Triacanthidae, commonly known as triplespines or tripodfishes, is a family

Family (biology)

In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...

 of Indo-Pacific

Indo-Pacific

The Indo-Pacific is a biogeographic region of the Earth's seas, comprising the tropical waters of the Indian Ocean, the western and central Pacific Ocean, and the seas connecting the two in the general area of Indonesia...

 fishes. It is classified in the order

Order (biology)

In scientific classification used in biology, the order is# a taxonomic rank used in the classification of organisms. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, family, genus, and species, with order fitting in between class and family...

 Tetraodontiformes

Tetraodontiformes

The Tetraodontiformes are an order of highly derived ray-finned fish, also called the Plectognathi. Sometimes these are classified as a suborder of the Perciformes...

, along with the pufferfish

Pufferfish

Tetraodontidae is a family of primarily marine and estuarine fish of the Tetraodontiformes order. The family includes many familiar species which are variously called pufferfish, balloonfish, blowfish, bubblefish, globefish, swellfish, toadfish, toadies, honey toads, sugar toads, and sea squab...

es and the ocean sunfish

Ocean sunfish

The ocean sunfish, Mola mola, or common mola, is the heaviest known bony fish in the world. It has an average adult weight of . The species is native to tropical and temperate waters around the globe. It resembles a fish head with a tail, and its main body is flattened laterally...

. The family consists of seven species in four genera

Genus

In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...

, in addition to one extinct genus.

Much like their relatives the triggerfish

Triggerfish

Triggerfishes are about 40 species of often brightly colored fishes of the family Balistidae. Often marked by lines and spots, they inhabit tropical and subtropical oceans throughout the world, with the greatest species richness in the Indo-Pacific...

 and the filefish

Filefish

Filefish are tropical to subtropical tetraodontiform marine fish of the diverse family Monacanthidae. Found in the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans, the filefish family contains approximately 107 species in 26 genera...

, the triplespines's first ray of the dorsal fin

Dorsal fin

A dorsal fin is a fin located on the backs of various unrelated marine and freshwater vertebrates, including most fishes, marine mammals , and the ichthyosaurs...

 is formed to a spine. Further, they have two spines in place of their ventral fins. They have sharp and heavy teeth, which they use to eat hard-shelled molluscs and crustaceans.

Not much is known about how the fish live. They are essentially offshore fish that only come close to land occasionally. They range from 15 to 30 cm (5.9 to 11.8 in) in length.

Species

• Genus †Acanthopleurus
  Acanthopleurus
  Acanthopleurus is an extinct genus of prehistoric bony fish that lived during the early Oligocene epoch.-See also:* Prehistoric fish* List of prehistoric bony fish...
  
  (fossil, Oligocene
  Oligocene
  The Oligocene is a geologic epoch of the Paleogene Period and extends from about 34 million to 23 million years before the present . As with other older geologic periods, the rock beds that define the period are well identified but the exact dates of the start and end of the period are slightly...
  
  )
  • †Acanthopleurus serratus
• Genus Pseudotriacanthus
  • Pseudotriacanthus strigilifer
• Genus Triacanthus
  • Triacanthus biaculeatus
  • Triacanthus nieuhofii
• Genus Trixiphichthys
  • Trixiphichthys weberi
• Genus Tripodichthys
  • Tripodichthys angustifrons
  • Tripodichthys blochii
  • Tripodichthys oxycephalus