Dr. D. Ross Robertson, Panama
Info
Tetraodontids are characterized by tough skin often covered with small spiny scales, a beak-like tooth plate divided by a midline suture, a slit-like gill opening in front of the base of the pectoral fin, no pelvic fins, no fin spines, a single usually short-stalked dorsal fin, a single usually short-stalked anal fin, and no ribs. They can inflate their bellies with water when they are frightened or disturbed, and they can produce and accumulate toxins such as tetrodotoxin and saxitoxin in their skin, gonads and liver. The degree of toxicity varies depending on the species and also on the geographical area and season.
Fish of the family Tetraodontidae have the smallest vertebrate genomes known to date.
Sphoeroides parvus is one of the smallest pufferfish known at all.
It has a small body size (18 percent of SVL), a short snout (short, flat to slightly concave, very broad (5 percent of SVL).
The anterior body surface is covered with closely spaced spines or dermal spines, which are visible in both non-inflated and inflated specimens, dorsally reaching to the base of the dorsal fin and ventrally almost to the anus.
There are spots or dots on the back, which are not always arranged in a straight row, but rather at the ventral border of the base color.
Some specimens have a spot in the armpit of the pectoral fin, but this is rarely more intensely pigmented than others on the body.
There is an indistinct dark bar between the eyes.
The flanks of the puffer fish are pale.
The jaw is a strong beak consisting of 4 fused, heavy, strong teeth with a central seam on each jaw.
The dorsal and lateral surfaces often have vague white spots, which may appear light green in live specimens.
Some larger specimens have a few black spots on their cheeks, and the upper side of their bodies is light brown to gray with numerous spots and speckles.
No other color markings of note are evident on live specimens, except for a yellow or golden hue that extends over much of the lateral and ventral surfaces.
All fins are unpigmented except for the caudal fin, which may have a faintly pigmented area near its base and near its distal end.
The body has no spines in the fins!
Sphoeroides parvus shares a sympatry zone with Sphoeroides nephelus in the eastern Gulf of Mexico, but becomes the dominant species in the western Gulf of Mexico and is more closely associated with muddy water than Sphoeroides nephelus.
Puffer fish can produce toxins such as tetrodotoxin and saxitoxin and accumulate them in the skin, gonads and liver.
The toxin tetrodotoxin, which is contained in the fugu, is 1000 times more toxic than cyanide and there is no antidote serum, death then occurs by respiratory paralysis
The degree of toxicity varies depending on the species, but also on the geographical area and season.
We recommend that you never prepare puffer fish yourself, as the risk of fatal poisoning is far too great.
If you still absolutely want to eat puffer fish meat (fugu), then the fish should only be slaughtered by a Japanese special chef with a license and several years of training.
Only the training of these special chefs can guarantee the correct slaughter, complete removal and proper disposal of all toxic parts of the fish.
Fish of the family Tetraodontidae have the smallest vertebrate genomes known to date.
Sphoeroides parvus is one of the smallest pufferfish known at all.
It has a small body size (18 percent of SVL), a short snout (short, flat to slightly concave, very broad (5 percent of SVL).
The anterior body surface is covered with closely spaced spines or dermal spines, which are visible in both non-inflated and inflated specimens, dorsally reaching to the base of the dorsal fin and ventrally almost to the anus.
There are spots or dots on the back, which are not always arranged in a straight row, but rather at the ventral border of the base color.
Some specimens have a spot in the armpit of the pectoral fin, but this is rarely more intensely pigmented than others on the body.
There is an indistinct dark bar between the eyes.
The flanks of the puffer fish are pale.
The jaw is a strong beak consisting of 4 fused, heavy, strong teeth with a central seam on each jaw.
The dorsal and lateral surfaces often have vague white spots, which may appear light green in live specimens.
Some larger specimens have a few black spots on their cheeks, and the upper side of their bodies is light brown to gray with numerous spots and speckles.
No other color markings of note are evident on live specimens, except for a yellow or golden hue that extends over much of the lateral and ventral surfaces.
All fins are unpigmented except for the caudal fin, which may have a faintly pigmented area near its base and near its distal end.
The body has no spines in the fins!
Sphoeroides parvus shares a sympatry zone with Sphoeroides nephelus in the eastern Gulf of Mexico, but becomes the dominant species in the western Gulf of Mexico and is more closely associated with muddy water than Sphoeroides nephelus.
Puffer fish can produce toxins such as tetrodotoxin and saxitoxin and accumulate them in the skin, gonads and liver.
The toxin tetrodotoxin, which is contained in the fugu, is 1000 times more toxic than cyanide and there is no antidote serum, death then occurs by respiratory paralysis
The degree of toxicity varies depending on the species, but also on the geographical area and season.
We recommend that you never prepare puffer fish yourself, as the risk of fatal poisoning is far too great.
If you still absolutely want to eat puffer fish meat (fugu), then the fish should only be slaughtered by a Japanese special chef with a license and several years of training.
Only the training of these special chefs can guarantee the correct slaughter, complete removal and proper disposal of all toxic parts of the fish.
