Is porcupine puffer flesh toxic to fish who consume it?

[Porcupine Reefer]

Bad news everyone, my porcupine puffer fish that I had in my reef tank for all this time has officially passed away today. I took the fish out of the tank and It was decomposing from the head to midway of the body. I estimated that he died during the night, and I took him out after I got back from school. My concern now is if my last three fish were taking nips at the body would they be fine? My current stocking now is my blue hippo tang, clown fish and melanurus wrasse (the wrasse I would be more concerned with because he's always opportunistic) will everyone be fine if they ate a piece of the carcass?

 

[Jay Hemdal]

Bad news everyone, my porcupine puffer fish that I had in my reef tank for all this time has officially passed away today. I took the fish out of the tank and It was decomposing from the head to midway of the body. I estimated that he died during the night, and I took him out after I got back from school. My concern now is if my last three fish were taking nips at the body would they be fine? My current stocking now is my blue hippo tang, clown fish and melanurus wrasse (the wrasse I would be more concerned with because he's always opportunistic) will everyone be fine if they ate a piece of the carcass?

Sorry to hear.

Most of the toxin in porcupinefish is confined to the liver. However, they do have some venom glands in the skin, apparently to ward off predators. The venom is tetrodotoxin, and that should have a negative effect in an hour or so. If the fish are symptom free by now, I think they'll be fine. However, if what the porcupine died from is contagious, they could be at risk from the same issue.

Jay