There are four of them and they are all doing something different. Reginald is swimming upward with great purpose and considerable self-importance. Dot is minding her own business, which is what she always does, and she is very good at it. Grumble has an expression that suggests he has opinions about the current situation and will be sharing them shortly. Newton has just noticed you and is now extremely interested in everything about you and what you are doing here and whether you have brought anything interesting. This is, for the record, exactly how pea puffers behave in real life.
The Dwarf Pea Puffer
Carinotetraodon travancoricus is the smallest freshwater pufferfish in the world, reaching a maximum size of about one inch as a fully grown adult. One inch. The entire fish. Native to the slow-moving rivers and densely planted wetlands of Kerala and Karnataka in southwestern India, they were first described by science in 1941 and have been quietly capturing the hearts of aquarium keepers ever since.
What makes them extraordinary is not their size, though their size is extraordinary. It is their eyes. Pea puffers have eyes that move independently of each other, tracking different objects simultaneously, and they use them to watch everything happening around them with an attentiveness that feels less like a fish and more like a very small opinionated person who has decided to live underwater. They recognize their owners. They watch what is happening outside the tank. They hover near the glass and examine things. Aquarists describe them as tiny water puppies, which is exactly right and also does not fully prepare you for the experience of being studied by something the size of a grape.
They are also currently listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, threatened by habitat loss and overcollection for the aquarium trade. If you love them, the best thing you can do is support captive bred specimens and the conservation of the slow-moving waterways of southwestern India where they still swim wild among the plants.
Each pea puffer has its own distinct personality. Some are bold and outgoing and want to know everything. Some are shy and take weeks to warm up. Some are grumpy. Some are curious. This is not an exaggeration or anthropomorphization. It is just how they are. Spend enough time with them and you will know exactly which one is which. Reginald, Dot, Grumble, and Newton already know.
The Piece
Four pea puffers swim in a loose row across your chest, each one hand carved from sterling silver with its own expression and its own posture and its own particular relationship with the world. Reginald swims upward, important and purposeful. Dot is level and serene, going about her business. Grumble has that expression. Newton is facing outward, eyes wide, deeply interested in you specifically. Their spots are rendered in careful oxidized detail, their little fins carved individually, their round puffer bodies satisfyingly rotund in the way of actual pea puffers who have been eating well.
Tiny bubbles rise above them in clusters of sterling silver rings, catching the light as the necklace moves. The chain is a sterling silver loop chain approximately 18.5 inches long, closing with a lobster clasp that hooks onto a small heart-shaped ring, a tiny sweet surprise waiting at the back of your neck.
The Craftsmanship
- Pendant: four pea puffers, approximately 2.25 inches across
- Material: sterling silver throughout, oxidized
- Chain: approximately 18.5 inch sterling silver loop chain
- Clasp: lobster clasp with heart-shaped ring detail
- Edition: one of a kind
One of a Kind
There is only one Reginald, one Dot, one Grumble, and one Newton. These four tiny faces, these bubbles, this particular row of personalities swimming together: they exist once. When they find their person they will never be made again exactly like this.
A Note from Tamara
I made this necklace because pea puffers are one of my favorite creatures and I wanted to capture the thing that makes people fall so completely in love with them, which is that each one is genuinely, unmistakably an individual. You cannot keep pea puffers without eventually naming them because they insist on it. They watch you until you give in. Reginald insisted first. Grumble was not surprised. I hope whoever wears this necklace feels that same specific joy of being watched by something very small and very certain of itself and completely unbothered by the size difference between you.
Shipping
Your Reginald, Dot, Grumble, and Newton are finished, packaged safely, and will be on their way to you within 3 to 5 business days.