Several species of fish are claimed to produce hallucinogenic effects when consumed, a condition known as ''

ichthyoallyeinotoxism Ichthyoallyeinotoxism, or hallucinogenic fish inebriation, comes from eating certain species of fish found in several parts of the tropics, the effects of which are reputed to be similar in some aspects to LSD. Experiences may include vivid auditor ...

''. For example, ''

Sarpa salpa The salema porgy (''Sarpa salpa''), also known as the dreamfish, salema, cow bream, karanteen, salpa, saupe, strepie or goldline, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Sparidae, which includes the seabreams and porgies. I ...

'', a species of

sea bream Sparidae is a family of ray-finned fishes belonging to the order Spariformes, the seabreams and porgies, although they were traditionally classified in the order Perciformes. The over 150 species are found in shallow and deep marine waters in te ...

referred to as the "dream-fish", is commonly claimed to be hallucinogenic. These widely distributed

coastal fish Coastal fish, also called inshore fish or neritic fish, inhabit the sea between the shoreline and the edge of the continental shelf. Since the continental shelf is usually less than deep, it follows that pelagic coastal fish are generally ep ...

are normally found in the Mediterranean and around the

Iberian Peninsula The Iberian Peninsula ( ), also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in south-western Europe. Mostly separated from the rest of the European landmass by the Pyrenees, it includes the territories of peninsular Spain and Continental Portugal, comprisin ...

, west to the

Azores The Azores ( , , ; , ), officially the Autonomous Region of the Azores (), is one of the two autonomous regions of Portugal (along with Madeira). It is an archipelago composed of nine volcanic islands in the Macaronesia region of the North Atl ...

and along the west and south coasts of Africa. Occasionally they are found in British or more northerly waters. They may induce hallucinogenic effects similar to LSD (

lysergic acid diethylamide Lysergic acid diethylamide, commonly known as LSD (from German ; often referred to as acid or lucy), is a Semisynthesis, semisynthetic, Hallucinogen, hallucinogenic compound derived from ergot, known for its powerful psychological effects and ...

) if eaten. However, based on the reports of exposure they are more likely to resemble hallucinogenic effects of

deliriant Deliriants are a subclass of hallucinogen. The term was coined in the early 1980s to distinguish these drugs from psychedelics such as LSD and dissociatives such as ketamine, due to their primary effect of causing delirium, as opposed to th ...

s than the effects of

serotonergic psychedelic Psychedelics are a subclass of hallucinogenic drugs whose primary effect is to trigger non-ordinary mental states (known as psychedelic experiences or "trips") and a perceived "expansion of consciousness". Also referred to as classic halluci ...

s such as LSD. In 2006, two men who apparently ate the fish experienced hallucinations lasting for several days (an effect common with some naturally occurring deliriants). The likelihood of hallucinations depends on the season. ''Sarpa salpa'' is known as "the fish that makes dreams" in Arabic. Other species claimed to be capable of producing hallucinations include several species of

sea chub The sea chubs, also known as rudderfish and pilot fish and in Hawaiian as ''enenue'' or ''nenue'', are a family, Kyphosidae, (from Greek, ''kyphos'' = hump) of fishes in the order Perciformes native to the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans u ...

from the genus ''

Kyphosus ''Kyphosus'' is a genus of sea chubs native to the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Species There are currently 16 recognized species in this genus: * ''Kyphosus analogus'' (Theodore Nicholas Gill ...

''. It is unclear whether the toxins are produced by the fish themselves or by marine algae in their diet. Other hallucinogenic fish are '' Siganus spinus'', called "the fish that inebriates" in

Reunion Island Reunion may refer to: * Class reunion * Family reunion Reunion, Réunion, Re-union, Reunions or The Reunion may also refer to: Places * Réunion, a French overseas department and island in the Indian Ocean * Reunion, Commerce City, Colorado, U ...

, and ''

Mulloidichthys flavolineatus The yellowstripe goatfish (''Mulloidichthys flavolineatus'') is a species of goatfish native to the Pacific Ocean and the Indian Ocean. The fish is known as Weke 'a'a in Hawaiian. Description The species' color ranges from grey to white on it ...

'' (formerly ''Mulloidichthys samoensis''), called "the chief of ghosts" in Hawaii.

Cause of hallucinations

The active agent(s) that cause hallucinations in humans, and the origin of these agents, are not clear. Some authors think they could come from toxins associated with

macroalgae Seaweed, or macroalgae, refers to thousands of species of Macroscopic scale, macroscopic, Multicellular organism, multicellular, ocean, marine algae. The term includes some types of ''Rhodophyta'' (red), ''Brown algae, Phaeophyta'' (brown) and ...

that accumulate in the flesh of the fish. Toxins from the

green algae The green algae (: green alga) are a group of chlorophyll-containing autotrophic eukaryotes consisting of the phylum Prasinodermophyta and its unnamed sister group that contains the Chlorophyta and Charophyta/ Streptophyta. The land plants ...

Caulerpa prolifera ''Caulerpa prolifera'' is a species of green alga, a seaweed in the family Caulerpaceae. It is the type species of the genus ''Caulerpa'', the type locality (biology), type location being Alexandria, Egypt. as is the

seagrass Seagrasses are the only flowering plants which grow in marine (ocean), marine environments. There are about 60 species of fully marine seagrasses which belong to four Family (biology), families (Posidoniaceae, Zosteraceae, Hydrocharitaceae and ...

Posidonia oceanica ''Posidonia oceanica'', commonly known as Neptune grass or Mediterranean tapeweed, is a seagrass species that is endemic to the Mediterranean Sea. It forms large underwater meadows that are an important part of the ecosystem. The fruit is free ...

''. When

herbivore A herbivore is an animal anatomically and physiologically evolved to feed on plants, especially upon vascular tissues such as foliage, fruits or seeds, as the main component of its diet. These more broadly also encompass animals that eat ...

s eat seagrass leaves they ingest algal

epiphyte An epiphyte is a plant or plant-like organism that grows on the surface of another plant and derives its moisture and nutrients from the air, rain, water (in marine environments) or from debris accumulating around it. The plants on which epiphyt ...

s and toxic

dinoflagellate The Dinoflagellates (), also called Dinophytes, are a monophyletic group of single-celled eukaryotes constituting the phylum Dinoflagellata and are usually considered protists. Dinoflagellates are mostly marine plankton, but they are also commo ...

s that live on the seagrass leaves. The German anthropologist

Christian Rätsch Christian Rätsch (20 April 1957 – 17 September 2022) was a German anthropologist and writer on topics like ethnopharmacology, psychoactive plants and animals. Life Rätsch was born in 1957 in a Bohemian community in Hamburg, Germany. His fa ...

thinks that dreamfish might contain the hallucinogen

DMT Dimethyltryptamine (DMT), also known as ''N'',''N''-dimethyltryptamine (''N'',''N''-DMT), is a serotonergic hallucinogen and investigational drug of the tryptamine family that occurs naturally in many plants and animals, including humans. D ...

. Pickover, Clifford A (2005) ''Sex, Drugs, Einstein, and Elves''Chapter 1, page 9, Smart Publications. .

Hallucinogenic species

Ichthyoallyeinotoxism

Ichthyoallyeinotoxism Ichthyoallyeinotoxism, or hallucinogenic fish inebriation, comes from eating certain species of fish found in several parts of the tropics, the effects of which are reputed to be similar in some aspects to LSD. Experiences may include vivid auditor ...

, or hallucinogenic fish inebriation, is a clinical syndrome that refers to a hallucinogenic inebriation of a distressing nature that can arise from consuming hallucinogenic fish. It is characterised by "psychologic disturbances of hallucination and depression. Gastrointestinal disturbance may occur". "Ichthyoallyeinotoxism is a kind of ichthysarcotoxism (fish flesh poisoning) responsible of an unusual clinical feature: it is the unique case of central nervous system ichthyotoxicity. The most frequent signs are dizziness, loss of co-ordination and hallucinations."de Haro, L., Prost, N., Arditti, J., David, J. M., & Jouglard, J. (1998
"Ichthyoallyeinotoxism: a rare pathology"
''Toxicon'', 36 (12): 1738–1739.

Ichthyoallyeinotoxism may result from eating the flesh or the head of the fish where the poison is reputedly concentrated. This biotoxication is sporadic and unpredictable in its occurrence. The poison affects primarily the central nervous system. The symptoms may develop within a few minutes to 2 hours and persist for 24 hours or longer. Symptoms are dizziness, loss of equilibrium, lack of motor coordination, hallucinations and mental depression. A common complaint of the victim is that "someone is sitting on my chest", or there is a sensation of a tight constriction around the chest. The conviction that he is going to die, or some other frightening fantasy, is a characteristic part of the clinical picture. Other complaints consist of itching, burning of the throat, muscular weakness and abdominal distress. No fatalities have been reported, and in comparison with other forms of ichthyosarcotoxism, hallucinogenic fish poisoning is relatively mild... Ordinary cooking procedures do not destroy the poison.R Bagnis R, F Berglund, PS Elias, GJ van Esch, BW Halstead and K Kojima (1970
"Problems of Toxicants in Marine Food Products: 1. Marine biotoxins"
''Bulletin of the World Health Organization'', 42: 69–88.

References

External links

Fish N' Trips (About Hallucinogenic Fish and Ichthyoallyeinotoxism) - Hamilton Morris - Hamilton's Pharmacopeia

Dolphins 'getting high' on puffer fish, zoologist Rob Pilley says
''news.com.au'', 30 December 2013. {{diversity of fish, state=expanded Biological sources of psychoactive drugs Toxic effect of noxious substances eaten as food Hallucinations

Cause of hallucinations

Hallucinogenic species

Ichthyoallyeinotoxism

See also

References

External links