Venomous octopus grilled and up for sale at Pathum Thani market

Caitlin AshworthPublished: 15:50, 30 November 2020| Updated: 15:50, 30 November 2020

261 1 minute read

Venomous octopus grilled and up for sale at Pathum Thani market

PHOTO: กรมทรัพยากรทางทะเลและชายฝั่ง

A venomous blue ringed octopus was found grilled up on a stick and up for sale at a Pathum Thani. The Department of Marine and Coastal Resources posted photos of the octopus on their Facebook page, warning people to watch what they eat.

While the octopus is small, about the size of a golf ball, its venom contains the powerful neurotoxin tetrodotoxin which blocks sodium channels, causing motor paralysis and respiratory arrests within minutes of exposure. It has enough venom to kill 26 humans. There is no antivenom. The department says the venom can endure heat up to 200 degrees Celsius, so grilling the octopus won’t destroy the toxins.

Caitlin Ashworth

Caitlin Ashworth is a writer from the United States who has lived in Thailand since 2018. She graduated from the University of South Florida St. Petersburg with a bachelor’s degree in journalism and media studies in 2016. She was a reporter for the Daily Hampshire Gazette In Massachusetts. She also interned at the Richmond Times-Dispatch in Virginia and Sarasota Herald-Tribune in Florida.