Northern puffer | |
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Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Actinopterygii |
Order: | Tetraodontiformes |
Family: | Tetraodontidae |
Genus: | Sphoeroides |
Species: | S. maculatus
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Binomial name | |
Sphoeroides maculatus (Linnaeus, 1758)
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The northern puffer, Sphoeroides maculatus, is a species in the family Tetraodontidae, or pufferfishes, found along the Atlantic coast of North America.[2] Unlike many other pufferfish species, the flesh of the northern puffer is not poisonous, although its viscera can contain poison,[1][2] and high concentrations of toxins have been observed in the skin of Floridian populations.[3]: 30 They are commonly called sugar toads in the Chesapeake Bay region, where they are eaten as a delicacy.[4][failed verification] There was widespread consumption of northern puffers during the rationing that accompanied the Second World War, establishing a commercial fishery that reached its zenith in the 1960s.[1][3]: 36–39 In much of the Northeast, the fish is known simply as "blowfish" or "chicken of the sea".[5] They may also be sold as "sea squab".[1][6]