Hoping someone can help me. I have a very friendly/aggressive individual that I’ve owner for 6 months. He’s like a dog and begs every time he sees me for food. I recently found a second which I hope is a female. It is slightly less spikey, but it has a very skittish personality. If I try to photograph it, it always spooks and starts darting around.
I moved them into a 20 gal long tank with a clear divider but I can’t tell how they feel about each other. They are both at the divider a lot, but do not appear to be flaring their gills or showing other signs of aggression. I had a very hard time finding these fish and I hope to get them to breed, but I don’t want them to kill each other. Has anyone kept a pair together on this forum?
Any advice appreciated.
The first pic is the one I’ve had longer, the blurry pic is the second one.
Baileyi
- Pufferpunk
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Re: Baileyi
I absolutely would not keep them together in <55g tank. And keep a divider handy!
You are getting sleepy... you only hear the sound of my voice... you must do water changes... water changes... water changes... water changes...
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
Re: Baileyi
I do not intend to combine them just yet. I'll probably spend a day monitoring them when I do. I don't think they need that much space. They both spend most of the time pretending to be a rock, and either they will coexist or not. If they are aggressive to each other no amount of space will prevent very damaging bitewounds. I think that puffers have an exaggerated reputation of intolerance, depending on species and personality. I have a group of shoutendeni living with a group of african tetras, otocinclus and other small fish, all of which they have left alone (in addition to each other). I also use sucking loaches in my larger puffer tanks for algae control and none have been eaten yet (they're too fast).
- Pufferpunk
- Queen Admin
- Posts: 32773
- Joined: Tue May 31, 2005 11:06 am
- Gender: Female
- My Puffers: Filbert, the 12" T lineatus
Punkster, the 4" red T miurus
Mongo, the 4" A modestus
2 T biocellatus
C valentini
C coranata
C papuan
Also kept:
lorteti
DPs
suvattii
burrfish
T niphobles - Location (country): USA, Greenville, SC
- Location: Chicago
- Contact:
Re: Baileyi
I believe you are incorrect. If each has their own territory, they may feel safe enough not to have to fight for their "space". Shoutendeni are not nearly as aggressive as this species. Possibly the least aggressive of all puffer species.
You are getting sleepy... you only hear the sound of my voice... you must do water changes... water changes... water changes... water changes...
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
Re: Baileyi
I hope you are right
I’m setting up a 40 gallon with lots of cover to combine them. I am more convinced I have a pair if it is true the females have smaller barbels. They are still quite tolerant of each other and show no signs of posturing or biting at each other at the clear divider. The female learned to take mealworms from the male and now both love them.
I tried to combine my two turgidus again in a large tank with cover and one immediately found the other and attacked it. No harm done because I was watching, but I do not think space would have helped. I have 7 palembangensis in a 20 gallon tank and they are all crowded on top of each other in 1 corner and show no aggression to anything except feeders. I guess each species is different...
I’m setting up a 40 gallon with lots of cover to combine them. I am more convinced I have a pair if it is true the females have smaller barbels. They are still quite tolerant of each other and show no signs of posturing or biting at each other at the clear divider. The female learned to take mealworms from the male and now both love them.
I tried to combine my two turgidus again in a large tank with cover and one immediately found the other and attacked it. No harm done because I was watching, but I do not think space would have helped. I have 7 palembangensis in a 20 gallon tank and they are all crowded on top of each other in 1 corner and show no aggression to anything except feeders. I guess each species is different...