Description (by E. Tortonese)
Body compressed and deep; abdomen more or less extensible. Eyes near dorsal edge. Mouth small; jaws with few incisor-like teeth in 1-2 series. Gill openings small, slit-like. Scales small and ctenoid (rough) giving a velvet appearance. Two dorsal fins; anterior with 1-2 spines, the second being very small or vestigial; posterior dorsal and anal fin similar and opposed; pelvics absent, usually replaced by short spine at end of long pelvic bone, often movable; all soft rays unbranched.
Distribution
Littoral near bottom or reefs in tropical to warm temperate seas.
Recent revision: Fraser-Brunner, 1941.
Species included on this CD-rom:
Triacanthus biaculeatus (Bloch)