Reticulate Boxfish
Ostracion solorense
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Actinopterygii
- Order
- Tetraodontiformes
- Family
- Ostraciidae
- Genus
- Ostracion
- Species
- Ostracion solorense
The reticulate boxfish (Ostracion solorense) is a small boxfish whose patterns differ between the sexes. Males are blue with a fine network of lines, while females and juveniles are dark with pale lines or spots.
It grows to about 11 cm and swims slowly over the reef with small fin strokes, feeding on algae, sponges and small invertebrates. Its rigid box of bony plates and toxic skin protect it from most predators.
The reticulate boxfish occurs in the western Pacific, including the Philippines, where it lives on coral reefs and lagoons. It is a close relative of the spotted boxfish.