The Puffer Forum

The other day I was searching the web and found this picture. It's a GSP (I'm pretty sure) and its puffed. There are tiny spikes on this little GSP. Just as a matter of interest (me being the owner of a GSP who's never puffed) when GSPs puff do they naturally have those little spikes?
Thanks for your answers.
P.S. I know that it's horrible that this tiny GSP is puffed also that its being held out of water and it doesn't look very healthy, but I'm very curious about the spikes.
P.P.S. I don't own any rights to the picture I posted or to the website that it's from or to anything of the sort.

ALL puffers have spikes. Many are so tiny you can't see them but they're there.

Cute! Poor lil guy, though.

Thanks Pufferpunk, I didn't know that

does the spikes on the porcupine or spiny puffers hurt ... or are they there for display??

hehe, I saw em on Elevator when he puffed up once....i was surprised, and happy.....

j_wishbone wrote:does the spikes on the porcupine or spiny puffers hurt ... or are they there for display??

#1: They are to prevent the puffer from being swallowed by a predator.

Corvus wrote:

j_wishbone wrote:does the spikes on the porcupine or spiny puffers hurt ... or are they there for display??

#1: They are to prevent the puffer from being swallowed by a predator.

are they hard and spiny or just soft and bendy?

hard, kinda like finger nails.

ohh ok

better stay away from it then