NORTHERN PUFFER - They feed on all manner of small things, sort of a goat of the ocean. As the name
implies they are able to do the classic puffing up of their bodies with water. They do this as a defense mechanism
which makes them... hopefully to big to eat or two prickly to eat.
Puffers are very different from normal finfish. They have no teeth, but they use the bones of their jaws to cut food.
They have no scales, but they are covered in prickles, which become sharp and pointy when the puffer inflates itself.
When it's not inflated, it has a somewhat slender body, but when it is inflated, it's really fat. It uses air or water to
inflate itself, usually when it's in a dangerous situation so that it looks bigger (and scarier). Puffers are usually dark
colored on top and have white bellies. They can grow to a length of 14 inches, but they're usually much smaller than
that, and the females are larger than the males! Puffers are found along the shoreline, sometimes in estuaries, but never
more than a couple miles from shore, or in deep water. They feed on crabs, shrimps, worms, sea urchins,
and barnacles anywhere from Florida to Massachussets.
|
