How would puffers do with africans?

sg1

Feeder Fish
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Dec 23, 2007
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Phoenix AZ
I know puffers are mean little suckers but is a puffers agression level on par with african cichlids? Would puffers kill my africans or would my africans kill the puffers? Or are the puffers tough enough that they would simply keep each other at bay?
 

udel2

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Sep 10, 2007
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delaware
LOL dont do it i did it already, puffers mean little suckers but no match for a african it will hide in the corner of the tank the entire time.... win will goto the africans but the two do go together

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kay-bee

Gambusia
MFK Member
May 21, 2006
254
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Tampa, FL
"Puffers" and "African Cichlids" are such wide general terms. They're generally not considered compatible though for a number of reasons (which highly depend on what type of puffers and cichlids you're referring to).

I keep various african cichlids (Lake Malawi mbunas & haps, Lake Tanganyika tropheus and frontosas) as well as green spotted puffers (all in various tanks, but no cichlids in with the puffers).

Green spotted puffers, as an example, will eventually require brackish to full salt water conditions to thrive which would automatically disqualify them from being housed with african cichlids of any type, prior to even considering other incompatibility factors.
 

sg1

Feeder Fish
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Dec 23, 2007
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Phoenix AZ
What types of puffers would not at any time require any salt? And it looks like the guy up there has a good mix of puffers and cichlids!
 

pufferfreak

Feeder Fish
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Jan 4, 2008
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San Diego, CA
There are only some true species of freshwater puffer. A basic list are congo puffers(they eat anything in sight probably not a good idea!)Dwarf puffers(really small but x-tremely aggresseive), South American Puffer(Nice community puffer). Puffers have personality to so these are just what the general species is like. go to www.**************.com for more info on freshwater species.
 

kay-bee

Gambusia
MFK Member
May 21, 2006
254
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16
Tampa, FL
sg1;1501223; said:
...And it looks like the guy up there has a good mix of puffers and cichlids!
Nice specimens, yes, but looks to be a brackish species and

udel2;1501182; said:
...it will hide in the corner of the tank the entire time....
 

azfishfool

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Oct 20, 2007
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Arizona
we had a green spotted puffer with our yellow labs and red zebras and no issues except africans got too pushy around feeding time. we now have our puffer with lamprologus multifasciatus, the world smallest cichlid and no issues the puffer is happy as can be. its a green spotted puffer btw
 

groovitudedude

Fire Eel
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Dec 12, 2007
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San Diego
azfishfool;1501457; said:
we had a green spotted puffer with our yellow labs and red zebras and no issues except africans got too pushy around feeding time. we now have our puffer with lamprologus multifasciatus, the world smallest cichlid and no issues the puffer is happy as can be. its a green spotted puffer btw
FYI, GSPs are Brackish--> almost marine
Cichlids are FW.
 

azfishfool

Feeder Fish
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Oct 20, 2007
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this i know, it will be switched
 
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