Sealife guideThe scrawled cowfishAcanthostracion quadricornis
Taxonomy
Description
The scrawled cowfish has a body with very angular shapes, giving it the appearance of a box and earning it the name boxfish. Moreover, its body is covered with bony plates that provide to him a protection. The presence of two horn-like protrusions on the upper part of its head gives it a silhouette reminiscent of a bull.
The scrawled cowfish displays characteristic disordered bluish spots and stripes resembling graffiti!
The dominant color of the scrawled cowfish is yellowish with characteristic disordered and irregular bluish spots and stripes resembling graffiti !
The scrawled cowfish typically measures around twenty centimeters in length on average but can reach up to fifty centimeters for the largest specimens.
Range
The scrawled cowfish is found in the tropical waters of the northwestern Atlantic Ocean, the Caribbean Sea around many Caribbean islands such as
Guadeloupe or Martinique, as well as in the Gulf of Mexico.
Habitat
The scrawled cowfish frequents the coral reefs around the numerous islands of the Caribbean Sea and the coasts of Florida.
Diet
The scrawled cowfish feeds mainly on small marine invertebrates.
The scrawled cowfish (Acanthostracion quadricornis)
Did you know ?
The scrawled cowfish is listed as many other marine species within The
IUCN Red List of threatened species. The scrawled cowfish appears in the
IUCN Red List since 2015 within the category Least Concern !
Tips for observing
Be careful not to confuse the scrawled cowfish with the honeycomb cowfish, which has very regular hexagonal patterns similar to the cells of a beehive.
The scrawled cowfish (Acanthostracion quadricornis)
Within the same genus
Honeycomb cowfish
(Acanthostracion polygonium)
Within the same family
Yellow boxfish
(Ostracion cubicus)
Smooth trunkfish
(Rhinesomus triqueter)
Spotted boxfish
(Ostracion meleagris)
Reticulate boxfish
(Ostracion solorensis)
Spotted trunkfish
(Lactophrys bicaudalis)
Thornback cowfish
(Lactoria fornasini)
Explore also
Atlantic creolefish
(Paranthias furcifer)
Cottonwick grunt
(Haemulon melanurum)
Island grouper
(Mycteroperca fusca)
Green moray eel
(Gymnothorax funebris)
Scribbled angelfish
(Chaetodontoplus duboulayi)
Indian sailfin surgeonfish
(Zebrasoma desjardinii)
Yellowfin tuna
(Thunnus albacares)
Bengal snapper
(Lutjanus bengalensis)
The marine species from Caribbean sea
Caribbean reef shark
(Carcharhinus perezi)
Chain moray
(Echidna catenata)
Flamingo tongue
(Cyphoma gibbosum)
Red grouper
(Epinephelus morio)
Royal angelfish
(Pygoplites diacanthus)
Saucereye porgy
(Calamus calamus)
Smooth trunkfish
(Rhinesomus triqueter)
Yellowtail snapper
(Ocyurus chrysurus)
Dive centers
'Les Ilets' dive center
Noa dive center
