Teleostei (teleosts) > Tetraodontiformes (Puffers and filefishes) > Tetraodontidae (Puffers) > Tetraodontinae
Etymology: Takifugu: A Japanese word with several meanings; taki = waterfall + fugu = fish; it could be also understood as taki = to be cooked in liquid + fugu = a venomous fish
More on authors: Temminck & Schlegel.

Marine; brackish; freshwater; demersal; non-migratory; temperate; 46°N - 21°N119°E - 142°E.

Northwest Pacific: western part of the Sea of Japan and the East China and Yellow seas northward to Muroran, Hokkaido, Japan.

Max length: 80.0 cm TL male/unsexed (Ref. 56527); common length: 40.0 cm TL male/unsexed (Ref. 637).

Dorsal spines (total): 0; Dorsal soft rays (total): 16 - 19; Anal spines: 0; Anal soft rays: 13 - 16; Vertebrae: 21 - 22. Body covered with prickles; presence of a large round black blotch edged with a white line on side just behind pectoral fin (Ref. 559).

Adults are found in inlet waters, occasionally entering brackish waters. Fingerlings are often seen in brackish river mouths (Ref. 58920). Move offshore with growth. Breed in the sea (Ref. 58920) from March to May; attach eggs to rocks in shingly areas at depths of around 20 m. Liver and ovaries extremely toxic, intestines slightly toxic; flesh, skin and testes not poisonous. Juveniles resemble Takifugu niphobles (Ref. 637). A prized food fish in Japan. Said to be commercially cultured in Japan at present. Used in Chinese medicine (Ref. 12166). One of the first vertebrates whose genome has been sequenced completely, 31,059 genes coding for 33,609 proteins (Ref. 58917).

Masuda, H., K. Amaoka, C. Araga, T. Uyeno and T. Yoshino 1984 The fishes of the Japanese Archipelago. Vol. 1. Tokai University Press, Tokyo, Japan. 437 p. (text). (Ref. 559)

  Near Threatened (NT); date assessed: June 10 2011

Not Evaluated

Not Evaluated

  Poisonous to eat (Ref. 637)

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Preferred temperature (Ref. 123201): 13.5 - 23, mean 19 °C (based on 96 cells).

Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref. 82804): PD₅₀ = 0.5 [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].

Bayesian length-weight: a=0.01622 (0.00726 - 0.03621), b=2.92 (2.74 - 3.10), in cm total length, based on LWR estimates for this (Sub)family-body shape (Ref. 93245).

Trophic level (Ref. 69278): 3.6 ±0.6 se; Based on food items.

Resilience (Ref. 120179): Medium, minimum population doubling time 1.4 - 4.4 years (K=0.15-0.17; assuming tm<5).

Fishing vulnerability (Ref. 59153): Low to moderate vulnerability (30 of 100).

Price category (Ref. 80766): Very high; Very questionable: based on ex-vessel price for species in this family.

Nutrients (Ref. 124155): Calcium = 33.8 [12.1, 75.6] mg/100g; Iron = 0.417 [0.219, 0.855] mg/100g; Protein = 18.9 [16.7, 21.2] %; Omega3 = 0.664 [0.289, 1.400] g/100g; Selenium = 17.1 [7.6, 37.7] μg/100g; VitaminA = 5.76 [2.01, 17.07] μg/100g; Zinc = 0.506 [0.365, 0.732] mg/100g (wet weight);