Residents warned of toxic puffer fish wash up on Cape Town beaches

Residents warned of toxic puffer fish wash up on Cape Town beaches

Cape Town – The City has warned residents of toxic puffer fish washing up along Cape Town beaches around this time of the year.

This comes as the fish, carrying the neurotoxin tetrodotoxin, washed up on beaches in Fish Hoek and Glencairn last week.

Deputy mayor and spatial planning and environment Mayco member, Eddie Andrews, said: “City’s Coastal Management branch can confirm that these puffer fish usually wash out once or twice a year, often after strong south-east winds.

“We consider it a normal part of the ecology in this region. The cause is not certain and it has no impact on broader marine life. We ask that residents please try and keep their dogs away from the area to avoid them eating the puffer fish.”

In March 2021, the City issued a caution to beachgoers to exercise vigilance along False Bay beaches, after hundreds of the fish washed up on the coastline.

According to the Department of Forestry, Fisheries, and the Environment, the flesh of the fish contained a powerful neurotoxin that was poisonous.

“An initial tingling of the lips and tongue is followed by numbness throughout the body and ultimately respiratory paralysis, resulting in death.

“Urgent hospitalisation should be sought if these fish are eaten,” the department said.

Cape Argus