finius
Fish Fanatic
I know most species of puffers are pretty toxic. What about F8's?
Are figure eights poisonous?
- Thread starter finius
- Start date
🐠 May TOTM Voting is Live! 🐠
🏆 Click here to Vote! 🏆
Dwarfs
Fish Connoisseur
Only if you plan on eating them I believe 
All puffers are toxic in varying ammounts, some will knock you stone dead just from touching them and others will just make you very ill if you eat them. I dont know which of these figure eight puffers are but you can be certain they are poisenous.
finius
Fish Fanatic
I like having a poisonous fish for some reason. Better keep the top on the tank so my cat doesn't get any ideas.
I think they're a delicacy in Japan even though some people still die from eating them. (There's a way to prepare them that isn't toxic)
I think they're a delicacy in Japan even though some people still die from eating them. (There's a way to prepare them that isn't toxic)
The Japanese do eat puffers. You have to have a licence as a chef to cook and serve them. Apparently its certain organs in the fishes gut that have to be removed without damaging them else the poisen is released.
On a business trip to Japan our host was explaining to us what the dishes were and when he got to one he said "this is the fish that does this......." and puffed his cheeks out. We tried a little and found it was just like cod really. We asked him about people dying from eating badly prepared puffer and he just shrugged his shoulders and said yes it was true but its only like 1 or 2 a year. They must get some weird rush from the potential danger or summot cuz it really did just taiste like cod.
I'm pretty sue that any puffer in the aquarium trade is safe as long as you are not gonna try eating it!
Chew
On a business trip to Japan our host was explaining to us what the dishes were and when he got to one he said "this is the fish that does this......." and puffed his cheeks out. We tried a little and found it was just like cod really. We asked him about people dying from eating badly prepared puffer and he just shrugged his shoulders and said yes it was true but its only like 1 or 2 a year. They must get some weird rush from the potential danger or summot cuz it really did just taiste like cod.
I'm pretty sue that any puffer in the aquarium trade is safe as long as you are not gonna try eating it!
Chew
finius
Fish Fanatic
Interesting info.
I think I'll refrain from eating my pets. Just seems like the right thing to do.
I think I'll refrain from eating my pets. Just seems like the right thing to do.
Fish-Noobie
Fish Fanatic
- Joined
- Jun 26, 2004
- Messages
- 184
- Reaction score
- 0
i think u have to take a corse and if u pass u prepare a puffer and u eat it ur self and if u die u fail if u dont u pass
finius
Fish Fanatic
hahaha
Those Japanese are pretty intense.
Those Japanese are pretty intense.
Puffer_freak
Put the trombone down, *****!
Poor puffers, those BAD Japenese deserve to die for eating the lovelies!
Sorry in advance for and Japenese people on this forum!
Bye bye puffers!
TorPeteO
Fish Crazy
It's the way of the world, Puffer_Freak, one organism has to die for another to eat, it's just that simple. People in the West keep pets like puffers (although I'm sure the kind that are often eaten are not very common in the aquarium trade), dogs and cats, but some people in other cultures eat them. There's no standard to measure one culture being better or worse than an other. Many Westerners eat beef, but some cultures see cows as sacred. It's all relative.
About the original comment, though; I think the toxicity of the fish comes from what it's eaten, so I doubt you've fed your puffer anything with the chemicals necessary to create the venom. Of course, I'm neither a chemist nor a biologist, so I can't say with any real authority.
About the original comment, though; I think the toxicity of the fish comes from what it's eaten, so I doubt you've fed your puffer anything with the chemicals necessary to create the venom. Of course, I'm neither a chemist nor a biologist, so I can't say with any real authority.
Puffer_freak
Put the trombone down, *****!
I was only joking, sorry, it must have come out the wrong way. 
Yeah, maybe I shouldn't have put the "sorry in advance" bit, as it was meant as a joke, and yes I eat meat, but I prefer a good steak to a burger - but the French burgers are very nice and are like, pure mince without any other rubbish chucked in.
And yes, I think they are poisonous, I thought their skin was toxic too? Anyhow, if you were going to eat a puffer, I wouldn't eat one that small, but it depends on how big your puffer is really!
Yeah, maybe I shouldn't have put the "sorry in advance" bit, as it was meant as a joke, and yes I eat meat, but I prefer a good steak to a burger - but the French burgers are very nice and are like, pure mince without any other rubbish chucked in.
And yes, I think they are poisonous, I thought their skin was toxic too? Anyhow, if you were going to eat a puffer, I wouldn't eat one that small, but it depends on how big your puffer is really!
appleblossom
Fishaholic
Extract from the July issue of PFK:
"What about the poison?
Puffers possess a quality that makes them undesirable for predators - poisonous flesh. High concentrations of tetradotoxin (about 1200 times deadlier than cyanide) are found in the organs of marine puffers, namely the liver, ovaries, intestines and skin, while freshwater puffers have a similar poison, saxitoxin, found mainly in the skin.
The toxin results from bacteria present in their natural diet, nd ouffers that do not have access to their natural diet tend to be less poisonous, if at all.
Puffer flesh, known as fugu, is a delicacy in Japan. Specially trained chefs prepare the meat for consumption. However, sometimes chefs will prepare the meat so it contains minute traces of poison. This causes a tingling of the lips and slight euphoria. Despite stringent precautions, humans have died after eating puffer flesh.
I think I'll keep my puffers as pets and stick to cod or haddock. And before you ask, this poison is not a danger if you are only keeping puffers in aquaria."
"What about the poison?
Puffers possess a quality that makes them undesirable for predators - poisonous flesh. High concentrations of tetradotoxin (about 1200 times deadlier than cyanide) are found in the organs of marine puffers, namely the liver, ovaries, intestines and skin, while freshwater puffers have a similar poison, saxitoxin, found mainly in the skin.
The toxin results from bacteria present in their natural diet, nd ouffers that do not have access to their natural diet tend to be less poisonous, if at all.
Puffer flesh, known as fugu, is a delicacy in Japan. Specially trained chefs prepare the meat for consumption. However, sometimes chefs will prepare the meat so it contains minute traces of poison. This causes a tingling of the lips and slight euphoria. Despite stringent precautions, humans have died after eating puffer flesh.
I think I'll keep my puffers as pets and stick to cod or haddock. And before you ask, this poison is not a danger if you are only keeping puffers in aquaria."
Most reactions
-
262 -
204 -
159 -
146 -
122 -
115 -
105 -
88 -
85 -
84 -
83 -
82 -
80 -
77 -
60
