Latin name

Takifugu rubripes

Other names

Tiger puffer, torafugu.

Identification

The body is covered with barbs. Vertebrae: 21-22. This species is able to inflate into a balloon when it senses danger. They do this with the help of a large air sac that comes from the stomach. 

Features of fish fins

Dorsal fin has 16-19 soft rays, anal fin has 13-16 soft rays, no hard rays.  

Fish colouring

On the flanks, behind the pectoral fins, there is a large round black spot surrounded by a white ring. 

Distribution

Northwest Pacific: western part of the Sea of Japan, East China Sea and Yellow Sea north to Muroran, Hokkaido, Japan.

Habitat

A deep-water subtropical Asian species that inhabits marine and brackish waters of the northwestern Pacific Ocean. Adults remain in bays, sometimes penetrating into brackish waters. Juveniles are often found in brackish estuaries. As they grow, they move away from the coast.

Size

Total body length reaches up to 80 centimeters, but is usually around 40 centimeters. 

Behavior

Neritic demersal (bottom) non-migratory fish found at depths down to 100 m. They live singly.

Food and feeding habits

The Japanese puffer fish feeds on clams, crabs and worms. Their teeth are hard plates that allow them to gnaw through shells and mollusks.

Reproduction

Spawning takes place in the sea from March to May. The eggs are attached to rocks in quiet places at a depth of about 20 meters.

Fishing

A highly profitable fishery. This fish is now farmed commercially in Japan. 

Relationship with a person

The liver and ovaries of these fish are fatally poisonous. The intestines are less toxic. The flesh, skin, and testes are not poisonous. It is a valuable food fish in Japan. It is used in Chinese medicine. 

The deadly danger of the Japanese puffer lies in the powerful neurotoxin contained in its internal organs — tetrodotoxin. This poison is 1,200 times more potent than cyanide. It causes muscle paralysis, including the respiratory system, and death occurs within a few hours. There is no antidote, so survival is only possible with timely artificial respiration until the toxin is eliminated from the body.

Interesting facts

The Japanese puffer (Takifugu rubripes) puffs up and takes the shape of a balloon by capturing air or water with its mouth. This helps them escape from predatory fish — after all, not every predator dares to grab a balloon. Once the danger has passed, they return to their normal appearance.

In Japan in the 17th century, there was a law by which the children of warriors were disinherited if their father died from poisoning by the fugu fish. This law was connected to the deadly danger of this fish, which caused severe poisoning. In the 16th century, during military campaigns in Japan, many samurai died from eating fugu. In connection with this, in 1592, the regent Toyotomi Hideyoshi issued a decree prohibiting the consumption of fugu. The punishment for violation was severe: for warriors (samurai) who ate fugu, they were stripped of their hereditary stipend — their main source of income; for commoners who ate this fish, they could face the death penalty. The ban itself was only lifted in 1888.