ocean puffer
Lagocephalus lagocephalus (Linnaeus, 1758)
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
The oceanic puffer (Lagocephalus lagocephalus) is a pufferfish of the family Tetraodontidae, found in all tropical and subtropical oceans, at depths of between 10 and 475 m (30 and 1,560 ft). It is indigenous to the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian oceans as well as the Sea of Japan. It is rare in the Mediterranean Sea, especially in the eastern portion. Its length is up to 61 cm (24 in). It is thought to be responsible for fatal poisoning and should therefore not be eaten.
Wikipedia contributors, Oceanic puffer; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T02:57:34.248500+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Lagocephalus lagocephalus (Linnaeus, 1758)
- Name authority
- (Linnaeus, 1758)
- Common name
- ocean puffer
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Teleostei
- Order
- Tetraodontiformes
- Family
- Tetraodontidae
- Genus
- Lagocephalus
- Extinction status
- Not supplied by this source
Source habitat flags: Marine: yes · Freshwater: no · Terrestrial: no. These do not form a complete habitat description.
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- gigaclassActinopterygii
- superclassActinopteri
- classTeleostei
- orderTetraodontiformes
- suborderTetraodontoidei
- familyTetraodontidae Bonaparte, 1831
- genusLagocephalus Swainson, 1839
- speciesLagocephalus lagocephalus (Linnaeus, 1758)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Lagocephalus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Lagocephalus gloveri Abe & Tabeta, 1983 | TetraodontidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| smooth blaasopLagocephalus inermis (Temminck & Schlegel, 1850) | TetraodontidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| smooth pufferLagocephalus laevigatus (Linnaeus, 1766) | TetraodontidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Lagocephalus spadiceus (Richardson, 1845) | TetraodontidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Lagocephalus suezensis Clark & Gohar, 1953 | TetraodontidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Weeler's pufferfishLagocephalus wheeleri Abe, Tabeta & Kitahama, 1984 | TetraodontidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Lagocephalus cheesemanii (Clarke, 1897) | TetraodontidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Lagocephalus guentheri Miranda Ribeiro, 1915 | TetraodontidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Lagocephalus lunaris (Bloch & Schneider, 1801) | TetraodontidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| silverstripe blaasopLagocephalus sceleratus (Gmelin, 1789) | TetraodontidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Tetraodon janthinus Vaillant & Sauvage, 1875 Vaillant & Sauvage, 1875 | synonym |
| Lagocephalus lagocephalus lagocephalus (Linnaeus, 1758) (Linnaeus, 1758) | synonym |
| Tetrodon pennantii Yarrell, 1836 Yarrell, 1836 | synonym |
| Tetrodon stellatus Donovan, 1804 Donovan, 1804 | ambiguous synonym |
| Lagocephalus lagocephalus nigridorsum Fowler, 1944 Fowler, 1944 | synonym |
| Lagocephalus exilis Tanaka, 1916 Tanaka, 1916 | synonym |
| Tetraodon lagocephalus Linnaeus, 1758 Linnaeus, 1758 | synonym |
| Lagocephalus lagocephalus oceanicus Jordan & Evermann, 1903 Jordan & Evermann, 1903 | synonym |
| Lagocephalus oceanicus Jordan & Evermann, 1903 Jordan & Evermann, 1903 | synonym |
| Tetrodon lagocephalus Linnaeus, 1758 Linnaeus, 1758 | synonym |
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=127414 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:3RX8S. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.