marbled puffer
Sphoeroides dorsalis · Tetraodontidae · predator
Pufferfish of soft bottoms, between 18 and 100 m, which shows up in commercial fisheries and is rarely caught on a rod.
Also called: baiacu-jaspeado, baiacu, botete jaspeado, marbled puffer
- maximum
- 20 cm
- depth
- 18–100 m
the right time
to be on the water
Choose the place and the species. The index, from 0 to 100, combines weather, sun, moon and tide with each fish's habits. Up to 28 days, with each day's confidence.
Reading the weather across 3 global models and 31 simulations…
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hour by hour
slide your finger or mouse over the chart to see each hoursee hour-by-hour table
why this index at —?
choose the day
Each card shows the day's index (0 to 100) and, below it, a strip with the index for each hour, from 0h to 23h. from poor to excellent.
the fishing month at a glance
what's the best window for the crew?
Choose how many fishing days. We compare each stretch by its average index, discount days with a warning or closed season, and show the 3 best.
trend for the coming weeks
Line: the middle value of 31 simulations of the American GEFS model. Band: where 8 out of 10 fall. Narrow, firm trend; wide, high uncertainty.
everything about the marbled puffer
who is the marbled puffer
Pufferfish of the family Tetraodontidae, reaching 20 cm. It lives on soft bottoms of the shelf, usually between 18 and 100 m deep. It occurs in the western Atlantic, from North Carolina, USA, to Suriname, including the Caribbean, and there are also records from Brazil. In Latin America it appears in Brazil, Colombia, Venezuela, Cuba and Nicaragua. Like other pufferfish, it has teeth fused into strong plates. It has a commercial fishery and is rarely caught on a rod.
Essential profile. Identification, where it occurs and rules, with data from FishBase and the cited regulations. Season, time of day, technique and bait are added once we have a good source for the marbled puffer; in the meantime, see the similar species.
identification
Short, deep body, typical of soft-bottom pufferfish, with the marbled pattern that gives the species its name. Like the whole family Tetraodontidae, it has teeth fused into plates that form a strong beak, and its body inflates when the fish feels threatened. To tell it apart from Sphoeroides pachygaster, check the depth: that one lives between 50 and 250 m, while this species generally lives at 18 to 100 m, over soft bottoms.
where found
It lives in the western Atlantic, from North Carolina to Suriname, with records from Brazil, and in Latin America it also appears in Colombia, Venezuela, Cuba and Nicaragua.
Habitat: Soft bottoms of the continental shelf, usually between 18 and 100 m deep.
coast
rules for the marbled puffer
Summary of the regulations we found, with the source for each. Rules change; before keeping or transporting fish, check with the state environmental agency.
Conservation: Not on the Brazilian national list (Ministerial Ordinance GM/MMA No. 1.667/2026).
We found no species-specific rule beyond the region's general rules.
catch and release
catch and release Releasing the fish alive, quickly and with a wet hand. During a closed season it isn't always allowed: what the regulation says applies.
When hooked, it tends to inflate its body, so keep it in the water until you remove the hook carefully. Like other pufferfish, it can carry toxin in the flesh and organs: do not take it home to eat.
how much it weighs without taking it out of the water
Length-weight relationship W = a·Lb (a = 0.02512, b = 2.88; FishBase (relação peso-comprimento bayesiana, estimativa pelo gênero e formato do corpo)). It's an average: a fat or lean fish can vary by 10% to 20%.
estimated weight
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sources and references
Essential profile: size, length-weight, depth, countries and conservation come from FishBase and the cited regulations, and the texts were written from those sources. Season, time of day, sensitivities, technique and baits and lures are not included yet, because we did not find a good source for this species.
- scientific FishBase: Sphoeroides dorsalis (ficha da espécie)Size, length-weight, depth, habitat, distribution, biology, and IUCN status. Page checked on Oct 13, 2026.
- scientific FishBase: nomes populares de Sphoeroides dorsalisNames by country and language.
- official Portaria GM/MMA nº 1.667, de 27 de abril de 2026: Lista Nacional Oficial de Espécies da Fauna Ameaçadas de Extinção (peixes e invertebrados aquáticos)The species is not on the list. Checked in the DOU of April 28, 2026.
similar species
where each number comes from
The weather comes from three independent global models, cross-checked hour by hour: when they agree, confidence goes up; when they diverge, the band between them shows on the chart. Beyond 16 days, we use the GEFS ensemble of 31 simulations: if 20 of the 31 predict rain, the chance of rain is 65%. Sun and moon are calculated astronomically, with no uncertainty.
The index adds up, weighted for each species: time of day (species curve anchored to real sunrise and sunset), moon (transits, rise and set, phase), pressure (3 h trend and 24 h swing), water temperature (in rivers, estimated from air temperature; at sea, estimated by an ocean model), wind, rain, clouds, tide and the month in the species' cycle.
sources for this lookup
how accurate the forecast is
Accuracy measured in the reference project (4 regions, 93 days, forecast vs. observed): maximum temperature is off by 0.6 °C on average the next day and 1.7 °C at 7 days; rain of 5 mm or more is detected 76% of the time the next day and 57% at 7 days. Detection isn't everything: the false alarm rate isn't published here yet, and 93 days in 4 regions is still a small sample. We now also measure every day, at the app's destinations: