The bandtail puffer is a small-sized fish, typically around four inches in length. Its stocky body has a whitish ventral side while its dorsal side is dark, ranging from greenish to brown, with darker or even whitish spots scattered across it. These features are separated by a whitish line superimposed with a line of dark spots, both located along its flanks.

The bandtail puffer has large, bulging eyes and a prominent mouth with thick visible teeth.

The bandtail puffer frequents the waters of the northwest Atlantic ocean, from Massachusetts in the north to Brazil in the south, via the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean sea.

The bandtail puffer is found particularly along the Florida coast.

The bandtail puffer lives close to or even on sandy bottoms or in seagrass beds where it easily blends in with its surroundings.

The bandtail puffer is an opportunistic carnivore that primarily feeds on small invertebrates it finds in sandy bottoms or seagrass beds, such as small crustaceans like shrimp, crabs, or copepods, and small mollusks like gastropods and bivalves, which it crushes with its powerful jaw equipped with thick teeth.

More rarely, it feeds on small fish.

The bandtail puffer is listed as many other marine species within The IUCN Red List of threatened species. The bandtail puffer appears in the IUCN Red List since 2014 within the category Least Concern !