[2] This filefish can be observed in lagoons, coral and rocky reefs, seaweed fields, pinnacles, wrecks and also in open water.

[2] Aluterus scriptus is a medium size fish which can grow up to 110 cm (3.6 ft) in length.

Fish observed in the Virgin Islands might lie flat on the sand and become pure white or change to any of the other representative colors.

Like all the Tetraodontiformes, it has no pelvic fin but has two particular dorsal spines; the first anterior one is long, slender and erectile, located just over the eyes, the second is small and not easy to see but it locks the first one when it is erected.

[4] Aluterus scriptus is omnivorous and have a large choice for its meals like small crustaceans, algae, gorgonians, sea anemones, tunicates, fire coral,[3] seagrasses and hydrozoans.