Shooting off like a balloon – Pufferfish makes rapid escape 

By Charlotte Regen 

This pufferfish really shot off like a balloon.

Yousef Al Zarou hooked the fish as his first catch of the day and, as he hauled it out of the water, it inflated itself as a natural defence mechanism.

After showing it off to the camera, he released the pufferfish back into the water at Cape Canaveral in Florida.

After it hit the water with a splash, it quickly deflated like a balloon for darting off through the water.

Yousef said: “I filmed the puffer fish while it inflated itself. It’s something they do as a defence mechanism.

“I was really happy to catch one as they are amazing to look at. In Japan they are also a delicacy, but I did not want to eat him.

“I also loved the way he swam away when I let him go. He was on his back but still got away quickly. He almost looked like a deflating balloon.”