Puffer + Reef...

[Moosetache]

Okay,

Any chance that a Porcupine puffer will not destroy a reef tank?

[cpl40475]

slim to none are you chances unless you feed it often and get lucky

[Rick55555]

I think it's unlikely even if well fed. Puffers nip at everything...I would not chance it.

[sayn3ver]

puffers have evolved over how many thousands of years to prey on inverts with hard, calcium based defenses. Their upper and lower jaws are beaks that are constantly growing,much like a hamster's teeth. and in order for these to be kept in check and not become overgrown, puffers rely on a diet of snails, crabs, bivalves, etc to help grind down their chompers.

They spend their time hovering around ocean floors, some like the green spotted puffer, who can live in fresh to salt water, spends its time in estuaries, river mouths, etc searching out its next crunchy meal.

I myself would never chance a porcupine puffer in a reef. Some have reported success with the toby puffers such as the valentine and blue spotted as they appear to be more mild mannered but even then, the individual's personality plays a big role in how destructive they are.

Generally the answer is NO. But if you want to chance giving a porc puffer a shot at a very expensive buffet, go for it.

I also noticed your sig says you have a 65g reef. A porc requires a minimum of 100g as they are very messy eaters. A 120 or 125 FOWLR would be best for this type of fish.

I'd check out thepufferforum.com and read up about those adorable fish. There are quite a few members and moderates who are absolutely obsessed with puffer fish and will not steer you wrong.

[sean48183]

I think in a softy tank you might be alright especially if you add some food to wear down their teeth a couple times a week. However they do tend to chomp on things just for kicks. I am about to try a blue spotted puffer in my 150g softy reef so I'll let you know.

[JillNairn]

I got a small pocupine that I put in a 60 gallon cube. He was fine with soft stuff, but anything that moved and was hard, he was on it. His tank was full of anthelia and xenia. I tried some basic lps and he would peck at them. So, I just took them right back out. Not sure if he would have gotten used to them. Mine was a pecker though. Everything he saw, he had to peck at. No snails or hermits though lived or were able to clean in there. He even tore up a big turbo snail that was over an inch big. He was just a little over an inch and a half when I got him. In six months, he was double the size. I ordered snails off ebay in hopes to keep the tank semi clean and him well fed. It didnt work. That fish ate and ate and ate. If they moved, even if he didnt want to eat them, he would attack and play with them. The only time the snails came out was at night, when it was completely dark and he was asleep. As soon as there was any light at all, he was out hunting and making all the snails drop off the glass. This was a tank in my bedroom. My bathroom night breaks turned into hour long sessions of looking at him in the dark until he would get tired and go back to sleep. He was an absolutly fun fish, but MESSY. Which proved to be his downfall in our house. I just couldnt keep up with my 'simple' extra tank.

[Gary Majchrzak]

= waste of time and money

[justinpsmith]

Porcupine Puffer teeth do not overgrow like many other puffers such as Dogface or Green Spotted Puffer or any of the freshwater puffers (whose teeth are the fastest growing I find). They are a little bit different. Anyways, my brother has had his Porcupine Puffer with mushrooms, leathers, gsp, macro algae, xenia, and stuff like that for 7 years now...no problems. I also have mine with that kind of stuff and he could care less. Now anything hard that goes in the tank is a different story. It will most likely be destroyed. Someone mentioned tobies being better but in my experience they are much worse. The bigger puffers tend to nip less.

Its always a risk with puffers and anything from corals to tankmates but you can get lucky. I would never add one to a nice established reef though...just start with stuff like mushrooms and leathers and see if he accepts them and go from there.

As for crabs, mine rarely touches them. There are hermits that have lived with him for over a year now. He has eaten the odd one but I just replace them once in a while. He usually just swims past them though and leaves them alone. But again, I got lucky with mine

The only other problem is that they need a tank much bigger than 65G if thats what you were thinking. They reach about 10" in home aquariums but its a BIG 10" when you consider thickness.

Another thing is adding small tankmates after the puffer can sometimes be tricky...not usually but you do have to be careful. Mine ate three chromis I added to the tank a while ago because he thought they were food. You usually want to add them with a net and guide them down lower in the tank. As soon as these fish hit the water, he started chomping them!!! It was a bloodbath...

Cute fish with sooooo much personality though. Mine:

[justinpsmith]

Originally posted by Gary Majchrzak
= waste of time and money

How was your experience with this? What happened?

[Gary Majchrzak]

Originally posted by justinpsmith
How was your experience with this? What happened?

I wasted time and money

Porcs are a poor choice for a reef aquarium because of their messy and destructive nature. keep them in a "fish only" or FOWLR system.

[justinpsmith]

Originally posted by Gary Majchrzak
I wasted time and money

Porcs are a poor choice for a reef aquarium because of their messy and destructive nature. keep them in a "fish only" or FOWLR system.

That way too general of an answer because it really depends on the reef. There are many kinds of reefs and some work just fine with puffers. As I said, my brothers 400G reef has had 2 puffers in it for 7 years and it looks great.

Like I said, I would never keep them with sps but to say its a waste of time and money is untrue.

[Gary Majchrzak]

Originally posted by justinpsmith
There are many kinds of reefs and some work just fine with puffers.

I agree, but keeping a porc in a 65 gallon reef aquarium is a waste of time and money.
Perhaps I should just rephrase this:
it's a bad idea.

[justinpsmith]

Originally posted by Gary Majchrzak
I agree, but keeping a porc in a 65 gallon reef aquarium is a waste of time and money.
Perhaps I should just rephrase this:
it's a bad idea.

You know what I think I misunderstood your "waste of time and money" comment...sorry. I have to agree that in THIS case it is a big waste of time and money. In a properly set up reef that is not overstocked and big enough, it can work out great. BUT you really have to understand the limitations and go slow. You will not be able to just keep anything you like. I guess basically, it has to be a very simple reef. It can still be a very nice set up though. Like I said earlier, my brothers 400G looks great but he understands the limitations of keeping puffers in a reef tank...plus his 400G has ONLY the Porcupine Puffer and Stars and Stripes Puffer. No other fish because even just these two alone create a huge load on the tank. His stars and Stripes eats 4-6 prawns every 2 days! The porc eats about 2. Plus they get clams, mussels, squid and all kinds of treats inbetween. Its really quite amazing watching the S&S eat a prawn whole.

[bsk997]

I have a small porcupine puffer in my reef tank. It has not nip at anything that I have noticed. The tank is lps and softies with a few rbta's. Everything seems to be happy if fed. There also are two cleaner shrimps which I've seen clean him. I guess it really depends on the fish.