AnimalsCoral Reef
Pufferfish Fun facts for kids
Tetraodontidae (family); e.g. Takifugu rubripes, Arothron hispidus
The pufferfish lives in warm seas all over the world and eats crabs, snails and shellfish.
- Where it lives
- in warm seas all over the world
- What it eats
- crabs, snails and shellfish
- How big it is
- about as big as a shoe
Fun facts about the pufferfish
The ones Sammy likes best. She tells them in the game, too.
When it gets scared, a pufferfish gulps water and swells into a spiky ball several times bigger than usual.
Some pufferfish draw giant circle patterns in the sand, as wide as a grown-up is tall, and for years nobody knew who made them.
It swims slowly, but it can hover, swim backwards and spin on the spot like a tiny helicopter.
Its teeth are joined into a beak like a parrot's that keeps growing and can crunch open crab shells.
It can move each eye on its own, and it often follows divers with its eyes.
It can blow up like a balloon because it has no ribs and its skin is super stretchy.
When it puffs up, its tiny prickles stand up like Velcro, so it is very hard to bite.
It puffs up with water, not air, so you should never lift one out of the water to make it puff.
Riddle
Can a friend guess it?
Read the clues to someone, one at a time, without saying the animal. How many clues do they need? Fewer is better, just like in the game.
I live in warm seas all over the world, and some of my cousins live in rivers.
I swim slowly, but I can hover, swim backwards and spin on the spot like a tiny helicopter.
My teeth are joined into a beak like a parrot's, and I crunch open crab shells.
Some of us draw giant circle patterns in the sand, and for years nobody knew who made them.
When I'm scared, I gulp water and swell up like a spiky balloon.
Sammy might be thinking of a pufferfish.
In Thought Zoo, Sammy picks an animal and you ask her yes-or-no questions to find it. You'll find the pufferfish in the Coral Reef adventure.
Play the Coral ReefComing to iPad, iPhone and Android on 12 January 2027
