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Puffers and black brittle stars
Posted: Mon May 16, 2011 12:37 am
by sumfingwong
Does anybody know if puffers will touch the black brittle stars?
Re: Puffers and black brittle stars
Posted: Mon May 16, 2011 1:06 am
by Corvus
Our porcupine puffer ate all brittle stars and I know a number of other marine puffers that did the same.
Re: Puffers and black brittle stars
Posted: Mon May 16, 2011 1:49 am
by sumfingwong
ok thanks!
Trying to find some suitable tankmates to help with cleanup.
Re: Puffers and black brittle stars
Posted: Mon May 16, 2011 2:02 am
by Corvus
I had long term success with Diodon and a Chocolate Chip Star (Protoreaster nodosus) and thickly armored hermits with large shells (were attacked in the beginning, but after failing success ignored). My experiences might not always be reproducible, though, since what a specific puffer eats depends a lot on its "personality" or his experiences what is edible or not (I even had GSPs live with fiddler crabs for many years without a single loss... not recommended, though, hardly reproducible). The best clean up crew is the hose or python.
Re: Puffers and black brittle stars
Posted: Fri May 20, 2011 12:38 am
by sumfingwong
So i picked up a chocolate chip star and a lawnmower blenny today. As for as hermits, they picked off 5 of 6. I came home one day and I saw an electric blue hermit inside my porc's mouth.
The chocolate chip star has been all over the tank grazing on everything, same with the lawnmower blenny. The puffers dont mind the new tankmates at all.
Re: Puffers and black brittle stars
Posted: Fri May 20, 2011 1:49 am
by Corvus
With hermits as noted above I only had luck with well armored specimens. Those did not fit in the mouth of the puffer and had unbreakable, strong shells where they could retract in a way the puffer could not suck 'em out. The puffer tried a number of times and failed and left them alone since...
Re: Puffers and black brittle stars
Posted: Fri May 20, 2011 1:57 am
by sumfingwong
good idea.. i will look around for some big hermits with strong shells.
right now the blenny is claiming territory fighting with the damsels.. the puffers are just swimming around watching it haha
ill move the rocks around tomorrow and see how it goes
Ill keep you posted
Re: Puffers and black brittle stars
Posted: Fri May 20, 2011 2:11 am
by Pufferpunk
Pufferentertainment!
Re: Puffers and black brittle stars
Posted: Fri May 20, 2011 5:20 pm
by sumfingwong
Its like the MMAs for the puffers.. the Damsels look pretty beat up, one has small marks (from the other Damsel bullying it), and now the bully has a big mark on the body from the blenny.
Thats why I'm leaving it for now.. let the bully get bullied!
Re: Puffers and black brittle stars
Posted: Wed May 25, 2011 8:04 pm
by stangd1909
My puffer was killing my choloctete chip star fish.... I had to remove him. I got a really large hermit and 1 urchin, the puffer doesn't bother them.