SCIENCE IN PICS: Pufferfish at the Cleaners

Pufferfish belong to the family Tetraodontidae, named for their shared characteristic of four large front teeth, which they use to crush crustaceans and molluscs.
SCIENCE IN PICS: Pufferfish at the Cleaners
9/24/2011
Updated:
10/1/2015

<a><img src="https://www.theepochtimes.com/assets/uploads/2015/09/pufferfish.jpg" alt="A pufferfish being cleaned by blue streak cleaner wrasse at Sangalaki in Kalimantan, Indonesia.  (Matthew Oldfield)" title="A pufferfish being cleaned by blue streak cleaner wrasse at Sangalaki in Kalimantan, Indonesia.  (Matthew Oldfield)" width="590" class="size-medium wp-image-1797315"/></a>
A pufferfish being cleaned by blue streak cleaner wrasse at Sangalaki in Kalimantan, Indonesia.  (Matthew Oldfield)
This photograph shows a pufferfish at a cleaning station off the island of Sangalaki in Indonesia.

Pufferfish belong to the family Tetraodontidae, named for their shared characteristic of four large front teeth, which they use to crush crustaceans and molluscs.

There are around 200 species of puffer fish, mostly in the tropics, with some reaching more than one meter in length. Most pufferfish are highly toxic with poison located in the skin or some internal organs, such as the liver.

In this video, a pair of cleaner wrasse are attending to a starry puffer fish on Australia’s Great Barrier Reef.

Sangalaki is part of the Derawan Island group, off East Kalimantan. It is famous for its reefs, manta rays, and cuttlefish, and as an important nesting site for the endangered green turtle.

The island was a popular tourist destination, until the Indonesian government closed down access to the resort in 2009.

Matthew Oldfield is a freelance photographer based in Bali, Indonesia, specializing in editorial and documentary images from both above and below the waves. He works primarily with charities, NGO’s, and other organizations working to conserve the environment, endangered species, and disappearing cultures.

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