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Pufferfish (Tetraodontidae)
The tetraodontidae family is defined by four large front teeth fused together into two plates, top and bottom, used to crush the hard shells of the molluscs and crustaceans they feed on. They are however better known for their ability to suck water into their bodies into two specially designed sacs, thus inflating their bodies to several times their normal size. Like the chameleon (a lizard found on land), they can move their eyes independently and many species can change their patterns (or at least the intensity of their patterns) in response to their environment.
With 121 different species found in tropical seas and freshwater (28 species live in freshwater and 39 species leave their seawater homes for fresh or brackish water habitats to feed/breed) around the globe they are a particularly diverse family known by a number of different names: puffers, balloonfish, blowfish, globefish, bubblefish, globefish, swellfish, toadfish, and toadies. Their breeding methods are similarly varied, with egg laying species, some of which guard their eggs, some of which do not, and species that give birth to live young.
There are several varieties found around Koh Tao, including:
Black Blotched Porcupinefish
This is the one you're most likely to see, and like most species, the name is a reasonable description of its appearance. This species has spines over its body.
Seal Faced Pufferfish
This is species is really quite ugly in photographs, but observed for a while under water, is really rather cute.
Giant Pufferfish / Starry pufferfish
By far the largest you will see here and uniquely coloured with small spots. Very pretty. No spines.
Puffed Up
Pufferfish have two special sacs....
Biologists think pufferfish, also known as blowfish, developed their famous “inflatability” because their slow, somewhat clumsy swimming style makes them vulnerable to predators. In lieu of escape, pufferfish use their highly elastic stomachs and the ability to quickly ingest huge amounts of water (and even air when necessary) to turn themselves into a virtually inedible ball several times their normal size. Some species also have spines on their skin to make them even less palatable.
There is some debate over how harmful the act of inflating is to the pufferfish. It seems that the level of stress they experience at the time of inflation is a factor, but it can cause significant trauma to their internal organs, and many marine biologists believe that they can only do this a few time throughout their lifetimes before the damage becomes too great, resulting in death.
Tetrodotoxin
Should a predator manage to catch and eat a pufferfish, it'll be treated to one of the most deadly toxins on earth. Second only to the 'golden poison frog'. Almost all pufferfish contain tetrodotoxin, a substance that makes them foul tasting and lethal to most fish. Tetrodotoxin is up to 1,200 times more poisonous to humans than cyanide. One pufferfish contains sufficient toxin to kill 30 adult humans, and there is no known antidote. Naturally, pufferfish have few natural predators, but some creatures such as tiger sharks and sea snakes are not susceptible to their poison.
Surprisingly, the meat of some pufferfish is considered a delicacy. Called 'fugu' in Japan, it's an extremely expensive dish prepared by trained, licensed chefs (trained for a decade before they are permitted to prepare a single fish) who know that one poor slice means almost certain death for the consumer. The idea is to ensure there is sufficient poison remaining in the prepared fish to make the lips tingle when it is eaten, but not sufficient to cause a toxic response. In fact, despite the extraordinary training, it's not an exact science, and there are numerous deaths each year as a result of this practice. (Useful Safety Tip: Don't eat them. Doh!)
Classification:
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Tetraodontiformes |
| Genus: | Tetraodontidae |
Pufferfish belong to the 'bony fish' group. They are closely related to the cowfish and boxfish families (see the yellow boxfish page.
Where will I see them?
Pufferfish can be seen at most dive sites around Koh Tao especially at night. Looking over the sand near the Twins dive site usually reveals a few swimming around in the open in daylight, often with a remora attached to them. Night dives at Pottery may be the best way to see them though, where you can sometimes see all the breeds we have in Koh Tao in a single dive.
If you see one, you can swim quite close to it without causing it undue stress, but it's likely to hide or swim away from you. Wiggling fingers like prey to draw them out of a rock crevice is foolhardy at best - their teeth will easily bite off your finger. Deliberately stressing the creature to cause it to inflate is likely to harm it, so don't do it. We operate a 'Don't Touch' policy with all aquatic life - we're guests in their environment so treat them with respect.
