The Puffer Forum

Hi All!

I was at Vietnam visiting my in-laws for 2 weeks. The last 2 days before I returned to Singapore (this afternoon), my brothers-in-law and me were like fishing in this river near the vicinity of this village in which we are residing in and we were like capturing quite a number of fat catfish-like fishes (measuring between 3 to 6 inches long).

Then all of a sudden, one of my brothers-in-law happened to capture this puffer. It measures approximately 3.5 inches long and is kinda fat. The main theme color on it's body is vibrant green with some spots. The tail is a little red as you can see. I decided to bring it back to Singapore since it looks kinda cute.

Can somebody please let me know if this little fella (please kindly refer to the not-so-well-taken pics) survives best in brackish water and also what does it feed mainly on?

More infos would definitely be much appreciated!

It is currently in a plastic container but I'll go get a bigger tank first thing tomorrow.

Those pics are too large to fit on my comp screen but the tail looks to have a really bad bacterial infection. I'm afraid it's doomed in that lil container.

Probably M. cochinchinensis (maybe M. leiurus), both freshwater species, but need better pictures to be sure... a clear side shot if possible.

Thank you very much for you prompt reply.

May I know if there's anything I can do to save it?

Get it into a cycled large tank as soon as possible.

I wonder since this puffer is wild caught and the colors are very vibrant if this is truly a disease or maybe rather breeding season coloration (something we usually don't see that clear in captivity). Are the pectoral fins reddish, too?

Corvus wrote:Probably M. cochinchinensis (maybe M. leiurus), both freshwater species, but need better pictures to be sure... a clear side shot if possible.

Thank you very much for the infos.

The container is actually made of plastic and is circular in shape, which explains why the pics are kinda blurry.

Corvus wrote:Get it into a cycled large tank as soon as possible.

I wonder since this puffer is wild caught and the colors are very vibrant if this is truly a disease or maybe rather breeding season coloration (something we usually don't see that clear in captivity). Are the pectoral fins reddish, too?

I will definitely do that first thing in the morning as it's already 9.45pm now here in Singapore and all the local fish shops are closed.

By the way, may I know where's the pectoral fins? I'm not too good with these terms.

How many liters in the container?

Pectoral fins are the two fins at the side of the puffer... (where you'd expect arms or anterior legs on a higher vertebrate) the first pic makes me wonder if they have a reddish base, too.

Tail fin is called caudal fin. The one on top is the dorsal fin an the one behind the belly is the anal fin.

Use the biggest fish safe container you can find, add at least an airstone and some filter to provide some water circulation and oxygen supply till morning.

Pufferpunk wrote:Tail. How many liters in the container?

The container is merely 4 inches tall but that's the biggest one I can find for now.

Corvus wrote:Pectoral fins are the two fins at the side of the puffer... (where you'd expect arms or anterior legs on a higher vertebrate) the first pic makes me wonder if they have a reddish base, too.

Tail fin is called caudal fin. The one on top is the dorsal fin an the one behind the belly is the anal fin.

Use the biggest fish safe container you can find, add at least an airstone and some filter to provide some water circulation and oxygen supply till morning.

Ok thanks again for the infos.

As far as I can see, the pectoral fins are clear or colorless, just like the dorsal fin.

The caudal fin is red in color and does appears to be infected (there are tears to it).

LOL, it's too early for me to be posing about puffer body parts!

Corvus wrote:Probably M. cochinchinensis (maybe M. leiurus), both freshwater species, but need better pictures to be sure... a clear side shot if possible.

Hi again all!

Here're more updated pics of my puffer! It's a lot more livelier than before ever since moving to a bigger tank.

I'm still wondering what ID it is though.

http://i206.photobucket.com/albums/bb64 ... 0005-2.jpg

http://i206.photobucket.com/albums/bb64 ... 0007-1.jpg

http://i206.photobucket.com/albums/bb64 ... 0008-1.jpg

http://i206.photobucket.com/albums/bb64 ... 0001-2.jpg

http://i206.photobucket.com/albums/bb64 ... 0002-1.jpg

beautiful puffer man. I cant ID but with those good pics, im sure some of the experts will have an ID for you asap

xrayjeeper83 wrote:beautiful puffer man. I cant ID but with those good pics, im sure some of the experts will have an ID for you asap

Sure hope so! Hey thanks for the compliment bro.