Killing Dako on a stall skewer … Thai authorities draw attention A series of discovery cases in Japan

• You can find a grilled killer octopus skewer at a Thai stall
• Blue ring pattern … Authorities draw attention.
• In recent years, discoveries have been made one after another in Japan

A myriad of stalls packed with the Thai market. Affordable street food is an integral part of Thai daily life. Local authorities drew attention when it was discovered that a very poisonous skewer of grilled octopus was sold in street food.

Killer octopus with blue ring pattern

On November 30, a highly poisonous octopus grill was found in a market in Patum Thani province, near the capital Bangkok. Octopus skewers are one of the standard street dishes in Thailand and are very popular because they are soaked in sweet and tangy sauce. Although the octopus was soaked in sauce and turned brown, it had a characteristic blue ring pattern all over its body, and a customer who noticed this was found notifying authorities. Fortunately no one ate it.

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This octopus is called a leopard. The total length is as small as about 10 cm and it is usually brown, but it is known that when excited, a blue ring pattern appears all over the body. It is also called a blue-ringed octopus because of its beautiful pattern.

However, this beautiful octopus is also famous for being poisonous enough to kill humans. Octopus saliva contains the same deadly poison “tetrodotoxin” as puffer fish, and when a person is bitten, it causes numbness and nausea and can cause respiratory distress. Cases of death have also been reported abroad, and it is also called “killer octopus”.

This octopus venom is heat resistant and can withstand temperatures of 200 degrees Celsius. Therefore, even if cooked, there is a risk of causing poisoning if ingested.

We are investigating the details of how the octopus killed at the stalls was sold, but it is often found among other octopuses when fishing.

Taking this situation seriously, Thailand’s Department of Marine and Coastal Resources issued advisories to various locations and asked traders to check before cooking and removing the leopard dragonfly. He also asked customers to be careful when eating octopus.

Discovered one after another in Japan

This octopus is known to live in warm waters such as the Bay of Thailand and the Andaman Sea, but in recent years it has been found in many places in Japan. In Yokosuka City, Kanagawa Prefecture, a leopard dragonfly was captured in August 2019, and in Oita City, it was confirmed on October 23 off the coast near the Saga Seki fishing port.

This deadly poisonous octopus can be fatal if touched with bare hands. Even in Japan, if you encounter a leopard dragonfly while bathing in the sea, playing on the beach, or fishing, you must be careful not to touch, catch, or eat it.

[Escrito por: Ryo Sasaki, jefe de la oficina de FNN Bangkok]