Hi John, I heard an interview the other day with Wade Davis, an ethno-botanist explorer, author and writer for the National Geographic. As a botanist who has travelled and worked in Latin America, I thought you might be interested.
The Blowfish has an interesting way of handling a perceived threat. It blows ingests seawater and blows itself up to many times its normal size, and sticks out sharp spikes all around its body. This is usually enough for the curious predator to lose interest and swim away. Sometimes this can cause the predator to strike the larger and more interesting prey. Some Blowfish have another protective mechanism, a deadly neuro-toxin in the spines. This toxin can cause total body paralysis and death. This Blowfish is eagerly sought around the world. In Japan it is served as an expensive delicacy at some Sushi restaurants where it causes the paralysis and death of Sushi eaters every year. It is also sought by Voodoo witch doctors in Haiti and West Africa. They administer the neurotoxin as a potion to create Zombies, the paralysed but conscious state of the living dead. I may not have all the facts right in this off topic fable but it is enough to warn me away from Blowfish, Sushi and Voodoo. Cheers Roger Bailey -
