Reef Safe Puffers

[bsclarinet]

Is there such a thing? I recall reading somewhere that there is a puffer that is considered "reef safe", but what do you think? (And of course we all know that "reef safe" means a lot of different things to a lot of different people, but in general, won't eat all of your inverts/corals)

 

[Zebodog]

How attached are you to your hermits, mithrax, urchin and snails? Most puffers will probably leave your corals alone, but it would be open season on your inverts.

 

[milkit]

i had a puffer in my non reef tank for 3 days and half of by snails and hermits went missing. needless to say i found him a new home

 

[bsclarinet]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15526766#post15526766 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Zebodog
How attached are you to your hermits, mithrax, urchin and snails? Most puffers will probably leave your corals alone, but it would be open season on your inverts.

Well the puffer wouldn't be going in my tank. It's too small. But I set up a 200 gallon tank at my boss's house, and I was thinking about putting one in there if it wouldn't devour everything.

 

[Zebodog]

Glad to hear it's not for your 45g!

Any tank with inverts will sooner or later be a tank with no inverts with a puffer on the loose.
If kept well fed, it could probably be housed with certain types of corals, but nobody should be shocked or surprised if one day the corals are mowed down and the Puffer is looking a little chubbier than usual.

 

[bsclarinet]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15526877#post15526877 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Zebodog
Glad to hear it's not for your 45g!

Haha. Yeah, thankfully I know enough to not attempt that. Though, there was a time that I wouldn't have known any better. :rollface:

 

[transd]

i had a puffer in my reef tank before... snails slowly dissappeared... but my corals were fine

 

[bsclarinet]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15527090#post15527090 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by transd
i had a puffer in my reef tank before... snails slowly dissappeared... but my corals were fine

Just curious....larger snails or small ones? Like could they eat the large turbo snails?

 

[transd]

medium size... but remember, your puffer will also grow... and with that, it's mouth which can open pretty wide...

it is suggested that you should have snails or crustaceans in your tank since it's teeth are like that of beavers... so the grinding on the snail or hermit crab shells keep the teeth in check or eventually, it will grow and grow until the puffer can no longer feed and die

 

[bsclarinet]

Good point. Well I suppose I probably won't do it....though I really want to. haha.

 

[transd]

Yes... I really liked my puffer... It was like a little puppy with thos big eyes

 

[sam11909]

Mine used to pick up hermits and eat shell and all, also they are REALLY messy eaters.

 

[reefergeorge]

What type of puffer are we talking about. My porc lives fine with snails, hermits, a cleaner shrimp, and corals.
I tried a dog face in a reef, and the first day he ate a colony of zoas, and a few snails.

 

[Elysia]

Don't forget the tobies!

 

[bobbyjeb]

Real new to this hobby but fwiw, I have a green spotted puffer in my 90 gal. I got him about two weeks after i set up my tank. Got the salt level up over the next month or so. He is very happy and well fed with meal worms and small garden snails. I know this is a very new tank but i hope he will be ok. I love his personallity, Puff Daddy is a great fish. He lives with anemone, two maroon clowns, a large cleaner shrimp, camel shrimp, peppermint shrimp, red head goby, coral beauty, blue damsel, and a lawn mower blenny. Several turbo med. snails and a few large red legged crabs, and a mushroom of some kind.
Its only been a few monthes, but so far its very good in there. But he wont eat anything dried, sometimes frozen, loves meal worms.

 

[danikowa]

I kept a valentini puffer in my 75 gal. mixed reef for a couple years. He was my favorite fish, but constantly ate my sps corals but not enough to kill them, just stunted their growth. Keeping him well fed was the best solution. Also, the one thing that had no chance was a clam, I definitely would not recomend mixing the two.