I was curious, and did some digging. There actually are a few documented rogue attacks
by large puffers on humans. The Cambodia and FL Keys incidents would no doubt qualify
as a provoked attacks. My apology if any of these have been previously posted.
Stick a hand in a fahaka tank, you get skin flaps. Big puffers = bigger problems. However I doubt a puffer would just attack, if threatened they would likely swim away. If they feel cornered then boom
Re: When Wild Puffers Attack - Ouch !
Posted: Tue Jan 20, 2015 2:04 pm
by Welch4
Probably due to me being a horrible person or immature, but i find the cambodia case hysterical. Dont net me bro!
Re: When Wild Puffers Attack - Ouch !
Posted: Tue Jan 20, 2015 3:44 pm
by grup
Here's a diver getting educated on the power of a porcupine puffer's bite.
Not a real bright move.
Video - 21 seconds
Re: When Wild Puffers Attack - Ouch !
Posted: Tue Jan 20, 2015 7:43 pm
by BedScien
good post, OP!
Re: When Wild Puffers Attack - Ouch !
Posted: Fri Jan 30, 2015 10:30 pm
by hadla
Someone evidently didn't know porkys hide little macaw like beaks in their mouths! Good for the puff XD
Re: When Wild Puffers Attack - Ouch !
Posted: Sat Jan 31, 2015 1:35 am
by Master of Puffers
I've been bitten by a peacock puffer..I don't want to risk any of my big puffers attempting a bite TYVM!
Re: When Wild Puffers Attack - Ouch !
Posted: Thu Feb 05, 2015 10:31 pm
by GBobNorth
if I have to stick my hand in Rancor's tank, I tend to stick my whole forearm in. He won't attack something bigger than him, but a few fingers are an invading force he will attack.
Re: When Wild Puffers Attack - Ouch !
Posted: Fri Feb 06, 2015 8:49 pm
by bertie 83
Give him time, my fahaka was the same for a while then I turned into game
Re: When Wild Puffers Attack - Ouch !
Posted: Sat Feb 07, 2015 10:31 pm
by grup
Tetraodon Lineatus gets visit from rc submarine....
Olive just gets all sulky if my hand gets close to the water and isn't carrying food XD
Re: When Wild Puffers Attack - Ouch !
Posted: Sun Feb 08, 2015 9:10 pm
by El Scorpio
About four years ago Camille ripped an impressive chunk of skin out of my finger. These cases just prove that puffers are intelligent enough to have emotions - 'rage' being one of them.
Re: When Wild Puffers Attack - Ouch !
Posted: Wed Feb 11, 2015 11:30 pm
by Dadof4
Over the years I've been bitten multiple times but two are memorable. The first was one of my Monotrete suvattii pair. I was cleaning up some junk off a rock ledge I have in the tank, a custom 150 gallon reproduction of the Tonle Sap River area. I knew the bigger one was buried in the sand and tracking my hand around, I was giving him space and using a net as a guard because I know the damage he can do. I turned to grab a rock I had moved, dropped the net and, without thinking, I quickly reached to grab it before it hit the bottom of the tank. I startled him and I was within striking distance. He bit through my glove, got purchase on my thumb, and gave a shake. I could feel the top tooth tearing through the nail from one side of the thumb to the other. The nail still has a ridge to it.
The second was a 10 inch Fahaka that I was hand feeding. Don't hand feed it ends badly more often than not. I had been working with the other tanks and my hands stunk like shrimp and raw squid. This fish never showed a hit of aggressiveness, ever, so I felt pretty comfortable dangling shrimp and night crawlers in the tank with my fingers. During winter night crawlers get scarce here and when they come in in the spring it's a big day. I was dangling the first one of the year in the tank and it came flying over to grab the squirming crawler.....it missed. He got me on the index finger of my right hand hard enough to expose bone.
I still have the Monotrete suvattii pair but gave the Fahaka to a friend that had more room in his house for the tank, it's currently over 20 inches. He had a similar experience with it a few months later when he was putting a huge pond snail in the tank, it hit his little finger and got the tip.
Re: When Wild Puffers Attack - Ouch !
Posted: Fri Feb 13, 2015 1:04 am
by hadla
Dadof4 wrote:Over the years I've been bitten multiple times but two are memorable. The first was one of my Monotrete suvattii pair. I was cleaning up some junk off a rock ledge I have in the tank, a custom 150 gallon reproduction of the Tonle Sap River area. I knew the bigger one was buried in the sand and tracking my hand around, I was giving him space and using a net as a guard because I know the damage he can do. I turned to grab a rock I had moved, dropped the net and, without thinking, I quickly reached to grab it before it hit the bottom of the tank. I startled him and I was within striking distance. He bit through my glove, got purchase on my thumb, and gave a shake. I could feel the top tooth tearing through the nail from one side of the thumb to the other. The nail still has a ridge to it.
The second was a 10 inch Fahaka that I was hand feeding. Don't hand feed it ends badly more often than not.
Owwwwww! That's it, I'm getting feeding tongs on Amazon! I have stainless steel skewers that I use to feed shrimp pieces, but they slip off too easily :/ it is fun to have small puffs pick snails off your hand... But olive doesn't like my hand -.- so I guess that's a good thing lol
