Venomous little fish.
During a short session beach fishing, I only managed to land one tiny fish, it was the first time I'd ever seen or caught one. The fish in question, is a Weever Fish.
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| Note the spines on the black dorsal fin. |
As anglers are the most likely to come into contact with this fish, I would just like to introduce or reacquaint yourselves with the Weever Fish . I have to admit that when I first saw this fish spinning around on the end of my hook, I quickly presumed that it was a smaller than average whiting, and just by chance it quickly raised and lowered its dorsal fin with spines, the tiny black flash caught my eye, and after a closer inspection realised that it wasn't what I thought it was.
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| looking harmless with dorsal fin down!! |
I'd been warned about this fish many years ago as a young boy by my father, and without the Internet or actually seeing a Weever Fish I was surprised at how harmless/bland the fish actually looked, especially with its dorsal fin down, I kind of had visions of it looking like a Scorpion Fish. But this little fish could put a end to your
fishing trip if you was stung by the spines on its dorsal fin or gills. Although it is highly unlikely to kill you, the sting is worst than a bee or wasp sting, and could cause extreme pain. If stung, the infected area should be immersed in hot water for as long as 30mins, the pain should subside as the water cools. remember to check that you haven't got any broken spine still stuck in you.
The lesson here, is identify your fish before handling, and if in doubt use a wet towel folded into quaters to place around the fish, so you can hold the fish firmly from underneath with the spines facing away from you, whilst you unhook it with long nose pliers or forceps.
