Puffer questions...
Sun, 06/13/2010 - 09:45
I am *SO* sick of pond snails! I've got assassins but they aren't nearly keeping up so I'm thinking of getting a couple of puffers that I can rotate around.
Questions:
Will they go after my shrimp? (amanos, cherrys and snowballs)
Will they bother the large snails? (nerites of various kinds and assassins)
Will they harass my little fish? (mostly danios of one sort or another)
Any special water perameters?
Thanks!
Sun, 06/13/2010 - 10:45
#2
Hi Carmon,
I have various species of puffers in every one of my tanks, and they are a lot like people - some are Mother Theresa, some are like Charles Manson, and some are every day people... Although I have to say - they do tend toward the Manson end of the spectrum. The puffers you would be interested in are Indian Dwarf Puffers (Carinotetraodon travancoricus, but there are other similar looking species), which run about $8 each. I have a pair in my 60gal freshwater tank, and the only other inhabitants they bother besides the snails, are each other. They patiently and methodically spend their day hunting snails. Now, they are not a panacea, which it seems like you are looking for. I still have plenty of snails in these tanks - so they will not eradicate a tank of snails in a week...or a year, depending on the level of infestation you have.
Now, if you're still interested in puffers, here are the answers to your other questions. First, a dwarf puffers mouth is only about the size of a dull pencil tip - 1-2mm - so the damage they can do to other creatures is limited. Mine do not bother with other fish, although they do get cranky towards one another, which is typical for puffers. They may chase the shrimp, but it is unlikely they will catch them, much less be able to kill them, because of their size. As for the snails you prefer to keep around, yes, they will in all likelihood go after these. Whether they will be able to do enough damage to kill one is questionable. As for water parameters, Indian Dwarf puffers are strictly freshwater, so there are no special water parameters. I also have a south american puffer (Colomesus asellus), who is extremely benign and very entertaining, but really only eats what I feed him - black worms, blood worms, brine shrimp - so he won't do much for your snail population, and they are difficult to find. Now, you could try getting a bunch of dwarf puffers, but unless you have a large tank with plenty of space that usually doesn't work out well either, because the dominant one will harass the others to death, literally, until you are only left with a pair at most in the end anyway.
I can't vouch for Dennis' goldfish idea, except that I know they are fairly dirty fish.
greg
Sun, 06/13/2010 - 14:53
#3
Thanks Greg, that's great info! I know I can't completely get rid of the darned pond snails; I'd just like to get them to a more manageable level.
I actually have goldfish who were recently moved into a large outside water feature and I really don't want to have more that I would eventually have to relocate. The five I have are a black oranda, three ryukins and a fantail and all five have bodies big enough to fill your hand!
DGS is right though that snails never survived in the goldies previous tank. Also, the goldies do a very good job of eating any small shrimp like cherries and snowballs which is not so good. They seem to love their big outdoor pool and come up to the surface to suck on my fingers when I feed them...but I don't want any more to get so huge!
I'll definitely look for a pair of the Indian dwarf puffers!
Sun, 06/13/2010 - 15:10
#4
I don't know where you are located, but Clarks on Lomas in ABQ always has some nice dwarfs on hand, and their price is reasonable. The one thing I forgot to mention, and this goes for all puffers, and other 'skinned' fish, is that they need fairly decent water quality, but it sounds like you are fairly experienced. The nice thing about them is that they sort of feed themselves, if there is a supply of snails available... If you have any more questions, let me know. I'd be happy to help.
Sun, 06/13/2010 - 17:31
#5
Thanks lostcrow, but I'm all the way up in Mora, about three hours away. I'll definitely take the offer of advise though!
I've currently got five indoor tanks ranging from 2 gal to 40 gal and about 100 gallons worth of outdoor pools. All are heavily planted and get 20% water changes about every three days. The outdoor pools get that daily because I dip water out of them to water my deck garden plants with. Works out great!
I've got oto cats that have actually reproduced in the tanks so hopefully that means all is well for the little 'skinned' guys.
Sun, 06/13/2010 - 18:41
#6
Wow, that's quite the collection you have. Sounds like there's not much rest for you with all those water changes. I once tried using tank water to water my plants, but forgot about the salt that I put in the water, so that didn't work out very well for the plants... Good luck resolving your snail problem.
Puffers are known fin nippers. I have tryed Puffers but my fish get more abuse then the snails. I use 3" to 4" Goldfish in my tanks and they do a good job. It takes time. Goldfih do not harm other fish, but have to be carefull with aggressive fish as they will kill the gold fish. I do not know what they will do to yuor shrimp or other snails. They do like plants.
DGS