Info for Valentine puffer (Canthigaster Valentini)

[Dark]

Hi all.

Anyone have some information about feeding and keeping soft corals with a valentine pufferfish?

I have one for one week now, and he seem to like krill, but i wonder about teeths growing...

Thanks,
Dark

[EdKruzel]

That's not as big of a concern with the smaller puffers as with a Dogface or Porcupine.
Krill is an acceptable food if vitamin soaked, krill has very limited nutrients.
Shredded shrimp, mysid, or many of the frozen meaty formulas will be fine for this fish.
As an occasional treat you should offer a whole table shrimp with the shell on (use a small shrimp) and allow the fish to chew the shell. This will provide a little exercise for its jaws as well as provide the needed calcium in its diet.

It should be okay with most soft corals, I'd watch for nipping with LPS and maybe SPS.

Ed

[don-n-sa]

I am no means an expert but, I always thought that frozen krill was an excellent food source. Arent there certain whales that practically live off krill?

[Confooseld]

Ya but they feed off of living stuff not frozen. Which would you prefer fish that's been caught an hour ago or caught weeks in advance frozen then dethawed?

[EdKruzel]

Krill in the wild are eating machines and thus gut load themselves, much like a rotifer or brine shrimp.

As itself the nutrient content is low. Freeze dried krill is a great food source because it can be soaked with a vitamin supplement such as Vitachem or Selcon where it absorbs it like a sponge.

As to certain whale species; none are exclusive on krill but many seldom eat anything much larger.
When they open their enormous mouths and down tons of krill they also receive everything else in that mouthful, plankton, mysis, etc...

There is an excellent recipe that can be adjusted for most any type aquarium in the coral forum. The article is wrtitten by Eric Borneman.

Take care,
Ed

[Confooseld]

Key word he used though was frozen.

[don-n-sa]

so where does the krill that we buy come from?

[Lakeside518]

My puffer likes fresh frozen/ thawed krill not freeze dried forzen krill. Imagine that the dried Krill lacks some nutrients.

He also prefers cubed frozen blood worms. Drop the frozen squares in and he either picks apart or nibbles those that separate and float around.