The Puffer Forum

purplecandle wrote:

Celyon wrote:

purplecandle wrote:We have debated this a long time...and we can't agree!
I'm starting to wonder if mine are sabs because my big one is getting to 7 inches. I have to get a better measure to make sure.

Why are sabahensis more expensive?

I have seen your pics in your post"My GSPs",and I am sure to say that both of them are sabahensis,because the area around their mouths and eyes is indistinct,and there is no pattern.GSPs won't be over 5 inches,and all of the GSPs have distinct patterns on their heads.If you don't agree with me ,then show me a picture that a GSP over 5 inches,which has a distinct pattern head.That's almost impossible.

We do see the differences, I know my Puffers look different with longer snout and patterns. The problem we have is that we don't know if mine are just variant of the gsp. We don't know if they are gsps that just look different or if they are unique species like sab.

There is not enough research to tell us for sure.

Scientifically, I can only say they look like sabahensis.

I agree with you that mine might be sabahensis. Truthfully, I think they may be sabahensis. But, we can't say that scientifically for sure. I can certainly call mine sabahensis because they do look like sabahensis. No one would argue with me too much about it. Because they could be. It's just on a genetic level I can't say for sure.

purplecandle wrote:

Corvus wrote:@Purple Candle: His Pics. The last one labelled GSP looks very much like the ones Dekkers illustrated and described as sabahensis. Your puffers are in my opinion what is classified as GSP, although I am certain, there are several species or subspecies or regional varieties within this species. They have not been described yet und one will quite surely need to apply genetic methods to to clarify this topic.

ok I was confused there for a second!

I'm almost determined to get them DNA tested when they die just to settle the matter! I'll just keep calling them gsps with a few sab characteristics. Doesn't matter, I love them just the same...fat little boogers.

purplecandle wrote:Don't feel bad...this debate has occurred often!

I think some confusion comes in because Puffers that look like mine tend to grow fast quickly, which makes one think they could be sab.

Corvus wrote:It's very well possible you found a way to differentiate between different populations within the T. nigroviridis and related species/subspecies. I just wouldn't call something a T. sabahensis, when it does not fit the first descriptions of this species. It's like calling a cow a horse. As a sidenote: Chinese scientists work the same way. This is no question of eastern vs. western, but rather classification in science (which follows international standards) vs. classification in the hobby.