I was asked a question not long ago about this, " Just the other day I was wondering is there a reason why humans can’t eat colourful fish? The fish that we eat are usually just silvery in colour."
The short answer is that as long as the fish is not poisonous, there is no reason why you cannot eat a fish. Having said that, skilled Japanese chefs do prepare the poisonous fugu fish for eating!
There are lots of pretty colourful fishes that people eat. See pictured is a the beautiful coral trout at my local fish market.
Moreover, the very fancy, venomous lionfish are being served in many restaurants (see http://www.reef.org/restaurants) because they’ve reached menacing plague proportions in the wild.
Humans can eat colourful fishes. The grey/silvery fishes are what’s more commonly available, I think because these are schooling fish, and they can be caught in large numbers by net.
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Yours sincerely,
Dr Richmond Loh
DipProjMgt, BSc, BVMS, MPhil (Pathology), MANZCVS (Aquatics& Pathobiology), CertAqV, NATA Signatory.
Aquatic Veterinarian & Veterinary Pathologist.
PERTH | MELBOURNE | TOWNSVILLE
THE FISH VET – AUSTRALIA.
Aquatic Veterinary Medical & Diagnostic Services.
http://www.thefishvet.com.au
Ph: +61 (0)421 822 383
