more suvatti pics

[kimmers318]

Chief Porky is doing great....ate a crayfish today with gusto, I guess I will have to learn how to breed the goomers. He has also taken frozen and dried krill. Here are some pics from this afternoon.....only a mother could love that face!
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h216/kimmers318/dp%20tank/suvatti1.jpg
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h216/kimmers318/dp%20tank/suvatti2-1.jpg
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h216/kimmers318/dp%20tank/suvatti3-1.jpg
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h216/kimmers318/dp%20tank/suvatti4-1.jpg

We are thinking about taking another trip to Pa just for aquarium stores

[jweintraub]

Great close up shots... and you were right when you said that "only a mother could love that face!"

[AquaQueen]

well I think he is sooooo cute love the first pic I'd say that one is my fav.

[xoolooxunny]

I'm not his mother but i love that face! ever wonder what they think about us??

[kimmers318]

You guys should have seen the first time I offered him food...you would have been rolling. I fully expected him to not want to eat frozen or dried because the previous owner told the store he ate crayfish. I thawed out some frozen krill for my modestus and clown loaches (who click like crazy by the way when they get it!) and decided to offer it to Chief just to see. I pierced it with a long cake tester wire that I have and expected him to ignore it and figured I would have to really tease him with it to even get him to take a taste just out of annoyance. Well, he jumped right up and grabbed it before I could even realize I had it close enough to him! I about peed all over the carpet and then went on to enjoy feeding him a couple more.

[Drumachine09]

You guys should have seen the first time I offered him food...you would have been rolling. I fully expected him to not want to eat frozen or dried because the previous owner told the store he ate crayfish. I thawed out some frozen krill for my modestus and clown loaches (who click like crazy by the way when they get it!) and decided to offer it to Chief just to see. I pierced it with a long cake tester wire that I have and expected him to ignore it and figured I would have to really tease him with it to even get him to take a taste just out of annoyance. Well, he jumped right up and grabbed it before I could even realize I had it close enough to him! I about peed all over the carpet and then went on to enjoy feeding him a couple more.


He eats Crayfish? How big is he and the crayfish?

[genitor]

Interesting looking fish

[kimmers318]

He is about 3-4 inches and the crayfish are about 1.5 inches and he has no problems with them.

[Lady Hobbs]

I have never heard of this fish. He sure is evil looking and looks huge. You have come a long way from the gourami's and hi-finned tetras, Kimmer. LOL Hey......maybe he likes tetra's? You think?

[kimmers318]

This guy will probably eat anything I put in his tank if it swam by him. He is very similar to my congo puffer in that aspect and although the congo was only about 1" he killed a 4" ancistrus pleco!!! I won't attemp anything with this guy.
Now my modestus has been quite calm about tankmates, we lost a few tetras in the beginning when trying to work out feeding schedule and get him to understand where food comes from, but the rescued tiger barb is fine. I may try a school of green barbs with him to keep the tank active. Being able to only have 1 fish in a tank kinda sucks!

[YaYgoldFish]

That's the coolest fish ive seen in a while, how much did you pay for one? Do you know how big he's suppose to get to? And how many gallons is the aquarium he is in at the moment?

[kimmers318]

At the moment he is in a 29 gallon aquarium with a sand bottom. This size will be fine for him at full grown size of around 5 inches. They like to bury themselves in sand and when they do it they generally dive nose first into the sand so I have to add more sand soon so that he doesn't bonk his head on the aquarium floor. The size of the tank is not so much for the fish as for his waste. Lurkers are not active at all, you will see him in the same place for days. Only when he gets freaked out (like when I accidently bumped the aquarium with a couch I was moving) will you see him zoom around the tank. These guys lay in wait under the sand for prey to get close, and then bam...out they come! Puffers are generally very messy eaters and alot of the food will come out their gills like oscars do, and they poo large poos! He only eats every other day. The larger water volume gives much more water to dilute the waste. I do either twice weekly 25% water changes or weekly 50% depending on what happens with my schedule.
As for price, I don't know what the price usually is, we found him in PA at AllOddballAquatics and since they are closing in May everything is discounted. He was a turn in from someone who couldn't keep him and I got him for $15. I do know that other puffers I have wanted and looked into special ordering that are not generally kept at my local stores would run me around $50.....that is what I paid for the congo puffer that didn't make it. When we saw this guy I knew I had to bring him home and he has been doing great. Over the next week I will get a pic of him buried in the sand, hubby likens him to an alligator:hmm3grin2orange:

[Lady Hobbs]

He's amazing and his pictures make him look a foot long! I often wonder if they can see during the day with their eyes glazed like that. I think the look is saying "I want white tetra's for lunch."

[kimmers318]

No white tetras for lunch, but he has fallen in love with frozen krill and occasionally will lower himself to eat a frozen silverside (both thawed first of course). He is finally learning that my fingers near the surface of the water means here comes goodies and I got him to actually take some food from the surface yesterday. Of course, my fingers are no where near him, I have seen what he does to a crayfish:ezpi_wink1: .
The pics do make him look quite large, but that is the crop and blow up ability I have with more mega pixels and macro shooting. I finally got a measurement......3 1/4" from nose to beg. of tail, not much of a powerhouse, but his bite sure does pack a punch!