The Puffer Forum

I know it's a really silly question, but are SW puffers as bad tempered as FW? I just get the impression that people seem to keep SW puffers together with other fishes?

mine are fine with other fish... but evil to inverts...!

I use river shrimp now as cleaners... they clean the tank for a few days and get eaten as wnd when the lion and puffer want them...

..works for me...

I used to think that all of my saltwater puffers were docile compared to my freshwater puffers until I put a Yellow Tang in with the White-Spotted Toby and he instantly flared out and chased that poor tang around the tank. The tang is much bigger than he is too! I thought it was cute my little shy Toby had such a big attitude.

Genereally SW are much more docile.
My old porc got beat up by a 1.5 inch damsel.

Yes, but damsels are much more aggressive compared to a Porcupine Puffer. Porcupine Puffers are probably the most docile of the puffers I have owned.

It would seem that the saltwater species of puffer are much more docile. I mean i bet a dwarf puffer would attack a dog face puffer or toby in a sec.

I don't think a dwarf would do that. Those 2 fish would hold there own and kill it instantly.

My porcupine puffer ate all his damsel friends while they were sleeping...

His only other mate was a GSM clown which he did fine with.

I kept a very large hermit crab with him and he tormented it endlessly. The crab would literally take its claw and push the puffer away, I don't think it made the crab feel any safer though!

The Arothron species seem to be pretty agressive, I've seen them cause some pretty nasty wounds to other fish.

They may not be nicer as much as sw fish are meaner. I call it mutually assured destruction. I have a 180 with a 8 in dog face and several other fish in a 180 never had a problem with aggression.

I have two tobies and used to have a porc, I never had aggression problems with puffers, just the other fish they were with.

Thank you all When you start writing about puffers, you really find out what you don't know, and I'm absolutely blank when it comes to SW puffers Except that I know I want one...

It's amazing how much we think we know when we barely know anything.