Porcupine fish 6 - 8" dried taxidermy dried sea life curiosities oddities beach decor ocean teaching tool curios

Up for sale is a real 6 - 8" long porcupine fish. Porcupine Fish are fish of the family Tetraodontidae, also commonly called blowfish. Tetraodontidae is a family that includes species called puffers, balloonfish, blowfish, bubblefish, globefish, and swellfish. The spines of the Tetraodontidae are small, almost sandpaper-like. The Porcupine Fish are the second most poisonous vertebrate in the world. The flesh of this fish is highly toxic due to tetrodotoxin, a poison that is 10 times more dangerous than cyanide. It is estimated that one can contain enough poison to kill 30 people. However, in Japan and Korea these are prepared by highly skilled chefs and are a delicacy. Porcupine Fish are medium to large sized fish and are found in shallow temperate and tropical seas worldwide. They have the ability to almost double their size by inflating their body by swallowing water or air, thereby becoming rounder. This increase in size reduces the range of potential predators to those with much bigger mouths. This would be a great gift for sea lovers or as a conversation piece.