Meet the Family Ostraciidae
by Scott W. MichaelBOXFISH
BONANZA
Mother Nature has equipped her piscine
subjects with an amazing arsenal of mechanisms to
discourage predators from eating them. There are
sharp spines, poisons and venoms, speed, cryptic
lifestyles, and various other anatomical character-
istics and behaviors that help fishes avoid becoming
a meal. Some species are, of course, better equipped
with defenses than others. The box- or trunkfishes
(family Ostraciidae) possess a couple of features
that make them unpalatable to most piscivores: they
are encased in bony armor and they come armed
with chemical defenses. These features, as well as
their sometimes stunning beauty and endearing per-
sonalities, both attract and dissuade aquarists from
including them in their captive oceans. They are also
awesome animals to encounter when snorkeling or
diving—all in all, a group of unique fishes well worth
knowing about, whether you keep them or not.