Photo of hedgehog fish - Lifestyle of hedgehog fish

Urchin fish - slow-moving inhabitants of tropical coral reefs. Sensing impending danger, they inflate into a ball covered with spikes.
Basic data:
DIMENSIONS
Length: average about 30 cm, maximum 90 cm.
Spikes: up to 5 cm.

REPRODUCTION
Hedgehog - fish secrete reproductive cells into environment. Fully mature fry hatch from fertilized eggs.

LIFESTYLE
Habits: stay solitary near coral reefs.
Food: shellfish, coral and sea worms.
The fish is a hedgehog, swims slowly with its spines tightly pressed to its body, and seems like an easy prey. But woe to anyone who dares to catch it: people constantly find dead barracudas (Sphyraena barracuda) and sharks with urchin fish stuck in their throats.
REPRODUCTION
Hedgehogs are fish. Scientists have collected little material on how urchin fish reproduce. According to some assumptions, urchin fish reproduce in the same way as their close relatives, puffer fish, i.e. thrown into the water a large number of caviar and milk, and their fusion and the development of fertilized eggs occurs arbitrarily. From those that survive, fry are born - copies of adults who initially know how to swell.

LIFESTYLE
In total, 6-8 genera of fish - urchins, are known, including approximately 15 species. Urchin fish- typical inhabitants of coral reefs. These less-than-skillful swimmers, caught in the tides or sea currents, may find themselves stranded in the Mediterranean Sea or off the coast of Northern Europe. Incapable of active swimming, hedgehog fish cannot escape from a predator's attack by flight, so they have acquired a weapon of self-defense. In a matter of seconds, fish-urchins swell into a ball the size of soccer ball, which, moreover, is covered with five-centimeter spikes, reminiscent of porcupine quills. Prey of this size and shape is beyond the strength of most marine predators. And even if some predator manages to swallow a fish - a hedgehog, this means its almost certain death, caused by numerous wounds to the esophagus with sharp thorns. Additionally, the skin and liver of the hedgehog fish contains a strong poison. It is known that you can eat fish - urchins that have undergone special culinary processing. But when prepared by inexperienced cooks, they are poisonous.
FOOD
Hedgehog fish feed on corals, the hard calcareous skeletons of which form reefs, but are unable to protect the polyps from the teeth of predators. Hedgehogs - fish, bite off pieces of coral and crush them with sharp plates, which replace their teeth. They only swallow the edible parts. The remains of the calcareous skeletons of polyps accumulate in their stomachs in the form of powder and are then removed from the body. Once, almost 0.5 kg of crushed coral skeletons were found in the stomach of a caught fish - a hedgehog. Urchin fish also feed on shellfish and oysters.

OR DID YOU KNOW THAT...
Urchin fish also hunt at night because they have very sharp eyesight.
The spines of the fish - hedgehog - are highly modified scales, capable of movement, they form something similar to protective chain mail.
Residents of one Pacific island made military helmets from the dried skin of urchin fish.
On Far East tourists can buy dried fish- hedgehogs or souvenirs made from their skin, for example, lamp shades. Chinese lanterns are also made from inflated and dried urchin fish.
CHARACTERISTIC FEATURES OF HEDGEHOGES - FISH
Coloring: most individuals have a light body dotted with dark spots.
Chairman: The blunt round head is armed with powerful jaws, reminiscent of a beak, with cutting plates instead of teeth, with which the fish is able to chew corals and mollusk shells.
Rest state: As a rule, the hedgehog fish swims with its spines pressed to its body.
Spikes: these are modified scales; in some species they are rigidly fixed, in others they are movable.
Self-defense: the body swells into a ball when the growing stomach is filled with water.
Fins: small and weak. Hedgehog - fish are not able to swim quickly and against the current, but they are very maneuverable - they can stop in place and move in any direction.

LIVING PLACE
Tropical waters of all oceans, mainly near coral reefs. Sometimes fish, along with cold currents, enter temperate latitudes.
PRESERVATION
Hedgehog fish are not a popular object of fishing; more often, in the form of souvenirs, they become prey for tourists. In Japan, urchins - fish prepared in a special way - are considered a delicacy.

There are 6-8 genera, distributed in almost all tropical seas. Up to 60 cm long. The body, which takes the shape of a ball when in danger, is covered with sharp spines. The skin and entrails of the fish are poisonous.

The pricking of this fish's spines is painful and poses a danger to unwary swimmers.

Sometimes she is called ball fish.

Taxonomy

The family has 7 genera and 22 species:

• Genus Allomycterus - Allomyctera
  • Allomycterus pilatus
  • Allomycterus whiteleyi - Allomycterus Whitley, or Whitley's hedgehog fish
• Genus Chilomycterus - Two-toothed or chilomicts
  • Chilomycterus antennatus
  • Chilomycterus antillarum
  • Chilomycterus geometricus
  • Chilomycterus reticulatus - Spotted fin chylomict, or spotted chylomict
  • Chilomycterus schoepfii - American chilomycter or hedgehogfish
  • Chilomycterus spinosus
    • Chilomycterus spinosus mauretanicus
    • Chilomycterus spinosus spinosus
• Genus Cyclichthys - Cyclichthys
  • Cyclichthys hardenbergi
  • Cyclichthys orbicularis - Bird cyclichthys
  • Cyclichthys spilostylus - Yellow-spotted cyclichthys
• Genus Dicotylichthys - Dicotylichthys
  • Dicotylichthys punctulatus - Spotted dicotylichthys
• Genus Diodon - True urchinfishes
  • Diodon eydouxii - Pelagic hedgehogfish
  • Diodon holocanthus - Longspined hedgehogfish
  • Diodon hystrix - Long-spined hedgehogfish
  • Diodon liturosus - Short-spined hedgehogfish
  • Diodon nicthemerus
• Genus Lophodiodon - Lophiodon
  • Lophodiodon calori - Lophiodon
• Genus Tragulichthys - Tragulichthys
  • Tragulichthys jaculiferus - Tragulichthys

Notes

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See what “hedgehog fish” is in other dictionaries:

urchin fish- dvidantės pūsliažuvės statusas T sritis zoologija | vardynas taksono rangas šeima apibrėžtis Atlanto, Indijos ir Ramiojo vandenynų atogrąžų ir paatogrąžio platumos. 7 gentys, 19 rūšių. atitikmenys: lot. Diodontidae English. balloonfishes;… … Žuvų pavadinimų žodynas

real urchin fish- paprastosios dvidantės statusas T sritis zoologija | vardynas taksono rangas gentis atitikmenys: lot. Diodon English balloonfishes; porcupine fishes rus. real fish hedgehogs ryšiai: platesnis terminas – dvidantės pūsliažuvės siauresnis terminas –… … Žuvų pavadinimų žodynas

The common hedgehog fish (Diodon hystrix) reaches a length of about 35 cm and is covered with brown spots along a rusty-brown background. Round needles have three spines, one of which is a continuation of the needle itself; the needles are located on top of each other in the form... ... Animal life

Family sea ​​fish order of pufferfish. Length up to 60 cm. 15 species, in tropical ocean waters. The body is spherical, covered with sharp movable spines. The skin and innards are poisonous. * * * HEDGEHOG FISH HEDGEHOG FISH, a family of marine fish of the order... ... encyclopedic Dictionary

Family of marine fish of the order Pufferfish. Length up to 60 cm. 14–15 species, in tropical oceanic waters. The body is spherical, covered with sharp movable spines. The skin and innards are poisonous... Big Encyclopedic Dictionary

Mn. A family of marine fish with a spherical body covered with sharp movable spines. Ephraim's explanatory dictionary. T. F. Efremova. 2000... Modern Dictionary Russian language Efremova

HEDGEHOGES FISH (Diodontidae), family of fish Neg. pufferfish. Dl. up to 60, the body is shortened, covered with spines, can swell into a ball when the air sac of the stomach is filled with water or air; in some, the spines rise. 6… … Biological encyclopedic dictionary

Marine family fish neg. pufferfish. Dl. up to 60 cm. 15 species, tropical. oceanic waters The body is spherical, covered with sharp movable spines. The skin and innards are poisonous. Hedgehog fish... Natural science. encyclopedic Dictionary

White shark In the World Ocean, as well as in enclosed and freshwater bodies of water, there are many species of fish that pose a danger to humans. They can be divided into 4 groups: biting; causing injury with thorns or thorns (fish... ... Wikipedia

In these fish, the fused teeth in each jaw form continuous cutting plates, not divided at the front. Their shortened body, covered with spines, can swell into a ball, and in some species it also has dorsal and anal fins... ... Biological encyclopedia

Every living creature on our planet has its own means and methods of protection that nature has endowed them with. Today we will tell readers about amazing urchin fish, which many have probably seen, but not everyone knows about them.

Description of hedgehog fish

The mouth of the hedgehog fish is large and wide. The upper and lower jaws are covered with cutting plates that are not separated by a seam, so in appearance the mouth of these marine inhabitants may resemble the beak of a parrot. There are no spines on the dorsal and anal fins, and the edges of the fins are rounded. There are no fins on the abdomen.

The spines of hedgehog fish are directed towards the back of the body. The lateral line of these fish is poorly distinguishable.

The skin of the hedgehog fish is covered with durable bony scutes, from which strong, movable spines extend. Like other representatives of this family, the hedgehog fish is able to inflate a special sac with air, which extends from the pharynx. At the same time, its entire body is inflated and its shape takes on the appearance of a ball with needles sticking out in all directions. After the “transformation” the fish turns over with its belly up and in this form swims on the surface of the water.

At first glance, this is some kind of fish, peacefully circling around the corals.

The length of the hedgehog fish ranges from 20 to 55 cm. But, swimming closer, the peaceful creature in an instant turns into a large ball with long sharp spines.

In such a “bloated” state, the size of the hedgehog fish increases several times, and the needles, which were previously tightly pressed, straighten out, reaching a length of 4.5 cm. Thanks to this transformation, the “spiny ball” saves its life, since any attempt by a predator eating this miracle is futile.

The ability for hedgehog fish to inflate is achieved thanks to special organs in the form of bags into which water flows. As soon as the danger to the fish passes, it spits out the water and returns to its former form.

Toxicity of hedgehog fish and danger to humans

The hedgehog fish has several “defenses” in its arsenal, so marine predators prefer not to mess with it. Her skin and insides are poisonous due to the accumulation of tetrodotoxin, a naturally occurring non-protein substance with a neuroparalytic effect. It is known that the amount of poison contained in one fish can kill 30-35 people.

Symptoms of acute tetrodotoxin poisoning are itching on the lips, tongue and other parts of the body, excessive salivation, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and abdominal pain. Later, muscle twitching occurs, skin sensitivity disappears, swallowing becomes difficult, and the voice disappears. Human death can occur from paralysis of the respiratory muscles. According to statistics, 60% of poisonings with this poison lead to fatal outcome.

For vacationers, the hedgehog fish does not pose a danger, since it leads a predominantly nocturnal lifestyle, hiding during the day in corals or underwater crevices. In this regard, the risk of an unpleasant encounter between a person and a “prickly ball” is minimal.

Habitats of hedgehog fish

This fish lives in tropical seas. Numerous representatives of the urchin fish family, which include representatives of this genus, are found in the seas of southern Asia, the Pacific Ocean and the Atlantic.

Eating hedgehog fish

In their diet, these underwater inhabitants prefer crustaceans, mollusks and crabs. Thanks to strong fused teeth that form something similar to a beak, hedgehog fish easily chew through strong shells.

In order not to become prey themselves, the hedgehog fish avoids places where large predatory sea inhabitants gather. When danger appears, it hides for cover or instantly turns into a large prickly ball. However, in addition to thorns, she has another good defense in her arsenal - mucus. In some cases, in order to scare away the attacker, the fish hedgehog throws this very poisonous secret into the water, which poses no less a danger to other marine life than its needles. After such a trick, no one will dare to continue trying to attack the hedgehog.

IN different languages it is called ball fish or porcupine fish. Since the entire body of this animal is covered with sharp movable spines, all these names perfectly correspond to its extravagant appearance.
HABITAT
Urchin fish live in all tropical and subtropical seas of our planet. Sometimes, finding themselves in the zone of action of strong tidal waves or sea currents, they appear in the Mediterranean Sea and even off the coast of Northern Europe. They can be found at depths of 3 to 100 m near coral reefs or in areas of the seabed overgrown with algae.
The hedgehog fish lives in the bottom layers of water, finding shelter among coral thickets and underwater rocks.

SECURITY
The most serious threat to hedgehog fish is humans. They are caught in large numbers for aquariums, sold dried as souvenirs and widely used in traditional Asian medicine. Urchin fish have no economic importance. The meat of some species is considered a delicacy in Japan, but it can only be eaten after careful cooking, because the skin and liver of these fish contain deadly poisons.
The hedgehog fish has an air sac consisting of a stomach and a special intestinal outgrowth. In case of danger, the fish instantly fills it with air or water, swelling into a huge ball studded with spines.
The beak of the hedgehog fish, with which it bites off pieces of coral, crushes shells and shells, is a hard bone plate formed by fused teeth.
Possessing excellent vision, hedgehog fish can feed both day and night.
The spines of the hedgehog fish, movably connected to the body, were formed from modified scales.
The neurotoxin released by the puffer fish is stronger than potassium cyanide.
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