pea / pygmy puffer breeding

[hooliganATV]

well having had no luck with my cockatoo cichlids. i used my 30G to hold a few odd balls but recently got the bug for more puffers.

I have a figure 8 and a green spot currently had them for a few months, their sharing a brackish tank at the moment with a plan to move the green spot out shortly so i can start to add a bit more salt.

recently I picked up an amazon puffer to go in my SA bio he growing out in a 5G for now.

so now i'm turning my attention to another breeding project. and im thinking my 30G would be a good place to put a group of pygmy/ pea puffers. numbers wise i think i'll start with 8 and then maybe thin these out. doing my research it looks like a male will guard a an area of about 6" squared so as long as i don't end up with 8 males i should be ok.

so next question is how to set up the tank, the water parameters are good for the puffers and from what i understand Java moss is their preferred spawning area and they need plants. so my plan is to set up 4-5 moss areas and plant the rest of the tank out but also have a lot of fixtures like wood and rocks.

this is where the tank is right now and tonight i'll have a move around and see what i come up with just after some direction, tips and general guidance.

Puffer will be here in a week or so.



water level is low for the rescape

 

[Fat Homer]

Since no one else seems to be giving you any feedback, let me throw in my 2cents worth...

First off a disclaimer: I've never tried to purposely tried to breed dwarf puffers, but have kept a few in the past so all i can go off is that experience...

Anyway, since you are planning on breeding them i'm also guessing you plan on throwing in a fair few individuals? in that case, i would maybe consider adding some thicker vegetation with denser growth, maybe a Java fern or two, something the puffers can shoot off into if they get into a fight and need to flee from one another...

The bottom area of the tank looks like there is more then enough stuff to break up lines of sight (helps cut down aggression), but the mid to upper areas are quite open, so yeah, maybe just add a plant or two to help add more for them to explore and use as hiding if they need it... since the more secure they feel, the more they will come out...

Last thing, which is purely personal preference, but have you thought of adding a black vinyl background to this tank? or maybe even add a 3D background inside the tank to spruce it up a bit?

 

[hooliganATV]

thanks i did actually move the tank around forgot to update it now looks like this,



there is loads of java in there it was just clumped in a corner in the original pic, i have pulled it all out and split the floor up in to areas making sure that there is moss on all the rocks and driftwood. its an interesting project i think.

i did want to paint it black, i have done most of my tank but i didn't want to strip it to paint it so i will probably add some black paper to the back and see how it goes.

will keep this thread updated once they arrive.

 

[Fat Homer]

I've tried using something like black sugar paper in the past and it didn't work out too well, over time the background didn't want to stay... personally, i tend to use that sticky vinyl, i think 3M probably make it along with numerous other brands... This way it has its own adhesive on one side which should help it hold out a lot longer, especially if it gets wet accidentally...

Anyway, i'm sure once the tank fills in it should look quite nice, plants just need to settle in and start growing a bit more

 

[hooliganATV]

well finally my pygmies turned up. the LFS owed me for a few drop off i have made so were happy to order me a group. I was thinking 6-8, today they gave me a call and i went down to find they got me 12, but they did this because a few always come through a bit ropey. as it happens there is a couple that look a bit skinny and one in particular that looks really rough, gave them blood worm once they were in the tank. all but two look to of eaten.

largest is 1 cm the rest range down to 0.5cm once they start to make territories if it becomes overcrowded i'll thin the group out a bit.

i'll update as i go along.

 

[Fat Homer]

Nice work on the DP's and yeah, see how you go... might find you have a lot more females then you can maybe not have to worry as much if you are looking to breed them...

 

[hooliganATV]

thanks mate,

good news i have seen them all feeding, some have taken blood worm, some brine shrimp and some of them picking on micro fornia in the tank. some need a little weight on them but im happy.

Also witness a couple of them defending rocks and patches of the moss today (day two) so thinking my tank scaping has paid off. see how it goes, will certainly be better once all the plants take off again after their move around.

also had a quick look at sex and i think i may be male heavy but there is a mix so that is good news, and some of the females look quite fat although i think at 1-1.5cm they may be a bit small at the moment.

 

[hooliganATV]

quick video of the tank, excuse the sound my daughter was youtubing very loud hahaha

 

[hooliganATV]

an update from a couple of days ago.

the group is now down to 7, i lost a couple and moved a couple of males on to leave me with about 3 females and 4 males, this gives the females a choice and see how they get on.

i'll update shortly cause today i tied a few more small bits of wood with some more moss and ferns to keep it nice and busy for them

i have also sorted out the plants and trimmed them back a bit.

also an excuse to try out my new phone camera settings

 

[convict360]

To build on what Homer suggested about line of sights and being able to flee from fights, something I highly recommend is zoo med's magnetic clips. They are super easy to use, and make for excellent anchor points to utilise plants at mid and upper levels of the tank, anubias being the first that comes to mind.

I did this for my dwarf puffers, and they would often take refuge at mid level under the big anubias leaves.

It really helps maximise the space you have in that tank

Normal suction cups work too, but eventually they get slimy or whatever, and fall off constantly; the magnetic ones negate that