Pufferfish (Incredible Creatures by Safari Ltd.)

Pufferfishes are a family of fishes scientifically known as Tetraodontidae and although they can also inflate their bodies the porcupinefishes of the Diodontidae family are not generally regarded as pufferfishes. The two families are closely related of course, both belonging to the Tetraodontiformes order. And although any fish in the order that puffs up can colloquially be called a pufferfish it’s important to mention the distinction when reviewing today’s subject, a porcupinefish that Safari marketed as a pufferfish.

Today we’re looking at the Safari Ltd. 2010 “pufferfish”, part of their Incredible Creatures line. The figure was retired in 2022. This toy is identified as a long-spined porcupinefish (Diodon holocanthusis) on Toy Animal Wiki (with a question mark) and although it has large black blotches like D. holocanthusis it also has spotted fins, which that species notably lacks. The spot-fin porcupinefish (D. hystrix), on the other hand, does have spots on its fins. Although it is likely that Safari Ltd. didn’t have a specific Diodon species in mind when the toy was made, I’m going to consider it to be a spot-fin porcupinefish and tag it as such.

The spot-fin porcupinefish has a circumtropical distribution where it is found in sub-tropical and tropical inshore waters around reefs, ledges, caves, and other structures. Porcupinefish are covered in spikes that are modified scales. The spines only stick out when the fish is inflated and otherwise lay against the body. The upper and lower teeth are fused into a beak-like structure that allows porcupinefish to feed on sea urchins, gastropods, and other benthic invertebrates. They are poisonous but are still eaten in Hawaii and Tahiti. Their dried corpses are also sold as beach-side souvenirs. I have one but it was gifted to me, it’s not something I would ever purchase myself.

Safari’s porcupinefish is presented as an inflated ball (and perhaps a bit too ball-shaped) and measures about 4” (10.16 cm) in total length. The actual spot-fin porcupinefish reaches a total length of 36” (91 cm), which makes it the largest species of porcupinefish. Scaled down from that length we get a scale of 1/9 for the figure. On average the species reaches a length of 15” (40 cm) and scaled down from that we get a scale of 1/3.75.

The figure is an admirable attempt at a porcupinefish. The body has a pitted texture and a generous covering of spines that aren’t pointy enough to be any danger to kids. The figure is hollow and there’s a small hole located in the partially open mouth. Fine details are minimal. The fin rays are crudely etched lines across the pectoral, dorsal, anal, and caudal fins. Gill openings are located next to the pectoral fins. The lips are fleshy but should protrude more and the eyes should be oriented more along the sides.

The body is painted yellow above and white below with brown and black blotches over the entire body, with those on the top being larger. A horizontal blotch placed over each eye makes it look like the toy has eyebrows. It gives me Martin Scorsese vibes and ironically enough, he played a pufferfish in Shark Tale. Coincidence?

The actual spot-fin porcupinefish has small black spots while the long-spine porcupinefish has larger blotches. As mentioned, however, the long-spine doesn’t have spotted fins. To me, the spotted fins trump the blotches but if you want to consider this a long-spine I won’t argue about it. The paintjob is pretty basic, but this toy presents some unique hurdles, so I won’t take it to task over it.

The Safari “pufferfish” is a decent attempt at a porcupinefish but ultimately looks kind of cartoonish, and more like a bath toy than a display-worthy model. That’s not a knock against it, it is a toy after all, but when compared to Safari’s more recent offerings it does fall short somewhat. Props to Safari for tackling such an anatomically unique fish though. I’m certainly happy to have it. This figure is retired and hard to find but there are plenty of knockoffs available for knockoff prices. Buyer beware, unless you don’t care!