Soggybottom
Mar 18th 2007, 03:39 PM
Common name: Figure Eight Puffer
Scientific name: Tetraodon biocellatus
Family: Tetraodontidae
Origin: South-East Asia
Adult size: around 2.5", 6cm
Tank Specs
* Minimum Tank Size: 15G, 60L
* Water Parameters (PH/SG): 7.8-8.2 / 1.005-1.010
* Temperature: 80-85F, 26-30C
* Special Requirements: Several, see below
Suitable Tankmates: conspecifics, maybe others depending
Minimum Group Size: 1
Diet: Live and frozen food only, shelled food important
Sexing: difficult if not impossible from external features
Breeding and Reproduction: difficult
Notes:
There is a lot of debate about this little fish. The main point argued is whether they prefer fresh or brackish water. Although usually found in fresh water naturally, they generally seem to do best in brackish water in captivity. They will survive for a long time in fully fresh or fully marine water, but will be healthiest and live longest with a salinity specific gravity of 1.005 -1.010 which is 20-40% the strength of seawater (around 1.025). Although adaptable, care must be taken to slowly acclimate the puffer to any water conditions. High pH and hardness may be more important than salinity. More below.
Another point often debated is compatibility with other fish. The thing to remember here is that every individual has a unique personality and the fishkeeper must be prepared to accommodate it. The longest lived fig-8 written about so far reached an age of 18 years and lived alone. Some may be too aggressive to have any tankmates. I keep two together and they do not bother each other at all but I also feel that they wouldn't care if they never saw their "buddy" again. More below.
Diet is the most difficult part of keeping this fish. The more the food wiggles and bleeds when attacked the better. Mine love red wiggler earthworms and ramshorn snails. Puffers have hard beaks instead of teeth, and unless they are fed food with a shell the beak may not wear down and will eventually grow too big, making eating difficult and life uncomfortable. I also rotate whole frozen krill and small chunks of beef liver into the mix. These fish will eat until they hurt themselves and then beg for more, so exercise restraint :) Some people skip one day of feeding per week. More below.
http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a348/casual_ties/The-fat-one-2.jpg
http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a348/casual_ties/The-fat-one-1.jpg
Copyrights reserved
More notes:
Some say they keep fig-8s at a pH of 7.0 but most people find a higher pH and hardness is better. I use crushed coral sand mixed with play sand as a substrate, have tufa rock and coral chunks as decoration and have small amounts of crushed coral in my filters. This keeps my pH and hardness high. A bit of baking soda in my water changes reduces swings. Considering the puffers' varying tolerance, it is likely that they travel up and down a river system and into the tidal estuary areas. Some people try to replicate this by altering salinity with water changes though it is not neccessary for health. It might be something to try if attempting to breed fig-8 puffers.
Using the freshwater rule of 1" fish to 1 gallon of water and the saltwater rule of 1" fish per 5 gallons of water, somewhere in between is a good bet for brackish puffers as long as the minimum tank size does not go below 15 gallons. Puffers are very sensitive to ammonia and nitrites so understocking and over filtration are beneficial. I have 1" per 3 gallons and also overfilter by about 200% the amount recommended by the filter manufacturer. Plants help with reducing fish waste, but the selection of plants that will do well in brackish water is slim. I keep a red mangrove in the tank and plan to experiment with java fern and anubia. Jungle val also reportedly works. A weekly water change of 33% keeps my puffers happy.
Regarding tankmates, conspecifics (fish of the same species) are the safest bet, but some people have puffers in community settings. The wasp fish or butterfly goby shares much the same water and dietary requirements as the fig-8 but eats more slowly and care must be taken to ensure it would not starve. Bumblebee gobies also like the same conditions but are much smaller so will need smaller food and hiding spaces and might become food themelves if the puffers get hungry. Regardless of tankmates, there should be some shelter in the aquascape and try to break up sight lines as much as possible.
I recommend breeding ramshorn snails as a feeding staple, and would suggest starting a colony as much in advance of getting the puffers as possible to build a sustainable population. Other snails, especially MTS, may have too hard of a shell and can damage the puffers' beak. Some other foods include the following and a rotating variety of 3 or more types of food is best:
Earthworms
Krill or prawns
Beef heart
Adult brine shrimp
Ghost shrimp
Squid
Shellfish
Breeding the Figure Eight is very difficult and little is known on what helps.
In conclusion, the Figure Eight Puffer is a tough little fish that will look its best and display its most natural behaviour when care and consideration is put into its keeping. It is probably one of the most abused fish in the trade, often brought into stores without any knowledge of its requirements and easily sold on to clueless customers. Look for well-coloured fish actively swimming, with bright white and rounded bellies. A dark belly is a sign of stress and a sunken one is starving or ridden with parasites. Puffers only "puff up" when mortally afraid, so in trying to make them, you are being mean :) If you can put a bit of time into caring for these cuties, they are endearing and rewarding.
Some articles:
www.thepufferforum.com (http://www.thepufferforum.com/forum/library/puffers-in-focus/fig8/)
www.aquahobby.com (http://www.aquahobby.com/gallery/e_puffer2.php)
Puffer dentistry! (http://www.thepufferforum.com/forum/library/hospital/dentistry/)
Brackish water puffers (http://www.geocities.com/CapeCanaveral/4742/puffer.html)
Scientific name: Tetraodon biocellatus
Family: Tetraodontidae
Origin: South-East Asia
Adult size: around 2.5", 6cm
Tank Specs
* Minimum Tank Size: 15G, 60L
* Water Parameters (PH/SG): 7.8-8.2 / 1.005-1.010
* Temperature: 80-85F, 26-30C
* Special Requirements: Several, see below
Suitable Tankmates: conspecifics, maybe others depending
Minimum Group Size: 1
Diet: Live and frozen food only, shelled food important
Sexing: difficult if not impossible from external features
Breeding and Reproduction: difficult
Notes:
There is a lot of debate about this little fish. The main point argued is whether they prefer fresh or brackish water. Although usually found in fresh water naturally, they generally seem to do best in brackish water in captivity. They will survive for a long time in fully fresh or fully marine water, but will be healthiest and live longest with a salinity specific gravity of 1.005 -1.010 which is 20-40% the strength of seawater (around 1.025). Although adaptable, care must be taken to slowly acclimate the puffer to any water conditions. High pH and hardness may be more important than salinity. More below.
Another point often debated is compatibility with other fish. The thing to remember here is that every individual has a unique personality and the fishkeeper must be prepared to accommodate it. The longest lived fig-8 written about so far reached an age of 18 years and lived alone. Some may be too aggressive to have any tankmates. I keep two together and they do not bother each other at all but I also feel that they wouldn't care if they never saw their "buddy" again. More below.
Diet is the most difficult part of keeping this fish. The more the food wiggles and bleeds when attacked the better. Mine love red wiggler earthworms and ramshorn snails. Puffers have hard beaks instead of teeth, and unless they are fed food with a shell the beak may not wear down and will eventually grow too big, making eating difficult and life uncomfortable. I also rotate whole frozen krill and small chunks of beef liver into the mix. These fish will eat until they hurt themselves and then beg for more, so exercise restraint :) Some people skip one day of feeding per week. More below.
http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a348/casual_ties/The-fat-one-2.jpg
http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a348/casual_ties/The-fat-one-1.jpg
Copyrights reserved
More notes:
Some say they keep fig-8s at a pH of 7.0 but most people find a higher pH and hardness is better. I use crushed coral sand mixed with play sand as a substrate, have tufa rock and coral chunks as decoration and have small amounts of crushed coral in my filters. This keeps my pH and hardness high. A bit of baking soda in my water changes reduces swings. Considering the puffers' varying tolerance, it is likely that they travel up and down a river system and into the tidal estuary areas. Some people try to replicate this by altering salinity with water changes though it is not neccessary for health. It might be something to try if attempting to breed fig-8 puffers.
Using the freshwater rule of 1" fish to 1 gallon of water and the saltwater rule of 1" fish per 5 gallons of water, somewhere in between is a good bet for brackish puffers as long as the minimum tank size does not go below 15 gallons. Puffers are very sensitive to ammonia and nitrites so understocking and over filtration are beneficial. I have 1" per 3 gallons and also overfilter by about 200% the amount recommended by the filter manufacturer. Plants help with reducing fish waste, but the selection of plants that will do well in brackish water is slim. I keep a red mangrove in the tank and plan to experiment with java fern and anubia. Jungle val also reportedly works. A weekly water change of 33% keeps my puffers happy.
Regarding tankmates, conspecifics (fish of the same species) are the safest bet, but some people have puffers in community settings. The wasp fish or butterfly goby shares much the same water and dietary requirements as the fig-8 but eats more slowly and care must be taken to ensure it would not starve. Bumblebee gobies also like the same conditions but are much smaller so will need smaller food and hiding spaces and might become food themelves if the puffers get hungry. Regardless of tankmates, there should be some shelter in the aquascape and try to break up sight lines as much as possible.
I recommend breeding ramshorn snails as a feeding staple, and would suggest starting a colony as much in advance of getting the puffers as possible to build a sustainable population. Other snails, especially MTS, may have too hard of a shell and can damage the puffers' beak. Some other foods include the following and a rotating variety of 3 or more types of food is best:
Earthworms
Krill or prawns
Beef heart
Adult brine shrimp
Ghost shrimp
Squid
Shellfish
Breeding the Figure Eight is very difficult and little is known on what helps.
In conclusion, the Figure Eight Puffer is a tough little fish that will look its best and display its most natural behaviour when care and consideration is put into its keeping. It is probably one of the most abused fish in the trade, often brought into stores without any knowledge of its requirements and easily sold on to clueless customers. Look for well-coloured fish actively swimming, with bright white and rounded bellies. A dark belly is a sign of stress and a sunken one is starving or ridden with parasites. Puffers only "puff up" when mortally afraid, so in trying to make them, you are being mean :) If you can put a bit of time into caring for these cuties, they are endearing and rewarding.
Some articles:
www.thepufferforum.com (http://www.thepufferforum.com/forum/library/puffers-in-focus/fig8/)
www.aquahobby.com (http://www.aquahobby.com/gallery/e_puffer2.php)
Puffer dentistry! (http://www.thepufferforum.com/forum/library/hospital/dentistry/)
Brackish water puffers (http://www.geocities.com/CapeCanaveral/4742/puffer.html)