SOMETHING FISHY

MALE OR FEMALE?
It's quite difficult to tell if a goldfish is male or female, for the only time male and female goldfish look different from each other is when they are ready to breed. The male develops small white spots, called tubercles, on his gill covers. The female, on the other hand, will fill up with eggs and look fatter than the male.

FISHY TIPS
If you can afford it, thaw frozen fish in milk, for it draws out the frozen taste and produces a fresh-caught flavor. You can also try soaking a fish in vinegar and water before cooking it for a sweet tender taste. To remove the fishy smell from your hands, wash with vinegar and water, or salt and water.

OPERCULUM
Pronounced as oo pur'kyoo lum, it is a lid or flap covering an aperture, such as the gill cover in some fishes or the horny shell cover in snails or other mollusks.

FROM THE PHILIPPINES
Three out of every four tropical marine fish sold in American Petshops came from the Philippines.

DO YOU KNOW THAT...

• The most poisonous fish in the worls is the Stone fish.
• The largest known fish in the sea is the Whale Shark. It weighs up to 20 tons and grows to a length of 40 feet.
• Jelly Fish, not sharks, are the deadliest killer in oceans and seas. A certain kind of box jelly fish kills more people than all the shark species do put together.
• The elephant snout, an African fish, communicates with other fish by emitting an electrical signal, sort of a fish's version of Morse Code
• In Japan meat from the 'Fugu' or spiny puffer fish is considered to be a rare delicacy, however the liver and intestines contain a powerfull neurotoxin and the slightest contamination during preparation can be deadly. Restaurants who serve fugu must have a 'Fugu certified' chefs.
• In Japan about one hundred people on average die annually from fugu poisoning.
• All the sturgeon, which eggs are made caviar, caught in British waters are property of the Queen.