What’s in a Name?  Most families of fish remain the same whether you spot them in Hawaii, Indonesia or the Maldives. However they often bear different names even in the same language.  One species of Parrotfish was referred to under 16 different titles.  This is because the real effort in naming didn’t begin until the 1830s and discoveries where still being made in 1988.  Hence the need for the latin names that you see in brackets after the identification in fish-spotting books.  It's the only way you’ll be sure that different books are talking about the same fish.  

Black or Spotted Boxfish (Ostracion meleagris): Sometimes called the Trunkfish, the Boxfish has its body fully encased in a bony carapace of fused scales. Thus it swims slowly and relies on this coat of armour to deter predators. If attacked it can also release a powerful poison. It feeds on a variety of bottom-living animals especially sponges, sea squirts and soft corals plus worms and snails. Growing to between 20 and 30 cm, Males have white-spotted black tops above blue sides with yellow spots. Females are more uniformly black with white spots. Look carefully for if you notice that the dorsal and anal fins are spotted as well then it's a Pufferfish not a Boxfish.