| The bird beak burrfish Cyclichthys orbicularis (Bloch, 1785) was collected from the fish landing centre during a survey tour as a part of the lesser known fauna of Cauvery River basin, Tamil Nadu, India during 2016 by SRC/ ZSI Survey team. The current species is identified by its unique colouration brown to grey with blotches and clusters of black colored spots on backside. Fish of the genus Cyclicthys contains three-rooted rigid spines (actually modified scales) are distributed over their bodies, and beak-like jaws, which are used to crush their hard-shelled prey such as molluscans and crustaceans). Cyclichthys orbicularis (Bloch, 1785) commonly known as bird beak burrfish is known from the Indo-West Pacific region from Red Sea to the Philippines,north to southern Japan, south to Australia and New Caledonia.
Keywords: Cauvery River basin, bird beak burrfish, Tamil Nadu.
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