Taxonomy
Kentrocapros spilonotus was first formally described as Aracana spolinota in 1905 by the American ichthyologist Charles Henry Gilbert with its type locality given as Albatross station 3939 near Laysan Island in the Leeward Islands of Hawaii from a depth between 59 and 163 fathoms (354 and 978 ft; 108 and 298 m). In 2006 Keiichi Matsuura examined the known Specimens of A. spilonota and reclassified it into the genus Kentrocapros. The 5th edition of Fishes of the World classifies the genus Kentrocapros in the family Aracanidae which is in the suborder Ostracioidea within the order Tetraodontiformes.
Etymology
Kentrocapros spilonotus is classified within the genus Kentrocapros, a name which combines kentro meaning "thorn"or"spine", a reference to the spiny ridge along the flanks of the type species, K. aculeatus, with capros, meaning "wild boar". This may allude to these fishes being known as seapigs in the 19th Century, probably an allusion to the resemblance of these fishes on a rear view to a pig. The specific name, spilonotus, means "spot-backed" and refers to the brownish-green spotting on the back and upper body of this fish.
Description
Kentrocapros spilonotus has between 9 and 11 soft rays in its dorsal fin and between 9 and 12 on the anal fin. There is a stiffcarapace which covers all of the body except the caudal peduncle, gill slit and the bases of the fins. The carapace has three ridges on each side of the body. The lower ridges have a pair of recurved spines in its centre and the upper ridge has smaller recurved spines, also in its centre. The preserved specimens are brown in colour with numerous darker spots on the upper carapace with pale fins. This species has a maximum published standard length of 10.6 cm (4.2 in).
Distribution and habitat
Kentrocapros spilonotus has been recorded from just two localities in the Hawaiian Islands, one near Laysan Island and the other on the Penguin Bank near Molokai and has been found at depths between 106 to 293 m (348 to 961 ft).
Additional field notes
Kentrocapros spilonotus has a rigid body covering with six prominent ridges.
Armor and body shape
FishBase describes a hexagonal body cross section and no keel along the underside of the carapace. Four stronger spines project near the middle of the body, with the lower pair smaller than the upper pair. The tail stalk and the immediate fin-base regions remain outside the rigid covering.
Article text: Wikipedia contributors, Kentrocapros spilonotus (source revision). Licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Retrieved 2026-10-11.