Home : Features : Fish and Wildlife Health : Program Projects and Research

Puffer Fish in Florida

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (DOACS) have issued advisories warning consumers not to eat puffer fish.

---

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (DOACS) have issued advisories warning consumers not to eat puffer fish harvested from the Indian River Lagoon, Florida, area because these fish may contain a naturally occurring toxin that can cause serious illness or death. These press releases are available at the following locations:

U.S. Food and Drug Administration
http://www.fda.gov/bbs/topics/NEWS/2002/NEW00803.html

Additional Information from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Neurologic Illness Associated with Eating Florida Pufferfish, 2002
http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5115a1.htm

Update: Neurologic Illness Associated with Eating Florida Pufferfish, 2002
http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5119a3.htm

TOXIC PUFFER FISH IN FLORIDA

Some species of Florida puffer fish such as the marbled and bandtail puffer fish have been known to be toxic for a long time. The recent concern regarding the food poisoning event linked to puffers caught in the Titusville, Indian River area has signaled an alert that perhaps other species of puffer fish may suddenly become toxic. For example, the southern puffer, which is not normally known to be toxic, may have suddenly become toxic for reasons yet unknown.

There are several theories as to why puffers might be toxic. One theory considers that puffers produce the toxin themselves as a kind of defense mechanism against other predators. Another theory suggests that it is the bacteria that live naturally inside the puffers that produce toxins and they only produce these toxins in certain species of puffer fish. Another possibility that is currently being investigated is that other environmental factors could play a role. Possibilities are that some species of toxic microalgae may have entered into the food chain of puffers and they acquire the toxin when they feed on small animals or algae. FWC-FWRI scientists are currently working with colleagues from the Food and Drug Administration, Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Department of Health, and other agencies to test each of these hypotheses.

Additional Information on Puffer from the FWC-Fish and Wildlife Research Institute

Trends in Puffer Abundance from the Fisheries Independent Monitoring Program

Trends in Commercial and Recreational Harvest of Puffers in Florida

Marine Poisons: Life and Death

Bibliography of Puffer-related scientific publications (55 KB)
To view this file, you will need Adobe Acrobat Reader.

To download Adobe Reader, visit http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep.html