Fish
Takifugu alboplumbeus ・ Tetraodontidae (Pufferfishes)
Extremely common along inner-bay piers, where it steals bait from every kind of rig. A large share of bitten-off rigs are its work.
Dark greenish-brown above, peppered with small round white spots, and marked by a clear black blotch just behind the pectoral fin, which separates it from the similar komon puffer (that species also has white spots below the eye). Usually 10-15 cm. On spring-tide nights in early summer, huge shoals crowd onto gravel beaches to spawn. Its organs and skin, above all the liver, gut and ovaries, are strongly poisonous.
Nobody fishes for it; it simply takes the bait off sabiki, float and bottom rigs alike. If your rig keeps getting bitten off, or the bait vanishes without a bite, assume they have swarmed the spot and change place or depth. The standard practice is to return it to the water on the spot rather than take it home.
If your bait keeps disappearing and your rigs keep getting bitten through, this is why. It cannot be eaten, since preparing pufferfish requires a licensed handler, so return it to the water on the spot and do not pass it on to anyone.
Waters: Sea of Japan, Northern Pacific coast, Southern Pacific coast, Seto Inland Sea, East China Sea & western Kyushu
Chonage starter kit ・ Kit total ¥11,000–24,000
A compact rod travels by train. Jarime is the easiest bait to handle.
Product links may be affiliate links. Prices move, so treat the ranges as a guide.
This fish is dangerous to handle bare-handed.
Toxic flesh
The liver, ovaries, skin and intestines contain tetrodotoxin, a potent toxin lethal in very small amounts and not destroyed by cooking. Preparing pufferfish requires a licensed pufferfish handler, and it is not legally permitted for an unlicensed person to prepare it. If you catch one, do not treat it as food: return it to the sea. This guide gives no preparation instructions for pufferfish of any kind.
Dangerous fish and animals — what to do when you are stung or bitten
Sharp teeth
Its fused tooth plates are strong enough to bite through leader, and a bitten finger will bleed. Keep bare hands away from its mouth.
Dangerous fish and animals — what to do when you are stung or bitten
This fish carries toxic parts, so no preparation advice is given. Handling pufferfish in Japan requires a licence; never prepare one yourself.
The preparation and sale of pufferfish are regulated under Japan's Food Sanitation Act and prefectural ordinances, and an unlicensed person is not permitted to prepare them. Do not give a caught fish to anyone else either.
Dangerous fish and animals — what to do when you are stung or bitten
This article organises general information and is not legal advice. Rules differ by municipality and by fishery cooperative, and they change. Always check the current rules for where you are going.