Pufferfish experience three states: normal, puffed up, and the hangover after. Their deadly toxin tetrodotoxin prevents diaphragm movement, illustrating a lesson in bravado.
Pufferfish transform by sucking water into their elastic stomachs, which lack ribs, making them hard for predators to swallow. Inflation also tires them out.
David Attenborough calls the pufferfish 'probably nature's greatest artist', a statement that invites playful debate over what defines greatness in nature.
After puffing up, pufferfish take around five hours to return to normal, highlighting an intriguing parallel to human recovery after stress.
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