Dr. Jeff Williams, of the Department of Fishes, has been doing extensive field work in the Philippines for the past 30 years. His work in the Philippines assesses the biodiversity of coral reef fishes and contributes to the DNA barcoding of marine life in the Indo-Malay-Philippines Archipelago (IMPA). Dr. Williams is currently working with Dr.
Certain species of poisonous puffer fish are considered a culinary delicacy. Under carefully controlled circumstances, puffer fish can be safe to eat, but ingesting even a small amount of their neurotoxins can cause serious illness. Careful control of the market supply of puffer fish meat in the U.S. is required to keep the public safe. Dr. Jeff Williams, of the Department of Fishes, and the FDA are collaborating in the development of a DNA voucher library to help prevent mislabeled or illegally imported puffer fish from entering our food supply.