Avocado Puffer Advice

[gmgpk]

Hi all. I purchased an Avocado Puffer last night and was seeking advice on his care. I saw him Sunday afternoon in a LFS and came home and researched a little. I did find from photos that his latin name is Auriglobus Modestus, but not much else, So, I took a chance and bought the little guy. He's SO cute!

The LFS sold him as freshwater. Is he really freshwater or brackish? I have him right now in a Freshwater 20 gallon with a drip filter for a 60 gallon tank. I can add extra filteration if needed. I'm also guessing he would eat the same foods as my Green Spot Puffer who is currently living in a Brackish 40 gallon and eating like a little piggy.

Thanks for any advice on his care.

Shelley

 

[nmonks]

If it is Auriglobus modestus, that's a freshwater species, and noted for being extremely territorial and aggressive. In fact it's a legendarily nasty fish, and that's why it's hardly every seen in the trade. Will need a fairly big aquarium when mature, at ~10 cm, as well as lots of swimming space and a good water current. Feeds mostly on insects and snails, but also fish (one fin at a time...).

Often confused with the ~20 cm Chonerhinos naritus (also known as Xenopterus naritus) which is a brackish water species. Telling juveniles apart is extremely difficult; see the appendix in the Aqualog pufferfish book for details.

Cheers, Neale

 

[gmgpk]

Neale,

Thanks for responding. When I saw the Avocado Puffer at the LFS, the first thing I did was come home and look in your Brackish Water Fishes book. Love the book, by the way! I saw the description for the Golden Puffer and thought it was him at first then looked at photos on the internet, and boy can they be confusing. The puffer I purchased has a white belly and is kind of shy right now. He is about 2 inches long and a healthy eater because I just fed him. I can't see anything else that might help identify him. If he is the Auriglobus Modestus will his belly stay white or is that another thing that can be confused with the Xenopterus Naritus? If I can get a good photo, I'll try and upload one soon. Thanks for any help.

Shelley

 

[nmonks]

Supposedly Chonerhinos naritus has a whiter belly the the more yellowy belly of Auriglobus modestus. But the key things are the fin rays, which are difficult/impossible to count on moving fish. On Chonerhinos naritus the dorsal fin has 35-36 rays, the anal 28-29; by contrast Auriglobus modestus has 22-28 and 18-22 fin rays respectively.

If this was me, I'd take the retailer on trust, keep the fish in hard, alkaline freshwater and see what happens. If, as it matures, it shows signs of stress, finrot or fungal infections, then you may well consider adding some salt to see what happens. Obviously if the fish gets well above 10 cm in length, it's most likely Chonerhinos naritus, in which altering conditions in the tank to slightly brackish would be a wise thing to do.

The problem is that Chonerhinos naritus is very rarely imported deliberately, so reliable photos are few and far between. There isn't one in my brackish book, and the Aqualog book only has a preserved (i.e., dead) specimen.

Cheers, Neale