Compressed Toby

Geographic Origin and Biotope: Western Indo-Pacific, common in the Philippines, Indonesia, and Solomon Islands. Inhabits shallow protected lagoons and seagrass beds near reefs.

Taxonomy and Morphology: Family Tetraodontidae. Genus Canthigaster. Features a distinctive pointed snout and laterally compressed body. Teeth fused into four plates. Reaches about 12 cm.

Social Behavior: Highly active, intelligent, and exploratory. May display aggressive behavior toward other Canthigaster by nipping at their fins.

Coloration and Sexual Dimorphism: Complex and fascinating pattern with wavy parallel blue-green lines on a light brown background (fingerprint motif). No sexual dimorphism.

Aquarium Setup: Requires a tank of at least 120 liters with plenty of live rock for exploration and some sandy open areas.

Diet and Feeding: Omnivore. Requires hard-shelled food like crabs, clams, and unpeeled brine shrimp to manage continuous tooth growth. Offer algae sheets regularly.

Water Quality: Stable parameters: temperature 22-27°C, pH 8.1-8.4, salinity 1.020-1.025. Highly sensitive to ammonia swings and copper treatments.

Compatibility and Tankmates: Can be aggressive toward slow-moving fish with long flowing fins. Tends to prey on small shrimp and molluscs, and nips corals.

Aquarium Reproduction: Very rare in home aquariums. Spawns small eggs on substrates such as sand or algae beds.

Risks and Diseases: Can release internal toxins if threatened or upon death in the tank. Susceptible to ectoparasites due to its scale-less skin.