What kind of fish is the ocean sunfish, can it be eaten, and why are fishermen afraid of it?

The ocean sunfish is also known as the sunfish, Mambo fish, or head fish, and is a large fish in the ocean. Because its skin is very thick and many kinds of parasites live in its skin, few people eat it. So what kind of fish is the ocean sunfish? Can it be eaten? Why are fishermen afraid of this fish?

The ocean sunfish is a large oceanic fish, with a maximum body length of 3.0 to 5.5 m and a weight of 1400 to 3500 kg. It swims alone or in pairs, sometimes in groups of more than ten. Smaller individuals are more active and often leap out of the water, while larger individuals move slowly and often lie on their side at the surface, or with the dorsal fin exposed above the water, and can also dive into water more than a hundred meters deep, feeding on seaweed, mollusks, jellyfish, planktonic crustaceans, and small fish. The ocean sunfish has the highest egg count among fish, with a fecundity of up to 300 million eggs. Juveniles are covered with nodular spines, which gradually disappear with age, and the body becomes oval.

The Mambo fish was originally called the ocean sunfish in Taiwan, China. Fishermen often saw it lying overturned at the water surface as if sunbathing, so they used the name “overturned cart” to describe it. When the weather is relatively good, the ocean sunfish raises its dorsal fin above the water like a sail and drifts with the current, sunbathing to raise its body temperature. When the weather turns bad, it lies flat on its side at the surface, using its dorsal and anal fins to paddle and control direction, and it can also use its dorsal fin to somersault in the sea and dive to the seabed.

Can it be eaten?

According to available information, the ocean sunfish has relatively high economic value. In addition to being used for scientific research and ornamental purposes, it is also a valuable edible fish, so it can be eaten. It has many bones and little flesh; after skinning, the flesh is about 1/10 of its body weight, but its meat quality is ordinary, white in color, and high in nutritional value, with a protein content even higher than the famous pomfret and cutlassfish.

The intestines of the ocean sunfish are also very expensive. Taiwan, China has a famous dish, “Miaolong soup,” which uses them as the main ingredient; it is both crisp and fragrant and greatly stimulates the appetite. In addition, the fish skin is also very useful as a raw material for making gelatin or fish oil and can be used as a lubricant for precision instruments and machinery. The fish liver can be used to make cod liver oil and edible hydrogenated oil, among other things.

It can be said that the ocean sunfish is valuable in every part. The ocean sunfish is distributed in temperate and tropical seas around the world, including the South China Sea, East China Sea, and other sea areas. It belongs to the large oceanic fishes and often inhabits various tropical and subtropical oceans, and is also found in temperate or frigid oceans. It is also distributed in China.

In China, some places hold superstitious beliefs and think that catching an ocean sunfish brings bad luck, so when one is caught it must be released immediately. If it is used for food, then misfortune will follow at any time, and it may even cost one's life. Because of this, some people wonder whether the ocean sunfish can be eaten. Of course, many places do not believe this superstition! Still, looking at such cute pictures of ocean sunfish, diners had better show some restraint!

Are the claims about how it dies true?

No. Regarding the claims that ocean sunfish die from “excessive stress” and “too great a shock,” the scientific community has no reports on this. Moreover, the ocean sunfish is a relatively long-lived fish; growing to 3 m in length takes at least 20 years. So, leaving aside whether the ocean sunfish can feel “emotional stress” and “too great a shock,” for such a long-lived fish, a certain “psychological endurance” should still be expected. As for “air bubbles entering the eyes,” that is actually a problem that will not occur. When diving, the eyes of the ocean sunfish are fully exposed to water, and during “sunbathing” one eye may be fully exposed to the air, and the ocean sunfish has no eyelids, so there is also no space for bubbles to remain. As for the true cause of death of the ocean sunfish, it may still be related to humans.

Reasons for ocean sunfish death:

1. Death from too strong sunlight.

2. Death from excessive stress because air bubbles in the water entered the eyes.

3. Death from too great a shock because the salt in seawater left spots on the body.

4. Death from excessive stress from feeling that it will collide with a sea turtle swimming toward it from ahead.

5. Death from too great a shock because a companion nearby died