not explained nor evident

Sphoeroides camila Carvalho, Rotundo, Pitassy & Sazima 2023    in honor of Camila Carvalho, one of the daughters of the lead author [a noun in apposition, without the matronymic “ae”]

Sphoeroides dorsalis Longley 1934    of the back, presumably referring to pair of skin flaps (lappets) on back, midway between eye and dorsal fin

Sphoeroides georgemilleri Shipp 1972    in honor of George C. Miller, National Marine Fisheries Service, Southeast Fisheries Center, Miami Laboratory, who aided Shipp “greatly” in the collection of Central American materials for study; he also reviewed the manuscript

Sphoeroides greeleyi Gilbert 1900    in honor of ichthyologist-physiologist Arthur W. Greeley (1875-1904), San Diego State Normal School (California, USA), who collected type [biographical footnote: Greeley died in St. Louis, age 28, after an appendectomy]

Sphoeroides kendalli Meek & Hildebrand 1928    in honor of William C. Kendall (1861-1939), U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, for his many “valuable” contributions to our knowledge of American ichthyology

Sphoeroides lispus Walker 1996    smooth, referring to lack of spinules and lappets (skin flaps)

Sphoeroides lobatus (Steindachner 1870)    lobed, presumably referring to pair of skin lobes on back and/or small triangular flaps of skin (cirri) scattered along sides

Sphoeroides maculatus (Bloch & Schneider 1801)    spotted, referring to scattered black spots on back, sides and cheeks

Sphoeroides marmoratus (Lowe 1838)    marbled, referring to diffuse brownish-black spots or blotches on body [Tetraodon laevissimus Bowdich 1825 is a senior synonym treated as a nomen oblitum]

Sphoeroides nephelus (Goode & Bean 1882)    with cloud-like spots or white specks, allusion not explained, perhaps referring to many small rosettes of pale dots on upper body

Sphoeroides pachygaster (Müller & Troschel 1848)    pachys, thick; gaster, belly, allusion not explained, perhaps referring to thick, inflatable belly

Sphoeroides parvus Shipp & Yerger 1969    small, not known to reach 120 mm SL

Sphoeroides psittacus (Bloch & Schneider 1801)    parrot, allusion not explained, possibly referring to fused teeth that form beak-like plates, giving it a parrot-like appearance

Sphoeroides rosenblatti Bussing 1996    in honor of Richard H. Rosenblatt (1930-2014), Scripps Institution of Oceanography, for his contribution to the biology of fishes, especially those of the eastern tropical Pacific region

Sphoeroides sechurae Hildebrand 1946    of Sechura Bay, Peru, type locality

Sphoeroides spengleri (Bloch 1785)    in honor of friend and fellow naturalist Lorentz Spengler (1720-1807) of Copenhagen, who sent type specimen to Bloch

Sphoeroides testudineus (Linnaeus 1758)    like a turtle (testudo), presumably referring to turtle-like head or jaws, dating to “orbis oblongus testudinis capite” in Clusius’ Exoticorum libri decem (1605)

Sphoeroides tocantinensis (Amaral, Brito, Silva & Carvalho 2013)    ensis, suffix denoting place: Tocantins, Brazil, where type locality (Porto Nacional) is situated (named for the state, not the Tocantins River, where it occurs)

Sphoeroides trichocephalus (Cope 1870)    trichos, hair; cephalus, head, referring to “long, close set” spinules on head, “like seal bristles”

Sphoeroides tyleri Shipp 1972    in honor of plectognath taxonomist James C. Tyler (b. 1935), then of the Lerner Marine Laboratory (Bimini, Bahamas); he also reviewed Shipp’s manuscript

Sphoeroides yergeri Shipp 1972    in honor of ichthyologist Ralph W. Yerger (1922-2003), Florida State University

Takifugu Marshall & Palmer 1950    taki-fugu, Japanese name for T. oblongus, taki possibly meaning “to be cooked in liquid” (per FishBase), and fugu meaning pufferfish [name proposed by Abe 1949 but unavailable since he included multiple species without designating which one was the type; authorship is credited to two compilers for the Zoological Record, who designated type]

Takifugu alboplumbeus (Richardson 1845)    albus, white; plumbeus, lead-colored, referring to numerous white spots on lead-colored upper body

Takifugu bimaculatus (Richardson 1845)    bi-, two; maculatus, spotted, referring to black spot on side and another at base of pectoral fin

Takifugu chrysops (Hilgendorf 1879)    chrysos, gold; ops, eye, referring to gold-red or yellow iris

Takifugu coronoidus Ni & Li 1992    corona-like, referring to pale and wide coronal rim surrounding dark-brown ocellus on upper-posterior pectoral fin

Takifugu exascurus (Jordan & Snyder 1901)    excultus, adorned; oura, tail, presumably referring to caudal-fin rays “distinctly spotted and reticulated like sides of body”

Takifugu flavidus (Li, Wang & Wang 1975)    yellowish, referring to “pure yellow” (translation) color on sides of adult specimens

Takifugu flavipterus Matsuura 2017    flavus, yellow; pterus, fin, referring to yellow anal fin

Takifugu oblongus (Bloch 1786)    oblong, referring to more elongate body compared to Sphoeroides testudineus, its presumed congener at the time

Takifugu obscurus (Abe 1949)    dark, allusion not explained, presumably referring to dark-brown coloration in life (except for white belly and orange lower sides) and/or dark-brown dorsal, caudal and pectoral fins (even in formalin)

Takifugu ocellatus (Linnaeus 1758)    having eye-like spots, referring to ocellus behind pectoral fin (which usually connects with ocellus on other side of body, forming a saddle across the back)

Takifugu orbimaculatus Kuang, Li & Liang 1984    orbis, circle or ring; maculatus, spotted, referring to moderately dark ocellus formed laterally behind pectoral fin

Takifugu pardalis (Temminck & Schlegel 1850)    like a leopard, referring to leopard-like color pattern of black spots on orange background of back and upper body

Takifugu plagiocellatus Li 2002    plagios, side; ocellatus, having eye-like spots, referring to ocellus on side above pectoral fin

Takifugu porphyreus (Temminck & Schlegel 1850)    purplish, referring to body color, “brown tending to strongly purple” (translation) in life

Takifugu radiatus (Abe 1947)    radiate, referring to “whitish, radiating ring” around black blotch near posterior part of pectoral fin (per Abe 1948)

Takifugu reticularis (Tian, Cheng & Wang 1975)    reticular, referring to “blackish network” (translation) on back of adult specimens

Takifugu rubripes (Temminck & Schlegel 1850)    ruber, red; pes, foot, usually referring to pelvic fins (which puffers lack), in this case probably referring to red anal fin

Takifugu snyderi (Abe 1988)    in honor of ichthyologist John Otterbein Snyder (1867-1943), who reviewed Japanese plectognaths with David Starr Jordan in 1901

Takifugu stictonotus (Temminck & Schlegel 1850)    stictos, spotted; notos, back, referring to densely spotted back and upper body

Takifugu variomaculatus Li & Kuang 2002    vario-, various; maculatus, spotted, referring to variously shaped spots on back

Takifugu vermicularis (Temminck & Schlegel 1850)    vermiculate, referring to “large number of vermiculated lines” (translation) on head and upper body

Takifugu xanthopterus (Temminck & Schlegel 1850)    xanthus, yellow; pterus, fin, referring to its yellow fins

Tetractenos Hardy 1983    tetra, four; ctenos, comb, referring to four gill rakers on each of the anterior ceratobranchials, compared to two rows in related genera [junior objective synonym of Aphanacanthus Le Danois 1959 (aphanes, inconspicuous; acanthus, thorn or spine, a ms. name coined by Bibron some time before his death in 1848, possibly referring to short spines on back and/or minute spines on cheek of unknown species now provisionally identified as T. hamiltoni), but prevailing usage may apply]

Tetractenos glaber (Fréminville 1813)    bald or smooth, described as “absolutely devoid of spines” (translation) on body, but spines are minute and embedded

Tetractenos hamiltoni (Richardson 1846)    in honor of William Hamilton (1762-1829), surgeon and superintendent of a Royal Navy convict ship, who presented type to the Museum of Haslar Hospital (Hampshire, England), where Richardson studied it after he established the museum in 1838

Tetraodon Linnaeus 1758    tetra-, four; odon, tooth, referring to four fused teeth (but separated by a median suture) in jaws

Tetraodon duboisi Poll 1959    in honor of A. Dubois, Belgian pharmacist and aquarist, who collected type and kept it in his aquarium, showing Poll that it differed from the similarly colored T. schoutedeni in shape and behavior

Tetraodon lineatus Linnaeus 1758    lined, referring to alternating light-and-dark bands or stripes on body

Tetraodon mbu Boulenger 1899    local name for this puffer in what is now Ubangi Province, Democratic Republic of the Congo

Tetraodon miurus Boulenger 1902    curtailed, referring to smaller, truncate caudal fin compared to larger, rounded caudal fin of T. mbu

Tetraodon pustulatus Murray 1857    blistered, presumably referring to “number of small prickles” covering belly

Tetraodon schoutedeni Pellegrin 1926    in honor of zoologist Henri Schouteden (1881-1972), who collected many new species in the Belgian Congo, including type of this one

Torquigener Whitley 1930    etymology not explained, perhaps torquatus, adorned with a necklace or collar, referring to row of papillae in front of gill-openings of T. tuberculiferus, and gena or genio-, cheek or chin, referring to prominent, raised chin [name does not refer to their ability to build circular nests on sandy sea bottom (torquis, ring; gener, to cause) as reported by Wikipedia since this behavior was not yet known by 1930]

Torquigener albomaculosus Matsuura 2014    albus, white; maculosus, spotted, referring to many white spots on body

Torquigener altipinnis (Ogilby 1891)    alti-, high; pinnis, fin, referring to “high and falcate” dorsal and anal fins, “the second or highest ray of the former being two and a half times the height of the last ray, while in the latter there is a corresponding difference though in a lesser degree”

Torquigener andersonae Hardy 1983    in honor of Jennifer M. E. Anderson, a “very friendly and pleasant colleague, with whom [Hardy] shared working facilities whilst at the University of New South Wales”

Torquigener balteus Hardy 1989    girdle, referring to girdle-like arrangement of spines across top of body, behind the head

Torquigener brevipinnis (Regan 1903)    brevis, short; pinnis, fin, referring to “shortness of the bases of the dorsal and anal fins” compared to T. hypselogeneion

Torquigener flavimaculosus Hardy & Randall 1983    flavus, yellow; maculosus, spotted, referring to its many yellow spots, particularly in the mid-lateral row of its body [treated as a junior synonym of T. hypselogeneion by some workers]

Torquigener florealis (Cope 1871)    flowery, allusion not explained, possibly referring to floral-like pattern of whitish spots on dorsum, delineated by a rosette of smaller brown spots

Torquigener gloerfelti Hardy 1984    in honor of independent fisheries consultant Thomas Gloerfelt-Tarp (b.1949), “who has labored for some years compiling an extensive and well-documented account of Indonesian fishes, and who has provided [Hardy] with many tetraodontid specimens,” including presumably type of this one

Torquigener hicksi Hardy 1983    in honor of marine biologist Geoffrey R.F. Hicks, Curator of Crustacea, National Museum of New Zealand, a “close friend and colleague” who read and commented on parts of Hardy’s manuscript

Torquigener hypselogeneion (Bleeker 1852)    hypselos, high; geneion, cheek, referring to prominent, raised chin

Torquigener marleyi (Fowler 1929)    in honor of Natal fisheries officer Harold Walter Bell-Marley (1872-1945), who collected many South African fishes for Fowler, including type of this one

Torquigener pallimaculatus Hardy 1983    pallidus or pallens, pale; maculatus, spotted, referring to moderately large, irregularly rounded, pale spots on dorsum

Torquigener parcuspinus Hardy 1983    parcus, sparing; spinus, spine, referring to “sparse spination” in contrast to “relatively dense spination” of the superficially similar T. squamicauda

Torquigener paxtoni Hardy 1983    in honor of ichthyologist John R. Paxton (b. 1938), Australian Museum (Sydney), “in gratitude for his interest, cooperation and helpful advice” during Hardy’s revision of the genus

Torquigener perlevis (Ogilby 1908)    very smooth, referring to complete absence of dermal spinules

Torquigener pleurogramma (Regan 1903)    pleuro-, side; gramma, line, presumably referring to a “golden band on the sides usually bearing one or two longitudinal dark stripes and separated from the colour of the back by a dark longitudinal stripe, that of each side being connected across the back by two rather indistinct dark cross-bands, one behind the pectorals, the other through the base of the dorsal”

Torquigener randalli Hardy 1983    in honor of ichthyologist John E. Randall (1924-2020), Bishop Museum (Honolulu), for his “interest and cooperation in both this and other studies undertaken” by Hardy

Torquigener squamicauda (Ogilby 1910)    squamus, scale; cauda, tail, referring to strongly developed double rows of flattened spine-enveloping papillae on both sides of lateral line extending to caudal-fin base

Torquigener tuberculiferus (Ogilby 1912)    tuberculum, small protuberance; fero, to bear, referring to 7-8 fleshy tubercles on outer anterior edge of gill opening

Torquigener vicinus Whitley 1930    near or neighboring, allusion not explained, perhaps referring to its proposal as a subspecies of T. tuberculiferus

Torquigener whitleyi (Paradice 1927)    in honor of Australian ichthyologist-malacologist Gilbert Percy Whitley (1903-1975), for his work in identifying fishes collected by the H.M.A.S. Geranium, including type of this one

Tylerius Hardy 1984    ius, belonging to: in honor of James C. Tyler (b. 1935), for his “very considerable” contributions to our knowledge of the classification of plectognath fishes

Tylerius spinosissimus (Regan 1908)    very spiny, referring to head and body (but not tail) “entirely covered with rather strong two-rooted spines”

Subfamily CANTHIGASTRINAE Sharpnose Puffers or Tobies

Canthigaster Swainson 1839    [a]canthus, thorn or spine; gaster, belly, referring to conspicuous two-rooted prickles on belly of C. rostrata

Canthigaster amboinensis (Bleeker 1864)    ensis, suffix denoting place: Ambon Island, Moluccas Islands, Indonesia, type locality (occurs in Indo-West Pacific from South Africa, East Africa, Seychelles, Comoros, Madagascar and western Mascarenes east to Hawaiian Islands, north to southern Japan, south to Great Barrier Reef and New Caledonia, with waifs reaching Galápagos Archipelago)

Canthigaster axiologus Whitley 1931    axios, worthy or fit; logos, word (marking), allusion not explained, presumably referring to “small round dots on the upper surface and on the caudal fin, and two oblique black bars on the forepart of the belly”

Canthigaster aziz Matsuura, Bogorodsky, Mal & Alpermann 2020    named after King Abdulaziz University (Jeddah, Saudi Arabia), for providing the authors with research facilities and financial support during the Red Sea Biodiversity Project, during which type was collected

Canthigaster bennetti (Bleeker 1854)    in honor of John Whitchurch Bennett (1790-1853), British military officer posted to Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), printer, naturalist, and author of A Selection from the Most Remarkable and Interesting Fishes Found on the Coast of Ceylon (1828-1830), whose illustration of this species, Bleeker said, captured its salient features

Canthigaster caeruleolineata Fricke, Wickel, Pinault, Nicet & Delrieu-Trottin 2022    caeruleus, light blue; lineatus, lined, referring to numerous short, blue lines on head and body

Canthigaster callisterna (Ogilby 1889)    etymology not explained, perhaps calli-, beautiful, and sterna, extended, referring to two dark-brown bands, the first extending from snout to upper caudal fin rays, the second from lower jaw to lower caudal-fin rays (sterna could also translate as “chested,” possibly referring to transverse bands on throat)

Canthigaster capistrata (Lowe 1839)    bridled, muzzled or masked, allusion not explained nor evident

Canthigaster compressa (Marion de Procé 1822)    compressed, referring to laterally compressed head and body (a characteristic of the subfamily distinguishing it from Tetraodontinae)

Canthigaster coronata (Vaillant & Sauvage 1875)    crowned, allusion not explained nor evident

Canthigaster criobe Williams, Delrieu-Trottin & Planes 2012    named for the Centre de Recherche Insulaire et Observatoire de l’Environnement (CRIOBE), Moorea, French Polynesia, in recognition of the laboratory’s continuing support of marine research in French Polynesia

Canthigaster cyanetron Randall & Cea-Egaña 1989    cyano-, blue; etron, abdomen or belly, referring to predominantly blue color of abdomen due to numerous close-set blue stripes

Canthigaster cyanospilota Randall, Williams & Rocha 2008    cyano-, blue; spilota, marked, referring to numerous small bright-blue markings on body of living specimens (dark brown in alcohol)

Canthigaster epilampra (Jenkins 1903)    epi-, upon, beside, over or after; lamprus, shining or beautiful, allusion not explained nor evident

Canthigaster figueiredoi Moura & Castro 2002    in honor of Jose Lima de Figueiredo (b. 1943), Museu de Zoologia da Universidade de São Paulo, for contributions to the advancement of the taxonomy of Brazilian marine fishes, and his “long-term encouragement and support” to the authors

Canthigaster flavoreticulata Matsuura 1986    flavus, yellow; reticulata, net-like or netted, referring to reticulated yellow lines on body

Canthigaster inframacula Allen & Randall 1977    infra-, below; macula, spot, referring to diagnostic black spot on lower half of body

Canthigaster investigatoris (Annandale & Jenkins 1910)    is, genitive singular of: Royal Indian Marine Survey steamer Investigator, from which type was collected

Canthigaster jactator (Jenkins 1901)    boaster or braggart, allusion not explained, perhaps referring to its ability to inflate and/or its larger spots and more distended belly compared to the “very similar” C. punctatissima

Canthigaster jamestyleri Moura & Castro 2002    in honor of James C. Tyler (b. 1935), for his help and advice to the authors, and for his many contributions to the study of the systematics of plectognath fishes

Canthigaster janthinoptera (Bleeker 1855)    ianthus (with Latin “i” replaced by Roman “j”), purple or violet; ptera, finned, described as having purple fins (not evident in contemporary descriptions and photographs)

Canthigaster leoparda Lubbock & Allen 1979    referring to leopard-like dark spots on sides

Canthigaster margaritata (Rüppell 1829)    adorned with pearls, referring to numerous sky-blue spots on body

Canthigaster marquesensis Allen & Randall 1977    ensis, suffix denoting place: Marquesas Islands, where it is endemic

Canthigaster natalensis (Günther 1870)    ensis, suffix denoting place: Port Natal (now Durban, South Africa), type locality (occurs in southwestern Indian Ocean from East Africa and South Africa to Mozambique Channel and western Mascarenes)

Canthigaster ocellicincta Allen & Randall 1977    ocellus, eyespot, referring to dark-brown ocellus at base of dorsal fin; cincta, belted or encircled, presumably referring to two brownish bars with intermediate whitish area between posterior portion of head and level of dorsal fin origin

Canthigaster papua (Bleeker 1848)    presumably derived from Ikan Papoea d’jantan (“male Papuan fish”), name given to this puffer by Dutch naturalist François Valentijn (1666-1727, also spelled Valentyn) in 1726

Canthigaster petersii (Bianconi 1854)    patronym not identified but probably in honor of herpetologist-explorer Wilhelm Peters (1815-1883), Director of the Berlin Museum, who traveled to Africa and returned to Berlin with an enormous collection of natural history specimens, and who is cited several times in Bianconi’s follow-up paper later in 1854

Canthigaster punctata Matsuura 1992    spotted, referring to dark spots on dorsal half of body, unlike the similar C. flavoreticulata, which has irregular dark lines

Canthigaster punctatissima (Günther 1870)    very spotted, referring to entire body behind head covered with numerous round, whitish spots

Canthigaster pygmaea Allen & Randall 1977    small or dwarf, referring to very small size, with mature ova in females of only 25 mm SL

Canthigaster rapaensis Allen & Randall 1977    ensis, suffix denoting place: Rapa Island (now called Rapa Iti), French Polynesia, type locality

Canthigaster rivulata (Temminck & Schlegel 1850)    rivulated, i.e., marked by irregular streaks, presumably referring to “small lines and flexuous stripes of dark sky-blue intertwined in various directions” (translation) on nape and upper body

Canthigaster rostrata (Bloch 1786)    beaked, referring to long and pointed snout

Canthigaster sanctaehelenae (Günther 1870)    of Saint Helena Island in the southern-central Atlantic, type locality (also occurs at Ascension Island)

Canthigaster smithae Allen & Randall 1977    in honor of Margaret Mary Smith (1916-1987), first director of the J.L.B. Smith Institute of Ichthyology (now the South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity), who assisted the junior author in collecting fishes at Mauritius and provided paratype of C. smithae collected off Durban (reported and figured as C. rostratus by Smith in 1965)

Canthigaster solandri (Richardson 1845)    in honor of Swedish naturalist Daniel Solander (1733-1782), who discovered this species during Cook’s first voyage (1768-1771) and described it in an unpublished manuscript

Canthigaster supramacula Moura & Castro 2002    supra-, above; macula, spot, referring to ocellus-like spot on side of body, slightly ventral and anterior to dorsal-fin base

Canthigaster tyleri Allen & Randall 1977    in honor of plectognath taxonomist James C. Tyler (b. 1935), who sent Allen and Randall the first specimen from the Comoro Islands (now designated as a paratype)

Canthigaster valentini (Bleeker 1853)    in honor of Dutch naturalist François Valentijn (1666-1727, also spelled Valentyn), who was the first to write about this species (as Ikan kaskasse) in 1726