Tetraodontidae

Amblyrhynchotes
Arothron
Auriglobus
Canthigaster
Carinotetraodon
Chelonodon
Colomesus
Contusus
Ephippion
Feroxodon
Fugu
Gastrophysus
Javichthys
Lagocephalus
Liosaccus
Marilyna
Monotretus
Omegaphora
Pelagocephalus
Polyspina
Reicheltia
Sphoeroides
Takifugu
Tetractenos
Tetraodon
Torquigener
Tylerius
Xenopterus

The Tetraodontidae is a family of primarily marine and estuarine fish. The family includes many familiar species which are variously called puffers, balloonfish, blowfish, bubblefish, globefish, swellfish, toadfish, and toadies. They are morphologically similar to the closely related porcupinefish, which have large conspicuous spines (unlike the small, almost sandpaper-like spines of Tetraodontidae). The scientific name, Tetraodontidae, refers to the four large teeth, fused into an upper and lower plate, which are used for crushing the shells of crustaceans and mollusks, their natural prey.

The skin and certain internal organs of many Tetraodontidae are highly toxic to humans, but nevertheless the meat of some species is considered a delicacy in both Japan (as fugu) and Korea (as boh-guh).

The Tetraodontidae contains at least 121 species of puffers in 19 genera. They are most diverse in the tropics and relatively uncommon in the temperate zone and completely absent from cold waters. Puffers are mostly found in coastal regions though some are oceanic (e.g., Lagocephalus lagocephalus) or live in the deep sea (e.g., Sphoeroides pachygaster). A large number of puffers are found in brackish and fresh waters: at least 39 marine species enter brackish or freshwater to feed or breed (e.g., Arothron hispidus), and a further 28 species are completely freshwater fish in distribution and never enter the sea (e.g., Colomesus asellus).

Tetrodotoxin is a powerful neurotoxin that can cause death in nearly 60% of the humans that ingest it. A human only has to ingest a few milligrams of the toxin for a fatal reaction to occur. Once consumed, the toxin blocks the sodium channels in the nervous tissues, ultimately paralyzing the muscle tissue. Curiously, the toxin seems not to be synthesized by the fish itself, but by bacteria associated with the fish. The fish has a mutation in its own sodium channels which makes it resistant to the effect of the toxin.