Tankmates for green spotted puffers...?

[Kiersten]

I currently have a ten gallon brackish tank with three green spotted puffers and several pounds of conditioned live rock. i am gradually converting this to a full marine tank.
i am wondering if there are any fish i could get once this is a full marine tank that the puffers would not kill. are small gobies and blennies a possibility? there are lots of little hiding places for them between the rocks where the puffers are too fat to reach.

advice is appreciated

thanks!

Kiersten

 

[I<3fish]

I would have to say no, as the tank would already be overstocked with three green spotted puffers. Also, don't convert it to full saltwater until they are around 4". Get a larger tank as well, puffers love to quarrel and can actually kill each other. Keep the puffers at VERY low-end brackish water when young, around 1.005-08.

 

[cassharper]

*Quick Note: This advice isn't necessary to follow. You only have to if you don't want to kill/shorten the life of your fish.

You need to take the live rock out and slowly bring down the salinity. GSPs are born in fresh to lightly brackish water and migrate full marine as adults. They bodies aren't mean to handle this much osmoregulatory pressure at this point in their lives.

GSPs will get to six inches (even though this will take a while), are aggressive, and need pristine water. None of these conditions can be met long term in a 10g. I keep a lone GSP in a 30g, pufferpunk keeps 2 in a 55.

For rocks, go to a stone yard and buy some tuffa rock. I got mine for .30/lb and several months later it looks great.

 

[pufferdudeg5]

Puffers are great fish to have and will make you very happy, but there is not really a puffer you can keep in a 10g besides a dwarf puffer.

Most of the fish you mentioned need there own space, and even the dwarf puffers can be mean and will fin nip the other to death. (dwarfs are full fresh water)

 

[srikamaraja]

I'm afraid that unless given a much larger tank footprint, these puffers will eventually kill one another.

 

[chesterthehero]

much like everyone else said.. a bigger tank is a must.. i started with 2 gsp (1-1.5 inches) in a 30 gallon... one killed the other in under a month...

**************.com is a good place for info on them.. turning the tank to salt is a good thing.. but only if you do it correctly..

anyway.. as for your original question of tank mates... once you get a much bigger tank.... give mollies a shot.. they will need to be acclimated to the salt over several months but they are a cheap fast colorful fish that MIGHT make it with the puffers... its hit or miss.. all depends on the fish

 

[hybridtheoryd16]

A good tank mate for your gsp's right now would be about another 40g of water. And then maybe try something like the molly's or guppies at low end brackish conditions. I have 2 gsp's and a blue dragon fish in a 30g tank. Which is over stocked for space reason's but the stock works very well together and has been for 2yrs now. I also kept 10 fancy guppies in there as well until I started raising the salt levels. The puffers did chase the guppies but just were never quick enough to do harm. The puffers have never bothered the dragon and even sleep in the same decor as the dragon does. But hear that some peoples gsp's are killers. lol--------------here's my killers