Figure 8 Puffer

[gummi]

I love these little guys. I know they are sold as freshwater but are primarily a brackish fish. Is there any possibility of dripping one in to a 1.025 FOWLR system?

[sugartooth]

You probably can do it. I have a green spotted puffer that was in a brackish tank that I switched over to full salt.

He is in with a Naso, Sailfin, and sand goby. Much slower than the rest of the fish so I have to make sure I give large enough pieces to sink so he can get them.

He's been in full salt for approx. 4 years. I've had him about 6 years total.

Good luck!

[rharr21]

Yes, my LFS has one in their live rock sales tank.

[snappedbigfoot]

yep my lfs sales them as fresh and salt

[gummi]

Any tips on how to acclimate one of these guys?

I know puffers are not reef safe - but how would they get along with a yellow tang and a few percs?

[JokerGirl]

It shouldn't really touch any of your corals, but will eat any mobile inverts that you have such as crabs, shrimp etc....

I think the most it would do to any corals is to chew on them in an attempt to file it's beak down.

I've had one in my freshwater tank for a couple years now and it shreds apart any snails/shrimp I put in there for him.


You will want to acclimate him very slowly in a QT by raising the salinity over several days to a week.

They are known to get an aggressive streak to them, but I think it is more towards their own species. Mine has never gone anywhere near any of my fish and is actually quite shy.

[JokerGirl]

Also,

I'm not sure if you have purchased one yet or not, but be very selective in where you do actually get it from. Most of the ones you see in the petstore are emaciated/starving. They should always have a nice round belly on them.

Ask to see them eat as well before you buy it because they are VERY picky in what types of food they will eat. Mine was eating live brine at the store, but obviously that wasn't going to be an option for at home when I got it (didn't have a saltwater tank yet).

For a general meal, mine gets freeze dried jumbo krill, and then once a week I throw in something live like snails or ghost shrimp to help keep his beak filed down.

They are like every other puffer in that their beak continuously grows, much like rodent teeth, so if they don't have something in their diet to keep it filed down, the beak will overgrow and cause a lot of issues. I know that a lot of people that keep them as fresh/brackish have to take a dremel to the beak on occasion to keep it from overgrowing.

[gummi]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10005394#post10005394 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by JokerGirl
It shouldn't really touch any of your corals, but will eat any mobile inverts that you have such as crabs, shrimp etc....

I think the most it would do to any corals is to chew on them in an attempt to file it's beak down.

I've had one in my freshwater tank for a couple years now and it shreds apart any snails/shrimp I put in there for him.


You will want to acclimate him very slowly in a QT by raising the salinity over several days to a week.

They are known to get an aggressive streak to them, but I think it is more towards their own species. Mine has never gone anywhere near any of my fish and is actually quite shy.

Well if it's going to eat my cleanup crew, cleaner shrimp, or harass a sally lightfoot I wont buy one. I wouldnt think that' it'd be big/strong enough to eat a sally lightfoot, though...

but I guess the cleaner and blood shrimp...?

[JokerGirl]

One that you'd get at a petstore would probably be too small at first to really kill anything in your crew, except for maybe hermit crabs and small snails.

Mine being several years old would tear through your shrimp in a heartbeat though.

[gummi]

So if I get a small guy, drip him in and he is too small to eat my cleaner shrimp - when he gets bigger will he eat them? or will he be 'trained' to not touch them?