Help the new guy with his 20gal!

[Kuni]

Hey guys,

I'm about to embark on a puffer journey - I came this close to setting up a mbuna tank but realized what I really wanted was a puffer!

I've got a 20gallon breeder tank (30x12x12) as my only tank-holding surface is 32" wide, which limits things somewhat. I'm planning on using a good-sized sponge filter in the tank, which I've already cycled with a larger fish, with 50% water changes 1/week.

My ideal puffer would be a singleton in the 3-4 inch range and freshwater, but I've gathered from reading the PufferPedia that that will be difficult at best. Dwarf puffers would be fun, but I have a hard time thinking of things under an inch as "fish"! (they're still an option, mind you, especially since I can't easily get a bigger tank)

I really like the look of the GSPs, but they appear to be a)a little on the big side and b)brackish. I'm definitely okay with a brackish tank and I'm no stranger to fish husbandry, but I'd prefer something a little easier to maintain.

Thoughts?

[Pufferpunk]

What about one of the lurker-type red-eyes/target species? If you can find them available where you live.

[Kuni]

What about one of the lurker-type red-eyes/target species? If you can find them available where you live.

I'm thinking about it...the question is just if I can get one. Any specific recommendations?

I'm getting more and more partial to the idea of a GSP, since they have a fully sequenced genome, just like my research fish! (threespine stickleback) The downside, of course, is that I'll need a brackish(or fully saltwater) tank...even assuming it'll fit. Would a 20gal breeder(long) be enough for a 2-3 inch GSP for a few years?

[Pufferpunk]

Only a few years. Have you read the article on them in our Library? It might make it easier for you.

[Kuni]

Only a few years. Have you read the article on them in our Library? It might make it easier for you.

Yeah, I did. It seems like while it would be a lot of fun to keep a T. nigroviridens, a purely freshwater species would be best for now. Maybe when I have the room for a 55...

Are there are any 3-4" puffers that aren't primarily ambush predators? (ie. ones that will swim around and not bury themselves in sand)

[puffertt77]

Only a few years. Have you read the article on them in our Library? It might make it easier for you.

Yeah, I did. It seems like while it would be a lot of fun to keep a T. nigroviridens, a purely freshwater species would be best for now. Maybe when I have the room for a 55...

Are there are any 3-4" puffers that aren't primarily ambush predators? (ie. ones that will swim around and not bury themselves in sand)

Hey Kuni

I had a Red Eye Red Tail puffer for a while and despite the Pufferpedia saying he would only be active of a night he would always move around and explore the tank during the day. You could probabley have a female in with him to.
Mine was fine with my South American Puffer but would bite my Mbu so I took him back to the lfs
ug.php/v/PufferPedia/Freshwater/C_Irrubesco/

You could also get a South American Puffer, they're very friendly, curious puffers that are constanly on the move zooming round the tank, you might be able to squeeze 2 in that tank while they're small
ug.php/v/PufferPedia/Freshwater/C_Asellus/

Also if that's the biggest tank you can have why not get an identical sized tank and keep it underneath your current tank and use it as a sump. This would double your water volume which would dilute the bioload in your system

You can pick up very cheap tanks that size on ebay etc, plus you can buy cheap alternatives to Bioballs etc.

Check out this Freshwater Sump a guy made for $40
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FkT9EiY9 ... re=related

[marksrush]

I'll throw in my vote for an Auriglobus modestus (or silus). They top out at 4" and are strictly freshwater.

[mysifier]

I vote for Irrubescos! (Red eye red tail) but I am biased! I have a male and female coexisting nicely in my heavily planted 20 gallon. They are very active during daylight hours and always zoom to the front of the tank whenever they see me, they even eat from my hand!

[marksrush]

I vote for Irrubescos! (Red eye red tail) but I am biased! I have a male and female coexisting nicely in my heavily planted 20 gallon. They are very active during daylight hours and always zoom to the front of the tank whenever they see me, they even eat from my hand!

Oh, my modestus (or silus?) also always zooms to the front of the tank when he sees me, but he won't eat from my hand. Instead he tries to eat my hand itself.

[Kuni]

Alright, I've made my decision!

I'm going to stay with my 20gal long and start with 6 dwarf puffers. The idea is to end up with 1 male and a "harem" of 3-4 females, and I've got a few friends who are happy to take the extra males off my hands if I get more than 1 male out of the 6.

I've put red flourite on the bottom with crushed lava rock for the top layer. I have four large lava rocks that I've combined into two complex formations, and I'll be planting watersprite at the bottom of the tank and java moss on the rocks. Both plants are native to India and the red lava rocks have a very natural look.

All in all, it should be a nicely complex habitat with lots of caves and vegetation for the puffs.

[Pufferpunk]

Watersprite is one of my favorite plants. Always seem to melt on me though. I think I just don't have enough light for it. Seriously think about using this product for your plants: http://www.yamatogreen.com.

[Kuni]

Watersprite is one of my favorite plants. Always seem to melt on me though. I think I just don't have enough light for it. Seriously think about using this product for your plants: http://www.yamatogreen.com.

I'm getting it from a friend who's had good luck with it in our local water, so I think it should work well.

Since I'm using a sponge filter, I'm hoping that I'll see some breeding, and the fry will be able to hide in the watersprite or the java moss.

I was also told that my dwarf puffers are likely to be captive bred, which I prefer to keeping wild caught animals.

[pufferpuggirl]

I think you will be very happy with your Dwarf puffers, they were the very first puffer I bought, and I thought they were so unique that they gave me the puffer-bug and now I'm addicted.
Puffers are so unlike other fish, they really seem to respond to you being at the tank and they are so inquisitive. I love watching my DP's, they actually seem to be playing a game with one another. There's no nasty aggression, it seems more like a hide & seek type of thing.
I know they are small, but DP's have alot of character for being such a small fish. I think you will find that you get just as much enjoyment from them as you would any bigger fish.
Good luck with your Dwarf puffers!

[Kuni]

Tank is set up! There are six tiny puffers in there, though it's hard to see in the pic:


Here's one of them: