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does anyone know if a dwarf lion of any kind and maybe a puffer could go in a 40 or 60g tank by themselves? i was thinking maybe a zebra dwarf and a porcupine. i was pretty sure the porc wouldnt work, but not sure.

im pretty sure the porcupine would get to big for a tank that size but a dwarf lion fish would work.

The porcupine woudl become WAY to big for that tank.



Dan

yeah, maybe i could get a valentini or somethin smaller. thanks 4 the info

some puffers will bite a lions flowing fins. either watch him very closely or go with a fuzzy which only has the dorsal spines

The majority of marine Puffers need a LOT more space than a 60 gallon setup. For example, taking a quick browse through my copy of Burgess' Mini-Atlas Of Marine Fishes, species such as Arothron nigropunctatus reach 40 cm. for that beast you're looking at nearer six hundred gallons as opposed to sixty. Arothroon stellatus is even worse - that juggernaut reaches a whopping 100 cm! Arothron hispidus is likewise a 50 cm fish, and Arothron inconditus is a 40 cm fish. As for Diodon hystrix, the Porcupine fish, that's a 60 cm fish, and Diodon holacanthus is 50 cm. Even a Valentini Puffer, Canthigaster valentini, will hit 20 cm.

If you are dedicated toward getting a Puffer, you're best looking at the following:

Canthigaster solandri - 11 cm
Canthigaster punctatissimus - 7 cm
Canthigaster janthinoptera - 9 cm
Canthigaster bennetti - 10 cm
Canthigaster epilamprus - 7 cm
Canthigaster compressus - 10 cm
Canthigaster rostrata - 11 cm
Canthigaster coronata - 13 cm
Sphoeroides erythrotaenia - 9 cm

Even then, you would be more or less maxed out if you put one of those in with, say, a Dendrochirus zebra Lionfish. Then you would have to address the compatilbility problem. I don't know for certain if any of the above would coexist with even a small Lionfish that wouldn't grow big enough to be tempted to eat the Puffer, which would be disastrous for both fishes, and it's a moot point whether any of the above listed Puffers would nip the Lionfish's fins. At best, you'd have two fishes eyeing each other for signs that one was going to make some kind of pass at the other, which would make for a less than happy setup.

I'd be tempted to opt for either the Lionfish or the Puffer separately, then try and choose a compatible species to live with your choice. Either way, you're going to have fun picking compatible tankmates.

On the subject of Lionfishes, this page from ReefCentral is probably one of the best you'll find anywhere. Sadly they don't yet have a similar page on Puffers (sigh).


Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002