checkered puffer
Sphoeroides testudineus (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 checkered puffer (Sphoeroides testudineus) is a species in the family Tetraodontidae, or pufferfishes.
Normal sizes: 4 to 7 in. (10 to 18 cm)
Travel / Living Depth: 3– 35 ft. (1-12m).
Location and Distribution: Caribbean, The Bahamas, Florida, and Gulf of Mexico.
Wikipedia contributors, Checkered puffer; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T05:59:51.128319+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Sphoeroides testudineus (Linnaeus, 1758)
- Name authority
- (Linnaeus, 1758)
- Common name
- checkered puffer
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Teleostei
- Order
- Tetraodontiformes
- Family
- Tetraodontidae
- Genus
- Sphoeroides
- 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
- genusSphoeroides Anonymous [Lacepède], 1798
- speciesSphoeroides testudineus (Linnaeus, 1758)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Sphoeroides. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Sphoeroides andersonianus Morrow, 1957 | TetraodontidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| bullseye pufferSphoeroides annulatus (Jenyns, 1842) | TetraodontidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Sphoeroides greeleyi Gilbert, 1900 | TetraodontidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Sphoeroides kendalli Meek & Hildebrand, 1928 | TetraodontidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| naked pufferSphoeroides lispus Walker, 1996 | TetraodontidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| longnose pufferSphoeroides lobatus (Steindachner, 1870) | TetraodontidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| blunthead pufferSphoeroides pachygaster (Müller & Troschel, 1848) | TetraodontidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| least pufferSphoeroides parvus Shipp & Yerger, 1969 | TetraodontidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Peruvian pufferSphoeroides sechurae Hildebrand, 1946 | TetraodontidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| pygmy pufferSphoeroides trichocephalus (Cope, 1870) | TetraodontidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Sphoeroides yergeri Shipp, 1972 | TetraodontidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Sphoeroides ocellatus | 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 |
|---|---|
| Sphaeroides testudineus (Linnaeus, 1758) (Linnaeus, 1758) | synonym |
| Tetraodon testudineus 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=158936 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:4Z2GV. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.