What are the water requirements for a Green Spotted Pufferfish?

Question

My research has gathered the following: 0-ammonia, 0-nitrites, <20.1-nitrates, 20-gallon+ tank. I need to know the salinity as it is a brackish fish, pH, and temperature range. Any other information will be greatly appreciated as I am new to puffers. The puffer is a juvenile Green Spotted Pufferfish. (T. Nigroviridis).

Answer 1

Ahh finally a question for my favorite all time fishies! GSP need a minimum of 30 gallons per fish because they grow to 6-8 inches. They are very aggressive fish that should be kept in a species tank only, with minimum 15 additional gallons per fish. So for 2 you would need 45 gallons, and so on... They require low end brackish as juveniles and as they get older the SG needs to be raised, by the time they are 6 inches long they need to be in full marine conditions. They like lots of caves for hiding, and have lots of personality. You can even teach them to jump from the water and eat from your hand! Be careful though, they have sharp teeth. Which brings me to my next point...

GSP have teeth like a beaver: they never stop growing. In the wild they eat snails, clams, crabs, ect. and the hard shells grind down their teeth. So unless you want tp physically cut the teeth yourself with fingernail clippers every month, you will need to set up a snail breeding tank. Pond snails work the best. You can just put a few in a bucket with no filter, and some live plants and set the bucket somewhere out of the way and in a few short weeks you will have tons of snails.

Please note, these puffers are brought in freshwater from the store, and they can adapt, but that does not mean it is good for them. They need the salt content as I described it or they will become more prone to disease. If kept in the right environment they will live upwards of 20 years. In FW you are lucky to keep them alive for 4 years. GSP need full marine salt water in order to live their full life.

Good luck, and enjoy your puffer! I love mine.

Answer 2

30gal per adult green spotted puffer (GSP). Provide a diet comprised mostly of crusteceans and mollusks (foods like prawn, live ramhorn snails, mussels, clams, krill, etc). Get a device which is capable of measuring salinity (a hydrometer or refractometer) and slowly increase salinity to a specific gravity of 1.010 to 1.015 over a few weeks if the GSP is 2" or larger. Use marine salt and not "aquarium salt". Avoid major flucuations in salinity.

Answer 3

Two websites for you-
Specifics on puffers, and how to tell the different spotted ones apart-
http://puffernet.tripod.com/species.html

On brackisk tanks-
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/BrackishSubWebIndex/BrackishSubWebIndex.htm

Answer 4

Note that you need to change out some of your water. Nitrates should under 10 ppm when you add new fish. Nitrate doesn't get broken down it just builds up.

Answer 5

This is the site I used when I set up my brackish water tank
waterhttp://www.tropicalfishfinder.co.uk/article_detail.asp?id=61

Answer 6

i had 1 green spotted puffer fish and 3 figure 8 puffers in a 30 gallon tank, they can go both ways fresh or brackish water, i kept mine in fresh water they really dont need the brackish cuz the water they are raised and shipped in is fresh and they have become immune to it, i had mine for 2 years before i gave them away, but u deffinintly want to make sure u have snails in the tank or a cuttle bone or there beak will overgrow

Answer 7

well. you need to make sure the water is purple and is at 102 degrees at aall times or the fish will shrivle and loose all of its puff. not good.
make sure you pput it in a medium sized iguana bowl. and be sure to read to it everyday or if will be bored and jump out of the bowl..

be careful this is a very serious matter and is not be dealed with the wrong way

Answer 8

Well if it does die, eat it!
Fugu me!