The Puffer Forum

To counteract my own experience with these fish, they have been reported captive bred. I once had the web site, but lost it in a crash and burn. There was not a lot of info on tank volumes used, which I would like to know.

A side not discussed on my experiences, implied by the descriptions but not specified, is that my fish were raised in individual tanks, never co-housed until full adult. Fish jointly raised might not have behaved at all the same way, likely would not. The trick to me would be rearing a group together. An indoor heated swimming pool?

It's not this report, by any chance?

For example, my puffers are ornery and pampered, and now I can keep no more than eight mature individuals per 240-gallon tank (I have to maintain five tanks for all the fish), and I wish I could keep them singly because every fish, from the smallest to the largest, bears the marks of teeth on its body.

He has success with 8 in a 240 gallon.
Kinda blows our 125g ea number away eh?
Btw I sent him an email and invited him here. I believe his insight would be very helpful.

Ah, I'm glad you did! I was about to as well.

Although he kept 8 in a 240, he acknowledges that these were sub-ideal conditions. I stand by the 120g ea number...

He doesn't report any fatalities among the mature specimens, I wonder whether he had any?

I've read the article a dozen times now and it never ceases to amaze. The pics of the fry are stunning!

I am also afraid he may have left out his bad experiences/deaths?

I'm with PP & bred on the communal tank sizing, but my use of at least 120 for one is due to tank dimensions being minimal for turning and swimming. I had two in a diagonally divided 180 with no issues on upkeep, and certainly they were nothing like the maintenance issues with the mbu.

I'm afraid that to me, 8 in a 240 sounds like sardine school. NIMFT.

And yes bred, that was the report, thanks!

Well as I said, I wrote him, and here are some of the questions and answers:

> Have you had fatalities in the adults during breeding attempts?

Due to the breeding itself - no. Fahakas are quite indifferent fish, they
have no aggression peaks during, say, reproduction. Of course, it's only
valid under my conditions: many specimens, large tanks. Other's observations
may differ.

> Does a larger tank help with aggression?

How doesn't it?

Though you should note: while other fishes just frighten conspecifics away,
Fahakas bite them instead; so even in a capacious tank they can injure
tankmates seriously.

> Have you raised them from fingerlings to adult together?

I've raised juveniles in a small groups. After all, not the spawning itself
is the hard task, the raising of juveniles actually is.

> If so, have you noticed any difference in aggression levels or breeding
> behavior?

As I wrote above, no.

> We are wondering if the fact that the current practice of keeping them
> singly at all times leads to a higher degree of aggression when they
> finally
> do interact with other conspecifics.

It seems plausible. But in the limited home environment is's often the only
way to keep Fahakas; for those who wants to breed them a serious approach
from the very beginning is needed.

P.S. Sorry for the possible mistakes in English.


Dmitry Muratov