Green Spotted Puffers

[ZonkyTheDonkey]

So my 40g FW tank is cycling right now and I've visited my LFS several times looking at options. GSP's really caught my eye but I see they require brackish water. I've read a couple of posts about nutrition req's and adding salt and how they aren't really friendly towards anything. But what other considerations do I need for my tank? I have a Marineland 200 filter right now, I was thinking of getting 2-5 of these guys and I've got plenty of little hiding spots for them to explore. Do these fish require any kind of current? I'll be essentially converting my tank over to salt water by the time they're fully mature right? What other costs will be associated with this if I decide to go this route with a GSP tank?

[AquaCats]

My green spotted puffer lives in a 37 gallon of his own. Each GSP requires a minimum of 30 gallons for themselves. Your 40 gallon would be enough for one, as they grow to be about 6-7 inches. They are extremely aggressive. Having any other fish with them will likely end up in a massacre. There has been limited success housing them with tomato clownfish (once they are full marine), but that will be up to the puffer as to whether or not they will coexist together. They have beaks and must be fed foods that will wear it down, otherwise, it will grow too much and they won't be able to eat. They love snails. They must be fed snails regularly to aid in this. I feed mine Rod's Predator Food, whole small shrimp, snails, crabs, clams, etc. They are extremely messy and require a 50% water change weekly. They need to be in a brackish setup, as you stated, but you can acclimate them to full marine earlier in their lives.

Bottom line: If you go through with it, only get one, and be prepared to let him be the only fish in the tank. Don't make him an impulse buy. Do some research on your own, too. Here are some great links that may help:

http://www.splutphoto.com/pierre/puffer.htm

http://www.squidoo.com/greenspottedpufferfish

I'm going to post some photos of my setup so you can get some ideas:

[AquaCats]

I'm going to post some photos of my setup so you can get some ideas:

And here they are:





In this picture, he is hiding behind the huge plant on the left, so you can't see him, but this is his setup. They get bored easily and like to have obstacles in the tank, hence the rocks and wood structure. They also are very active and like to sprint around the tank (they use the whole height of the tank). They are pretty big around, also. Mine is about a golfball size in girth, but full grown, he'll be closer to a tennis ball in girth. Mine's around 4 1/2 inches long.


I know right now it looks and seems ok to have multiple guys in your 40 gallon, but don't do it. They grow pretty quickly. They need 30 gallons to themselves, and they are perfectly content being the only fish in the tank. I wouldn't have more than one in a tank unless it was a 55g or larger.

[ZonkyTheDonkey]

First off thank you for the replies. GSPs seem very interesting and I'm not sure if i want to dedicate this tank (my first in 15 years) to just one fish. I'm leaning towards more aggressive/predatory fish though because you get some more interesting coloration/sizes in them than some community fish. Do you have any other recommendations for predatory fish that could work in a 40 gallon?

[AquaCats]

I'm not sure. From what I've seen, predatory fish generally require a much larger tank than 40 gallons will allow. Is it a 40 gallon breeder tank? Can you list the dimensions? Maybe someone else can chime in.

[ZonkyTheDonkey]

I'll get you the dimensions tomorrow. I'm not gonna lie I've been drunk for the past several hours and been discussing my empty fish tank with my friends that came over for fajita and margarita night, and they don't seem to be nearly as interested as you guys on this forum. I'm just completely torn between community and aggressive tanks as options during my cycling process. There's just too many cool options to do.

It's completely mind boggling as the options i can pursue. My girlfriend completely has fallen in love with these leopard puffers as they are just sooo attractive for her, but there are just so many community options to present.

[Cermet]

Since you are do a fish based cycle, what are your tank parameters (ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate. Also pH.) How much and now often are the water changes and at what level of ammonia do you make a large water change? What average ammonia level does the tank show every 24 hours before the WC? Also, may have missed this, how far in the cycle are you and what filter(s) are you cycling?

By the way, nice tank setup.

Since this fish will be full salt at some point, will a protein skimmer be required, as well as live rock? or do water changes handle all this - just curious. Also, would an algae scrubber be useful or is a slump system required?