Triggerfish

Triggerfish
Temporal range:
Lagoon triggerfish
Scientific classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Tetraodontiformes
Suborder: Balistoidei
Family: Balistidae
A. Risso, 1810
Genera

See text

Triggerfish are about 40 species of often brightly colored marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Balistidae. Often marked by lines and spots, they inhabit tropical and subtropical oceans throughout the world, with the greatest species richness in the Indo-Pacific. Most are found in relatively shallow, coastal habitats, especially at coral reefs, but a few, such as the oceanic triggerfish (Canthidermis maculata), are pelagic. While several species from this family are popular in the marine aquarium trade, they are often notoriously ill-tempered.