Fish Identification

[liuzhou]

I came across this beauty in my local supermarket this afternoon and, on a whim, bought it.

 

 

I have no idea what it is. Neither did the supermarket staff (they are notoriously clueless in general) but they priced it as Vietnamese Crab Claws, their interpretation of 'no idea what that is'.

 

The fact that they didn't actually have any crab claws, Vietnamese or with any other passports didn't deter them.

 

So, it's about 11 inches nose to tail and 5 at its widest. Scaled but un-gutted it weighs 520g. It is almost certainly a saltwater fish, although the incompetent staff do occasionally park freshwater fish in the wrong section. 

 

It was landed in Asian waters (Gulf of Tonkin) so may not be universally available.

 

Any help gratefully received. 

[KennethT]

I'm not 100% sure, but to me, it looks like a parrotfish... they are typically found in tropical, and subtropical shallow oceans, and according to Wikipedia (take that for what it may be), has the largest species diversity in the 'Indo-Pacific'.

[liuzhou]

I'm not 100% sure, but to me, it looks like a parrotfish... they are typically found in tropical, and subtropical shallow oceans, and according to Wikipedia (take that for what it may be), has the largest species diversity in the 'Indo-Pacific'.

 

Thanks. Seems parrotfish have unusual teeth. I'll give mine a dental check-up in the morning. But it's a bit late in the evening now for piscine orthodontics. 

[weedy]

definitely looks like a parrotfish

 

http://voices.nationalgeographic.com/2014/07/02/to-save-coral-reefs-start-with-parrotfish/

[liamsaunt]

That is definitely a parrotfish. I wanted to mention that this fish, and others that feed on coral reefs, are linked with ciguatera, a very painful and long-lasting illness that is caused by a toxin present in the flesh of reef fish.  The toxin has no odor or taste and cannot be removed with cooking.  I am not familiar with the rate of illness caused by ciguatera in the Gulf of Tonkin, but a quick google search does show that it is present there.  

[liuzhou]

Not that I doubted anyone's suggestion of parrotfish, but a dental autopsy has confirmed everyone's diagnosis. Many thanks.

 

 

I'll look out for ciguatera.

[dcarch]

That is definitely a parrotfish. I wanted to mention that this fish, and others that feed on coral reefs, are linked with ciguatera, a very painful and long-lasting illness that is caused by a toxin present in the flesh of reef fish.  The toxin has no odor or taste and cannot be removed with cooking.  I am not familiar with the rate of illness caused by ciguatera in the Gulf of Tonkin, but a quick google search does show that it is present there.  

 

Interesting!

 

It is interesting that many poisonous animals are very colorful. 

 

dcarch

[IowaDee]

Sort of a "if you've got it, flaunt it" attitude.  The "it" being poison.  Just nature's way of telling potential predators to back off.

[liuzhou]

Sort of a "if you've got it, flaunt it" attitude.  The "it" being poison.  Just nature's way of telling potential predators to back off.

 

But fish are immune to the toxin.

[Thanks for the Crepes]

That fish is gorgeous!

 

Thanks to everyone who participated in my education about the potential? food world.

 

I must say that the eyes look a little flatter than I would strictly like for fresh fish, but they are definitely not the collapsed cloudy things we sometimes get offered on this side of the world.

 

Can you believe, with teeth like that, the creature is considered herbivorous? Apparently some species munch up coral and excrete the undigestible portions as sand. That explains their crazy teeth, which are apparently self-renewing during their lifetime, like sharks.

 

If anyone cares:

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parrotfish

 

https://www.google.com/search?q=parrotfish&espv=2&biw=1097&bih=546&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ved=0CIkBEIkeahUKEwjuyrDRpJ7IAhUClYAKHdksD4c&dpr=1.75

 

Please, liuzhou, do let us know if you eat this very beautiful offering from the sea, and if you're okay after doing so, and thank you for another fascinating and educational contribution to eG!

[liuzhou]

Mr. Parrot* has been gutted, descaled and filleted and is currently nestled in the freezer.

 

He was a pig to de-scale. Those babies did not want to come off. 

 

I'll let you know when I get round to him but the toxin issue has put off somewhat.

 

*Actually, I'm not sure which gender he is and neither is he. It seems they all start out female, lay their eggs, change sex then fertilize their own offspring. I suppose it cuts out a lot of the trauma of the dating game.

 

Transsexual fish. Whatever next?

Edited September 30, 2015 by liuzhou (log)

[Shelby]

That is the prettiest fish I've ever seen.   You now know what it is, but my first thought was that it looked to be in the carp family.  The scales are very similar (not the color, but the shape).

[Katie Meadow]

Between the toxin issue and the deteriorating coral reef issue you have a couple of good reasons to hesitate. A third reason might be high levels of pollution in the Gulf of Tonkin, although clearly a lot of people eat the fish that are farmed or caught there. I'm always a sucker for the "what is this?" threads; I'm amazed at what can be learned in two minutes. 

Edited September 30, 2015 by Katie Meadow (log)

[weedy]

ciguatera is a bit of a crap shoot...

 

it's common in some reef fish, which is why you're generally advised to not eat barracuda, for example, and yet people certainly do.

 

there's no guarantee, but it's a nasty illness

 

that PLUS the ecological concerns lean me away from eating parrotfish

 

from the CDC:

Ciguatera has no cure. Symptoms usually go away in days or weeks but can last for years

[scubadoo97]

I would be hesitant to eat parrot fish since they are nibbling on the reef but did have the opportunity to eat barracuda. My dive instructor took his spear gun with him on our checkout dive "in case there was a rabid grouper" and shot several small barracuda which he felt were safe since he had been providing them for his churches fish fry for years. It was a delicious fish. Very white and mild

Edited September 30, 2015 by scubadoo97 (log)

[liuzhou]

That is the prettiest fish I've ever seen.   You now know what it is, but my first thought was that it looked to be in the carp family.  The scales are very similar (not the color, but the shape).

 

Many of the fish available here closely resemble the contents of my mother's tropical fish tank, albeit larger. 

 

Yes, it is carp shaped, but I'm very familiar with carp - one or other subspecies tends to be the main fish round these parts.

 

 

Between the toxin issue and the deteriorating coral reef issue you have a couple of good reasons to hesitate. A third reason might be high levels of pollution in the Gulf of Tonkin, although clearly a lot of people eat the fish that are farmed or caught there. I'm always a sucker for the "what is this?" threads; I'm amazed at what can be learned in two minutes. 

 

I've been eating Gulf of Tonkin landed fish for the last twenty years without any ill effects (so far). It's where I live. 

 

Anyway, I have decided not to eat the parrotfish. Toxins and chips isn't my idea of fun.  It has already been binned.

 

The lost investment went to a good education. Thanks to all who contributed.

 

No doubt I'll be back to this thread with another specimen in the near future. They are always stocking weird (to me) things.

[Thanks for the Crepes]

I'm sorry you couldn't eat your purchase, liuzhou. :-(

 

Perhaps this is a better specimen for the aquarium than the dinner table? It certainly has the beauty to mesmerize while swimming behind glass in a tank.

 

It was certainly educational and fun reading through the thread, though. It was interesting.

 

Thanks.

[liuzhou]

I'm sorry you couldn't eat your purchase, liuzhou. :-(

 

Perhaps this is a better specimen for the aquarium than the dinner table? It certainly has the beauty to mesmerize while swimming behind glass in a tank.

 

It was certainly educational and fun reading through the thread, though. It was interesting.

 

Thanks.

 

Yes, it's a bit sad but, in the end, sick is not where I want to be. I think they would be better left among the coral where they work to preserve what we are destroying.

[weedy]

My dive instructor took his spear gun with him on our checkout dive "in case there was a rabid grouper" and shot several small barracuda which he felt were safe since he had been providing them for his churches fish fry for years.

 

I have too

AND parrotfish

 

but I also saw someone on a dive trip become very ill with what turned out to be ciguatera from eating barracuda

 

it's a crap shoot

 

I'm  divemaster too...doesn't make me an infectious disease expert. That's not part of the training. <g>

[liuzhou]

And another. The same supermarket had these today. Unlabeled and when I asked the woman womanning the fish station what they were she replied helpfully "fish". An excellent opportunity for me to practice my withering stare!

They are about 6-8 inches long. I am hoping the yellow tail and fins, yet silverish body may be helpful for an ID. Google hasn't helped much.

 

Again, they may be an Asian species. Almost certainly a saltwater variety.

 

Thanks in advance.

 

 

 

[scubadoo97]

Kinda looks like a type of mackerel in body shape and tail but doesn't have the characteristic dentate like points near the tail section.  

[Shelby]

16 minutes ago, liuzhou said:

And another. The same supermarket had these today. Unlabeled and when I asked the woman womanning the fish station what they were she replied helpfully "fish". An excellent opportunity for me to practice my withering stare!

They are about 6-8 inches long. I am hoping the yellow tail and fins, yet silverish body may be helpful for an ID. Google hasn't helped much.

 

Again, they may be an Asian species. Almost certainly a saltwater variety.

 

Thanks in advance.

 

 

 

Looks a lot like this Shad maybe? 

[liuzhou]

3 minutes ago, Shelby said:

Looks a lot like this Shad maybe? 

 

I see what you mean and thanks, but that is a freshwater fish native to the Americas. Not sure how they would swim here! I'm also fairly certain that what I saw is a saltwater fish.

 

Quote

Threadfin shad are found in pools of large rivers and in lakes and reservoirs of the south central U.S. and along the gulf coast into Mexico. 

 

[Shelby]

1 minute ago, liuzhou said:

 

I see what you mean and thanks, but that is a freshwater fish native to the Americas. Not sure how they would swim here! I'm also fairly certain that what I saw is a saltwater fish.

 

 

Hey he could have been a really strong swimmer.....and somewhere he evolved and grew legs and then they fell off and he swam more...and and and    

[robirdstx]

Yellowtail scad?

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yellowtail_scad