The male builds a nest of plant materials and coaxes one or more females into it to lay eggs, fertilizes the eggs in the nest, and aggressively defends eggs and young.

• 刺鱼以其生殖行为闻名，通常由雄鱼用植物质料筑巢，然后诱哄一或数条雌鱼进巢产卵，随之使卵受精，并加以守卫看管，孵化后继续保护幼鱼免遭攻击。