The long-spine porcupinefish is used in Chinese medicine.
It feeds on hard-shelled molluscs and crustaceans that it crushes with its teeth fused into a powerful beak.
Identity card
Long-spine Porcupinefish
- Scientific name:
- Diodon holocanthus
- Family:
- Diodontidae
- Class:
- Actinopterygii
- Phylum:
- Chordata
- Year of description:
- Linnaeus, 1758
- IUCN Status:
- Least Concern
- Distribution:
-
Circumtropical zone and warm temperate waters.
- Habitat:
-
Down to a depth of 100 metres
- Size:
The Long-spine Porcupinefish measures between 30 and 50 cm.
- Diet:
-
Hard-shelled molluscs and crustaceans