Suvarna Garge (Editor)

Aracana ornata

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Kingdom
  
Animalia

Family
  
Genus
  
Phylum
  
Chordata

Rank
  
Species

Aracana ornata httpsuploadwikimediaorgwikipediacommonsthu

Similar
  
Aracana, Aracana aurita, Aracanidae, Anoplocapros lenticularis, Anoplocapros inermis

ornate cowfish aracana ornata


Aracana ornata, the ornate cowfish, is a species of boxfish native to the Eastern Indian Ocean. First described by John Edward Gray in 1838, the species has a maximum length of 15cm. They can be differentiated from their close cousins the striped cowfish by the upright look of the spines near their eyes, and their slightly smaller length. Their body is encased in a rigid box-like carapace composed of large sculptured bony plates; bony ridges with large recurved spines; dorsal and anal fins opposite and far back on the body; bony plates on tail base absent or rudimentary.

Ornate cowfish are sexually dimorphic; males have yellow or blue lines and spots, while females are plain with orange-brown stripes. These fish are rarely kept as pets by aquarium hobbyists, as stress can cause them to release ostracitoxin from their skin, easily killing other fish in a tank.

References

Aracana ornata Wikipedia