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A pale grey puffer with a striking black mask over the eyes extending to the pectoral fins and a black mouth, endemic to the Red Sea. Like all puffers it inflates with water when threatened and carries deadly tetrodotoxin in its organs.
This is a protected or non-target species — please don't fish for it. If it's accidentally hooked, release it quickly and unharmed.
Eating & safety
Never eat this fish; its liver, gonads, gut and skin contain lethal tetrodotoxin, and its beak-like teeth can bite.
Stung or poisoned? First-aid steps →Best conditions: Often hooked accidentally while reef bottom fishing
Its tetrodotoxin is up to 100 times deadlier than black widow venom, yet researchers have studied it for anti-tumour activity.