4 ms·

I doubt they can control the smell.

• bell-cot 2y ago
  Puffer fish can't control being poisonous, but it still discourages predators.
  • lagniappe 2y ago
    Poor example, they're not naturally poisonous, it's dietary. Palytoxin and Ciguatoxin are not endogenous, the animal first has to eat another organism containing a dinoflagellate that creates these toxins, Gambierdiscus toxicus. This quality is inherent to most reef fish, especially ones with beaks.
    • greentxt 2y ago
      Begging the question, nature or nutrition.
    • bell-cot 2y ago
      > Poor example, they're not naturally... So...what if the vile-smelling feces of the sloths was not "natural", but due to a variety of microorganisms which had colonized their intestines?
• CubicsRube 2y ago
  Like tigers can't control their coat color or stripe pattern, but it has an evolutionary advantage so these traits persist.