MARINE ANIMALS THAT ARE POISONOUS TO EAT 



107 



of a silver object or garlic placed in the cooking water, etc. ad in- 

 finitum. It is only by careful scientific laboratory procedures that 

 this poison can be determined with any degree of certainty. 



The digestive organs, or dark meat, gills, and in some shellfish 

 species, the siphon, contain the greatest concentration of the poison 

 (Fig. 65). The musculature or white meat is generally harmless; 

 however, it should be thoroughly washed before cooking. The 

 broth, or bouillon, in which the shellfish is boiled is especially dan- 

 gerous since the poison is water soluble, and should be discarded 

 if there is the slightest doubt. The tidal location from which the 

 shellfish were gathered cannot be used as a criterion as to whether 

 the shellfish are safe to eat. Poisonous shellfish may be found in 

 either low or high tidal zones. If in doubt — throw out ! 



THEORY ON THE ORIGIN OF FISH POISONS 



POISONOUS HERBIVORE 



POISONOUS CARNIVORE 



PLANT CONTAINING 

 POISON OR PRECURSOR 



Fig. 66. Diagram illustrating theory as to the origin of fish poisons. 



POISONOUS FISHES 



The problem of poisonous fishes is an exceedingly complex one, 

 and is quite mystifying to most persons encountering these organ- 

 isms. One of the difficult things to understand is how a valuable 

 food fish in one locality can be so poisonous in another. Neverthe- 

 less, this is the situation that exists. The dual personality of these 

 fishes has caused much confusion both in medical literature and 

 among laymen in the field. The fact that a person may have eaten 

 a particular fish on hundreds of occasions and never found it to be 

 poisonous is no guarantee that this same fish under slightly differ- 



