The Puffer Forum

I'm selling most of my corals and breaking down the 75g reef. My plan is to do something I've thought about for the last year and a half, and that is to start a SW planted tank. So pretty much all my corals are on their way out except the mushrooms, ricordia and a few zoas. I'll be adding marine plantlife and possibly gorgonians. My fish (clowns, gobies, wrasse, gramma) will also be getting sold off.

Ok, that's the plan. Now for livestock I'm at a bit of a loss. Since I already have FW and BW puffers, it would be good to complete the circle and have a SW puffer. Obviously I want something suitable for the habitat I'm creating so are there any puffers out there that will fit the bill?

There's a lot of other fish I'm looking at but a puffer is always going to be in the shortlist if it will work.

I believe a dogface will be OK in a 75g.

Dog face puffers WILL eat macroalgae/plants.

I've also been looking at a valentini as a candidate. I'm still in the research stage and trying to work out if inverts are going to be beneficial in my setup. If so, a puffer might be a big no no.

I have a valentini puffer in my marine reef. He has been kept with medium to large snails, hermit crabs and a coral banded shrimp with no problems. Of course, I could just of been lucky with my puffer, but he shows absolutely no interest in the crabs or shrimp. Sometimes he will peck at a snail if he is hungry... but I have so many baby snails popping up in my tank that it doesnt really bother me.

Valentini's are a great puffer, mine is in a 75g with some tangs, clownfish and a sixline wrasse and they all get along fine.