FishProfiles.com Message Forums

What's a good tank size for a single GSP?
And.. If the puffer is going to end up in salt water, what kind of a setup should it have while it's still in fresh- and brackish-water? (Substrate, filter..)
I've been reading posts on a few sites, but I still can't find anything on how to convert the water from fresh to brackish, and then to salt.

______________
Cake or death?

Thanks, The plant in the background is made by FancyPlants. It's suction cupped to the back. It's called a "vine", there's about 5 different ones. He likes to spend time in it, it's about 10 in across and goes from the top to the bottom of the tank. It also is about 4 inches deep, so it provides alot of hiding and shelter spots for him. If you put 2 of them next to each other you'll have that heavy planting you want. They go for about 6 dollars a piece. Puffers are so alert and have such personality that you worry they're getting bored. I know what you mean, but I think you're idea about heavy plants and rocks is the right way to go. I want to put another one next to that one and that might do it.

Last edited by johnnyav at 18-Nov-2005 13:30

Looks nice. What brand is the red plant in the back? Do you have any toys your puffer likes to play with? Mine is looking kinda bored, so I'm thinking of planting part of the tank really heavily so she can take tours of the 'wilderness' and have groups of rocks for her to look around, but.. something still seems to be missing from my plans. Can you think of anything?

______________
Cake or death?

Front View

johnnyav attached this image:

Here's 2 of the tank. It's an Eclipse 12 with silk plants and a couple of rocks. Can't get a pic of the little guy yet.

johnnyav attached this image:

I'm gonna try to take few soon and I'll post them. It's hard to get one of the puffer b/c he never stays still.

Johnny, do you have any pictures of your setup?

______________
Cake or death?

I have one Dwarf Puffer in a 12 gallon eclipse setup. He's with 2 glass catfish. They seem to get along fine. The Dwarf Puffer is a great fish to have. Very animated, he comes to front of the glass when I walk in the room and is very alert. If you can set up a tank for one I would recommend it.

Last edited by johnnyav at 16-Nov-2005 15:24

OK - first off, there are a lot of purely FW puffers in the fish hobby, several brackish (less than the FW ones), and several purely marine. Check out http://www.pufferlist.com for good information on all the puffers.

GSPs need 30 gallons each when adult. They new light BW when young that needs to be raised to high BW (or full marine) when adult.

Figure 8s are true brackish fish and wouldn't do as well in full SW. 1.005 SG to 1.008 SG is what they do best in (one respected puffer authority routinely kept figure 8s at this level into their teens - one lived 18 years).

Brackish water is made up of SW mix and FW not aquarium salt or even sea salt - Instant Ocean or Red Sea are brands of SW mix I know of. You also need a hydrometer to measure the salinity. Plants don't really like even light SW (although I'm trying), so fake plants are usually suggested (I have a mix).

Most puffers are terrible tankmates, even when kept with their own kind. Dwarf puffers are the exception to this - otos and other DPs seem to do well together. However, a solitary puffer is a highly intelligent, and interactive pet fish - much like an oscar in personality.

HTH,

Eric

Last edited by big e at 16-Nov-2005 13:27

I just got back from my lfs for the answer to that same question. Standard freshwater setup with a twist you need to add marine salt, and you will need to aclimate him over a LONG period of time. Other then that, I went to this articlehttp://www.fishprofiles.com/articles/general/brackish/

Good information there, thank you Cody Shoup

I will be migrating them to brackish soon and am actually posting about it now.

can any one tell me about these fish, because i want one.
they have them at petsmart for $4.50

Last edited by BaronOfHell at 06-Nov-2005 22:35

As the figure 8 gets older he will require brackish to full salt water conditions. The freshwater aquarium salt isn't gonna cut it. It has to be real salt water salt - even for the brakish water.

http://www.pufferfish.co.uk/aquaria/species/pufferfish/

I Have a Figure 8 puffer (green spotted) and he is the coolest fish i own, and I feel bad right now because I know he might be happier in a salty tank, I do keep salt in the tank but i highly doubt it is enough for him. He likes to dive into the bubbles then roll up in a ball and ride the bubbles to the top, he will do this for a while its fun to watch him explore all over, over and over. Anyways the question that I have is I read that malachite green is bad for him because he has no scales, is this true? what is safe to use on him? Coppersafe? I plan on getting a salt water tank for the living room, and then slowly buying the stuff for the reef tank. Will my Aquaclear be enough for a "saltwater" tank does anyone know?

My point was really that the dwarf is 100% freshwater

Incorrect. The Peruvian Puffer (Colomesus asellus) is also a purely freshwater species that is commonly available in the hobby. They also tend to be much more active than Dwarf Puffers.

---

I'm not your neighbor, you Bakersfield trash.

I did extensive research on the indian dwarf puffer and it is always FW. It is one of the only puffers to exist in FW.http://www.dwarfpuffers.com/care2.htm

Last edited by johnnyav at 16-Nov-2005 15:23

They will need very brakish to almost salt water, so keep this in mind if you decide to go for it!! HTH

http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/profiles/greenpuffer.xml


Last edited by crazyred at 09-Nov-2005 14:16

---

~~Melissa~~
"Beauty is in the eye of the beer holder."

indian dwarf puffers are FW and always can stay in FW

they need brackish to saltwater to really live well.they are also very aggressive.thats all i know..anyway, wellcome to FP.

[link=http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=ISO-8859-1&safe=off&q=Tetraodon+nigroviridis]http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=ISO-8859-1&safe=off&q=Tetraodon+nigroviridis" style="COLOR: #FFFFFF[/link]

---

I'm not your neighbor, you Bakersfield trash.