Northern pufferfish: a toxic delicacy (8 photos)

In the seas and oceans you can find a great variety of different species of fish. However, not all fish are safe. Touching some can lead to poisoning and even death.





Oriental delicacies are sometimes confusing. Study for many years in order to serve poisonous puffer fish to gourmets without any room for error? No, in the West they won’t suffer like that. “You mean they won’t?!” - the northern pufferfish would shout if he could. After all, connoisseurs of fillets of this Atlantic fish are not from the east at all.

The puffer fish is indirectly related to the puffer fish, because it belongs to another genus of the same family. But nothing prevents him from being a toxic person - the internal organs and skin of the animal are filled with poison, after which it is unlikely that anyone will end up with indigestion. But the fish miscalculated when it did not season its meat with poison.



During World War II, when many goods in the United States were issued with coupons, they tried pufferfish. A massive fishery quickly arose, which grew until the 60s, and then the excitement subsided. Since then, the animal has been served in the most expensive restaurants, where it was nicknamed “sugar toad” for its taste and stubborn appearance.





There really is something toad-like in the appearance of the fish: brown coloring, widely spaced eyes and a corpulent figure several tens of centimeters in length. True, an animal can become fatter many times more than its usual state.



In the open ocean, the puffer fish somehow did not gain such popularity; other meat-eaters stop at trying to chew it. And all because the blowfish loves to sulk for any reason! As soon as a potential enemy appears, an offended, prickly and very spherical object resembling a fish appears in front of him. Not only does it not fit down the throat, it is also poisonous.



This pufferfish just took a deep breath. What were you thinking?

When the predator realizes that there is no lunch for him, the fisherman is in no hurry to spit out all the water, because now the time has come to go for food herself. The menu of underwater beaches and shallow waters is not full of variety - shellfish and crabs - but the pufferfish is satisfied with everything.



Its muscular jaw and sharp beak make shells and shells just crunchy, but sometimes that's not enough. To reach the thin and soft abdomen of crabs, pufferfish use an original technique - blowing into the legs. A powerful jet of water overturns the crab, and he has no choice but to flop around helplessly awaiting his fate.



The wolf of three little pigs could take master classes from this fish!

But animals do not leave their descendants to their fate. From May to August, pufferfish and pufferfish acquire a decent brood of sticky eggs. But instead of leaving them and going to surf the beaches, the father begins to look after the young. True, you shouldn’t expect any paternal heroism from him: as soon as the fry hatch, they immediately find themselves on their own. This is probably why they are offended by the whole world for the rest of their lives.



And this is what a baby puffer fish looks like.