Many people worldwide depend on fish or products made from fish for their food and economic livelihood. More than 30,000 different species ply Earth’s oceans and bodies of freshwater.
The beauty of many fish species is highlighted in fish stores, aquariums, and in-home collections. Some species, however, have darker, more terrifying aspects.
A select few of these may attack human beings, while others might deliver a dose of poison when handled carelessly or not adequately prepared for consumption.
10. Puffer
The puffer also called swellfish, or blowfish is any member of a group of about 90 species of fishes of the family Tetraodontidae, noted for their ability to inflate themselves so disturbed significantly with air and water that they become globular in form. Puffers are found in warm and temperate regions worldwide, primarily in the sea and, in some instances, in brackish or freshwater. They have tough, usually prickly skins and fused teeth that form a beaklike structure with a split in the center of each jaw. The largest puffers grow about 90 cm (3 feet) long, but most are considerably smaller.
Many species are poisonous; a highly toxic substance, tetrodotoxin, is mainly concentrated in the internal organs.
9. Red Lionfish
Lionfishes (Pterois) make up several showy Indo-Pacific fishes of the scorpionfish family, Scorpaenidae (order Scorpaeniformes). They are noted for their venomous fin spines, which can produce painful, though rarely fatal, puncture wounds. The fishes have enlarged pectoral fins and elongated dorsal fin spines, and each species bears a particular pattern of bold, zebralike stripes. When disturbed, the fish spread and display their fins and, if further pressed, will present and attack with the dorsal spines.
8. Candiru
The candiru (Vandellia cirrhosa) is a scaleless, parasitic catfish of the family Trichomycteridae found in the Amazon River region. It is translucent and eellike, and it grows to a length of about 2.5 cm (1 inch). The candiru feeds on blood and is commonly found in the gill cavities of other fishes. It sometimes also attacks humans and has been known to enter the urethras of bathers and swimming animals.
7. Great White Shark
The white shark (Carcharodon carcharias), also called great white shark or white pointer, may be the fish that needs no introduction because it is one of the most potent and potentially dangerous predatory sharks in the world. Starring as the villain of movies such as Jaws (1975), the white shark is much maligned and publicly feared; however, surprisingly little is understood of its life and behavior.
6. Moray Eel
There are probably more than 80 species of moray eels, and they occur in all tropical and subtropical seas, where they live in shallow water among reefs and rocks and hide in crevices. Moray eels differ from other eels in having small rounded gill openings and in generally lacking pectoral fins. Their skin is thick, smooth, and scaleless, while the mouth is comprehensive, and the jaws are equipped with strong, sharp teeth.
5. Tigerfish
There are about five species; the most giant (H. goliath) may be more than 1.8 meters (6 feet) long and may weigh more than 57 kg (125 pounds). The smaller H. vittatus is claimed to be one of the most delicate game fishes in the world.
In the Indo-Pacific, marine and freshwater tiger fishes of the family Theraponidae (order Perciformes) are relatively small and usually marked with bold stripes. The three-striped tigerfish (Therapon Barbuda) is a common, vertically striped species of about 30 cm (12 inches). It has sharp spines on its gill covers, which can wound a careless handler.
4. Piranha
Piranha, also called caribe or piracy, are more than 60 species of razor-toothed carnivorous fish of South American rivers and lakes, with a somewhat exaggerated reputation for ferocity. In movies such as Piranha (1978), the piranha has been depicted as a greedy indiscriminate killer. Most species, however, are scavengers or feed on plant material.
Most species of piranha never grow more significantly than 60 cm (2 feet) long.
3. Stonefish
Stonefish are the most venomous of all fishes. They are found throughout shallow coastal waters of the northern half of Australia. The fish usually lies motionless, often partially buried in the substrate and perfectly camouflaged among surrounding coral, rocky reef, rubble, or aquatic plants.
The stonefish has 13 sharp, strong dorsal fin spines within a sheath of thick skin.
2. Atlantic Manta
Manta rays or devil rays make up several genera of marine rays comprising the family Mobulidae (class Selachii). Flattened and broader than long, manta rays have fleshy enlarged pectoral fins that look like wings; extensions of those fins, looking like a devil’s horns, the project as the cephalic fins from the front of the head. Manta rays have short whiplike tails provided, in some species, with one or more stinging spines.
1. Electric Eel
The electric eel (Electrophorus electricus) is an elongated South American fish that produces a powerful electric shock to stun prey, usually other fish. Long, cylindrical, scaleless, and usually gray-brown (sometimes with a red underside), the electric eel can grow to 2.75 meters (9 feet) and weigh 22 kg (48.5 pounds).
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