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FAQs about Tetraodon mbu
Puffers Systems
Related
Articles: Tetraodon mbu,
T. suvattii, Green Spotted
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Puffers, (Big) Pufferfish Dentistry By Kelly Jedlicki and Anthony Calfo
Small Puffer
Dentistry By Jeni Tyrell (aka Pufferpunk),
FAQs on: Mbu Puffers 1, Mbu Puffers 2,
FAQs on: Mbu Puffer
Identification, Mbu Puffer
Behavior, Mbu Puffer
Compatibility, Mbu Puffer
Selection/Stocking, Mbu Puffer
Feeding, Mbu Puffer Health,
Mbu Puffer Reproduction, &
FW Puffer FAQs 1, FAQs 2, FAQs 3, FW
Puffer Identification, FW Puffer
Behavior, FW Puffer
Selection, FW Puffer
Compatibility, FW Puffer
Systems, FW Puffer Feeding,
FW Puffer Disease, FW Puffer Reproduction,
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Mbu puffer tank 8/23/19
Hi
<Hello!>
For the last 2 months I have been cycling a 2000 litre aquarium for a
mbu puffer (7ft x 4ft).
<A good starting point, but be aware of how big these fish can become.
Some would argue even 2000 litres is less than ideal.>
I am finally collecting the mbu next week and just tested my water :
Ammonia <0.05
Nitrite 0.025
<These two really need to be zero.>
Nitrate 5
I know sometimes the test kits aren’t exact but I’m worried about the
nitrite of .025 but should that be fine?
<Hard to say without knowing the brand of test kit or even how good you
are judging the colours. Dip strip test kits for example are generally
regarded as imprecise, and while this margin of error would be adequate
for bog standard community fish, it might be risky with sensitive
species such as a Mbu Puffer. I would be tempted to try the nitrite kit
at least against one or more alternative test kits. Your local retailer
may well offer this service, especially if they deal with expensive fish
such as marines. I'd also check your values against your tap water. For
example if you have neutralised (via water conditioner) any chloramine
in the tap water, a test kit can register that as ammonia, even though
it is harmless.>
I do 30% water change 3 times a week
<Sounds good. If the Mbu Puffer is relatively small now, say, 10 cm
long, and kept in a 2000 litre tank with regular water changes, any
slight backlog in ammonia and nitrite processing by your biological
filter should fix itself over the next couple of weeks. "Fish-less"
cycling methods are a bit unreliable, so while the filter may be more or
less mature, it might be a week or two before it really beds down
properly. Given the size of the tank, and the frequency of water
changes, you should be fine with a small fish, much as you can finish
off the cycling process of a community tank with a few Danios and not
expect any major problems. Still, keep an open mind, and regularly test
the water for at least the first month, and thereafter, at least weekly
until you're 100% sure everything is working as it should.>
Thanks!
<Most welcome. Neale.>
Re: Mbu puffer tank 8/23/19
Thanks Neale,
<Most welcome.>
It is the JBL full master test kit.
<Should be decent.>
The ammonia of <0.05 is the lowest that is on the results pad.
<So can you assume it's zero?>
The nitrite is the second lowest, but it is very hard to tell the
difference in colours.
<Indeed. I'd still compare and contrast with a second kit, even if just
the once at your retailer.>
The tank itself has a large in built filter (it runs the whole way down
the side of the tank, so 4 ft by 2ft by about 10 inches of bio media).
It was not fishless cycling, it has had 3 baby giant gourami (about 3
inches) since week 2, though they are now about 5-6 inches. I plan to
rehome them into my 1000 litre tank.
<Understood. Filter really should be mature then. Only things you might
check are whether water current sufficient (remember, you want a filter
turnover rate of something like 8 times the volume of the tank per hour)
and whether the selection of media chosen are appropriate (i.e., more
biological media, less chemical, especially carbon, which would probably
be pointless here).>
The initial plan was to keep the gourami in the big tank until I found a
mbu of a decent size, I didn't want to put a small mbu in as I hear they
can be very unstable until a decent size.
<Possibly, but I think this is more to do with people tending to try and
keeping juveniles in very small tanks, and keeping them in such small
tanks for far too long, postponing the necessary upgrade. So net result
is a juvenile in increasingly poor environmental conditions. In and of
themselves, Puffers aren't delicate fish by any means, and it's notable
that in marine fishkeeping, they're often regarded as among the toughest
fish around. I certainly had far more trouble with Neon Tetras than any
pufferfish species!>
I know it is hard to find MBU's of a decent size so wanted to make sure
the tank was up and running, just happens that the opportunity to buy
this one has come up.
<Correct. But even so, I'd tend to recommend the 40 cm Tetraodon
species, such as Tetraodon lineatus, for people who want bigger puffers
simply because their size demands are so much less. There are also some
lovely marine species of similar size, like Arothron hispidus, that are
lively, easy to keep, and quite peaceful. But if you're dead-set on
Tetraodon mbu, you seem to be going around it in the right way, and have
realistic expectations of what's needed. I'll direct you to an old
article on this website from an experienced Tetraodon mbu owner, here:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/mbupuffer.htm
While lovely fish, they aren't for the faint-hearted (or the financially
challenged).>
The mbu is about 9-10 inches.
<And should get to well over twice that, aquarium specimens tending to
level off around the 50-60 cm mark. Much bigger specimens have been
reported in the wild, but I've never seen aquarium specimens bigger than
60 cm.>
Please can you advice whether you think it should be ok or best to
avoid?
<See above. They are interesting pets, and if you have the space, time
and money to set them up with the right tank from the get-go, they
aren't difficult to keep. Your biggest challenge is keeping nitrate
relatively low, especially if your tap water has high nitrate levels to
start with.
Ideally, nitrate should be less than 20 mg/l, but certainly below 40
mg/l.
Other than running out of space, owners often run into the problem of
over-long teeth. In the UK there's some debate about the legality of
performing "tooth cutting" procedures on pufferfish. But certainly make
yourself aware of how to try to keep your Puffer's teeth worn down as
best you can, and if you can't find a vet capable of cutting the teeth,
find out how to do it yourself. Obviously as the fish becomes so much
larger than the average pufferfish, sedating and handling the fish
becomes that much more complicated. I've used cuticle clippers on small
pufferfish species, and clove oil to sedate them, but for the bigger
species, power tools may be needed:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/ca/volume_2/cav2i1/puffer_dentistry/puffer2.htm
This sort of procedure is probably well outside what the British
veterinary community would consider acceptable for untrained people,
given the distress it will cause the fish. So realistically, while I'm
happy to recommend cuticle clippers for the literally 10-second job of
nipping off the ends of South American Pufferfish teeth, adult Tetraodon
mbu will probably need a trip to the vet at some point if their teeth
aren't kept worn down naturally.>
Thanks.
<Most welcome. Cheers, Neale.>
Re: Mbu puffer tank 8/30/19
Hi Neale
<Nathaniel.>
By way of update, the mbu is now in and doing great.
<Cool.>
I have invested in an automatic water change system that is being
installed next week. That way he will have 30% water changes 365 days a
year.
<Wow! Luxury, indeed.>
I plan to set it to do 5% every 4 hours, that way the Mbu will barely
even notice the change taking place so will keep stress to an absolute
minimum.
<Every 5 hours sounds overkill, but certainly being able to do 5% even
daily should ensure really good water quality. Use a test kit: so long
as nitrate stays below 20 mg/l, you're doing great. Doing excessive
water changes is a waste of water, unless of course that water is being
put to good use, e.g., to maintain a pond or water meadow. If it's just
going down the drain it's expensive and wasteful, in my opinion.>
I have so far put in 30 guppies in but intend to increase that number
significantly as the filter catches up. The guppies will be his only
tank mates.
<For a while, at least!>
From my research these are the best tank mates for a mbu as he is
peaceful enough to not eat him and move slowly so adds a calming
presence to the tank so as to help keep him chilled.
<Indeed; and often Guppies are used for exactly this in public aquaria.
Very small fish are often ignored by big fish, but do provide that
useful "dither fish" effect.>
My question is, male guppies do look better than females, but I am aware
it is usually advised to keep a 2:1 ratio female to male. In a tank of
2000 litre with a 30 sq ft foot print + a group of 100+ guppies, is 2:1
necessary? Would 50:50 work?
<Academic, to be honest. After a couple generations you'll have hundreds
of immature Guppies (some of the adults will likely get eaten) and
likely a more or less 50/50 ratio because of that. Colouration will be
difficult to ensure, because unless you can guarantee the females are
virgin females of a specific variety, they'll likely revert to more or
less wild Guppy colouration after a couple generations of
cross-breeding.>
Thanks as always.
<No problem. Cheers, Neale.>
Re: Mbu puffer tank 8/30/19
Thanks!
<Most welcome. Neale.>
Re: Mbu puffer tank
Hi Neale,
<Hello Nate,>
By way of update,
The MBU arrived and is settled and was doing really well. Eating well
and water quality is going well ( I followed your advice to use the
automatic water change system to only a little bit each day).
<Glad he's happy.>
I have been feeding just a few clams on the half shell each day to
ensure he is not overfed. On Tuesday this week I was away and asked my
wife to feed him. Without guidance she kept feeding him until he stopped
(I understand she fed around 10-15 clams!!). He has not been right
since.
<Indeed. This is more common than you'd expect. When they overeat,
Puffers struggle to swim and will sit at the bottom until the food has
been passed through.>
He has been sitting on the bottom not swimming much at all. He has shown
some interest in food but not like he was doing and he seems to have a
bit of poo constantly hanging out. (it looks like normal poo not like
internal worms related, I am not concerned re worms as the person I
bought him off had done multiple rounds of different worming medications
and he shows now obvious signs).
<Understood.>
I thought he'd be alright after a few days but he's still sulking a lot.
<First thing is do a decent water change. Overfeeding will spike ammonia
and nitrite, and longer term, raise nitrate. Tetraodon mbu is fairly
sensitive to nitrate, so ensure good clean water first. Next up, kick up
aeration and oxygenation, if nothing else, by lowering the waterline an
inch or two so there's more splashing. This will drive out CO2 and
increase dissolved O2. Finally, don't feed him!>
Any advice? will he just ride it out?
<Eventually, yes. Meantime, remind your wife that fish don't eat a lot,
and little fish can go two weeks, easy, without food, and large fish
(like an adult Mbu) probably a month or more.>
Thanks.
<Cheers, Neale.>
Puffer fish question! FW... S. Am....
stkg./sel, & T. mbu sys.
3/12/12
Hey y'all! First off, I love the site, and I'm pretty sure I
have read through every puffer question at least twice! Alright, so I
have fully cycled fifty five gallon that is currently empty. Its full
of fake silk plants and rock, and has two sixty gallon filters in it. I
have been researching South American Puffers for probably a month now,
but finding solid information isn't easy. My question is, how many
could fit in my tank?
<What, which species? Smaller ones, easily six...>
I don't want to overstock at all, but do plan on doing weekly
water changes and keeping up on maintenance. I'm aware they
aren't community puffers, but what could I do in terms of tank
mates?
<... read>
The puffers are my main priority, But I would like something else in
the tank if possible. I'm setting up a snail breeding tank soon,
and I'm hoping to order my puffers through my LFS, as I can't
find them anywhere online.
One more thing, Mbu puffers are freshwater, correct?
<Yes...>
My LFS has one for sale in a full salt water tank.
<Doubtful>
I assumed they had mislabeled, but after looking them up, it was no
doubt an Mbu. I asked the store about
it, and apparently they can
live in both fresh and salt.
<... no:
http://www.fishbase.org/Summary/SpeciesSummary.php?ID=10103&genusname=Tetraodon&speciesname=mbu&AT=tetraodon+mbu&lang=English
see Ecosystems... Tanganyika, Congo... rivers>
This store has given me wrong puffer info before, so this doesn't
surprise me. Hopefully someone gets him out of there!
Thanks for all the help!
<Welcome... Bob Fenner>
Re: Puffer fish question!
3/13/12
Thanks for the reply! As for which species, like I said above, South
American, or Colomesus asellus. I have gotten such
conflicting information on these little guys. Some say I could have
six,
<This is the number I'd settle on>
some say four, I have even been told I don't have enough room
for them at all. When you say the smaller ones, I think you thought I
was talking about dwarfs. Sorry if I didn't make myself clear!
:)
<I see. Thank you,
BobF>
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Poorly Mbu Puffer Fish... env.,
nutr. 3/7/12
Hi, hope you can help!
<I as well>
I have a Mbu Puffer called Polo who is
roughly 24" in size and it has not eaten
anything for over half a month. It hasn't lost much weight
yet (it was always fat looking even for a Mbu), but it's now
starting to get thinner.
It has these quite large pink-ish lumps near it's top fin
(see attached pics). From what i can make out it seems to be
Lymphocystis, and as far as i know there's no way to treat
this?
<Mmm, indirectly... improving water quality,
nutrition...>
But it's usually not fatal and can clear up itself? I
think the Mbu has often had these lumps since i got him about 2
years 5 months ago, and they have almost completely disappeared
at points in time, and then come back, but now it looks worse
than usual.
I keep the Mbu in a 1150 Litre tank (252 UK Gallons), which has
two large and powerful Fluval FX5 filters
<May need more...>
and rubber air tubes that run the length of the tank.
Nitrates and ammonia are the lowest colour on the colour chart i
use to compare.
<NO3 needs to be under 20 ppm, and zip/nada/zilch for
NH3>
Temperature is 26c, and i do 30% water changes roughly
every 10 days. It shares the tank with 2 common Plecs,
<Mmm, watch these... esp. at night>
a Siamese Tiger fish, and some smaller cichlids... probably not
the best combination, but no other fish ever bothers the Mbu in
any way, although I'm planning to remove the cichlids. And no
other fish has ever had the lumps that the Mbu has.
The Mbu mostly eats Mussels and Prawns daily, and i know
these contain Thiaminase,
<Yes... I'd switch these out for other
foods>
but only discovered this lately so since then I've been
trying to feed it other things like Tilapia and Cockles.
But for 2 years it's mostly been eating Mussels and
Prawns! Which I'm sure hasn't helped, wish i knew
sooner.
<Me too>
Any food i put in the tank the Mbu will just completely ignore.
It usually eats well, but at some points in time it's gone
for up to 10 days without eating that much and then returns to
normal, but apparently this is quite normal behaviour for
Mbu's. Apart from now it's never gone for over 2 weeks
without eating nothing at all. Apart from the lumps by the top
fin i cant see anything else wrong.
<Externally, macroscopically>
I've put some ESHa 2000 and salt in the tank
but neither has helped so far.
<And will not>
The Mbu i have is a lazy one, it lays around much of the time but
used to get excited for food and would often swim around in the
mornings or when the sun is out. Now it lays around almost 95% of
the time but when it does swim it looks ok, the swimming
isn't out of balance or anything but seems a little like
it's not got much energy. Should i put the Mbu in another
tank?
<I would not...>
I only have another spare tank that's about 200 Litres
<Too small>
so it's extremely small, which is why I've not
moved it. The other alternative would be my bath which is over
400 Litres. I don't know what else i can do? Should i take
him out the tank for a quick salt bath?
<No; of no use. I would soak new foods, read here:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/MbuPuffFdgF.htm
in a commercial vitamin and HUFAs product. Search on WWM re these
terms and the brand: Selcon, Micro-Vit...>
Thanks for your time, i know you must get tons of emails.
<Thank goodness, that for the 30-40k users per day, only a
small part of one percent... the site is intended (designed,
engineered) to be a reference, not a bb. Cheers, Bob
Fenner>
Sean.
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mbu puffer question, sys. mostly
8/17/09
Hello there!
<Hi Deanna>
I'm always going to your site and see what I can learn about the
fish I take care of. I work at my local pet store and have started
taking care of a mbu puffer that was forgotten about. The current care
taker of him there was fired so I took the responsibly of this fish.
Anyways I'm worried he is stunted he is about 9 inches in a 90
gallon bow front tank.
<Mmm, likely can/will resume growth with better maintenance... more
water changes in particular>
Not only that but people are always feeding him like crazy. I've
got people to cut down some but lately he has been laying down in the
tank a lot only coming up when a person walks up but that's about
well half the time.
<Not atypical behavior for the species>
His temperature is 82 degrees because of the heat in our fish room. He
has zero ammonia and nitrIte his nitrate is 20 steady.
<I would attempt to keep the NO3 down below 10 ppm>
Oh and his ph is a 7.6. He is with a giraffe catfish about the same
size.
He eats fine its just that he has been laying down like I said and he
will start to get pale and breathing a bit heavy.
<Any way to lower the temperature a bit... to the mid 70's F.?
By resetting the tank heater perhaps? This would reduce metabolic rates
and increase gas solubility>
He will lay there the entire day and even when disturbed will return to
his spot. He also seems to always have Ich I have treated with quick
cure for three weeks and another time only a few days.
<Mmm, something amiss here and the formalin in the Quick Cure is
very toxic...>
I did very small water changes every 3 days during that three
weeks.
<I'd do massive water changes at this interval if the new water
can be trusted... with gravel vacuuming...>
But it keeps coming back. Could it be the scrubbing pad I use to use it
on other tanks he now has his own?
<Yes>
It's only one dot for a few days but then it just goes crazy. His
diet is only shrimp and scallops soaked in garlic guard, Selcon, and
freshwater VitaChem. He does get apple snails and trapdoor snails twice
a week. He does eat the cat fishes pellets once in a while don't
know if that matters.
Also I noticed his rectum may be hanging a bit lower then normal maybe.
I will try to get a picture but someone over fed him a few weeks back.
I came into work one morning and he was laying at the bottom with a
full belly still (even fed a lot the next day his tummy is always flat)
and a white almost clear poop. His rectum looked to be getting bigger
so I figured he was having some trouble passing it. He finally passed
it and was back to normal but it just does not look right. It looks
like someone stuck a round weight inside now I guess. So now that I
jabbered I hope I gave you all the information you needed. I tend to
ramble a lot this fish lives up to his name and I want to do my best in
taking care of him. I would happily get a 300 gallon for him if I could
even that is to small though from what I read. Well thank you for any
information you can give me for all of my jabbering. :)
Thanks again ,
Deanna
<Please do read here:
http://wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/mbupuffer.htm
and the linked files above. Bob Fenner>
ps also he does have a bubbler in his tank .
Re: Mbu sys., fdg., worms...
1/2/09 Hello everyone, <Hello again!> Thanks a ton for
all the answers Neale! <Most welcome.> My MBU seems so much
happier in his 200 gallon than his 100. <'Tis the nature of the
beast.> His Ick is all gone and the water is nice and stable. It
appears that using the one established Eheim 2050 along with the other
2050 and the FX5 made the cycle as short as about a week. <Sounds
about right.> My ammonia and nitrite went there way to a max of 1
ppm now 0 and then my Nitrate is at 10. I have found that Mr. MBU has a
crazy appetite now, It seems so evident now that the puffer really
likes his hiding space! I covered both ends of the tank and only the
front open and he seems very at home. <A healthy puffer is a hungry
puffer, so if he's always greedy, that's a very good sign. Wild
fish do spend most of their time close to hiding places, and despite
being able to "puff up" and equipped with deadly poisons,
puffers don't normally go about looking to be bitten! They're
slow swimmers and generally keep an eye open for trouble, ready to dart
away into their chosen refuge.> I wanted to mention to anyone
interested that I found a bag of seafood melody at a local Sam's
store with shrimp, muscle, clam, octopus, squid and some stuff I have
no clue and tossed but otherwise he loves the food for $10 for a couple
pounds. <Ah yes, often recommend precisely this type of
"seafood mix". Economical and healthful. It's entirely
possible to maintain large carnivores like puffers entirely on foods
sold for humans, significantly reducing costs.> My question is I
have seen 2 worms in his cage at about 8mm long hair thickness wiggling
around in the water column. I searched and did a good vacuum job. Is
this nothing to be worried about like I have read? <Likely just
nematodes, and all they're doing is eating detritus. Nothing to
worry about unduly. Helminth parasites (i.e., worms) don't
generally go from their free-living stage to infecting fish within
aquaria, though they may do so in ponds. Usually when aquarists observe
worm parasites -- almost always Camallanus -- the fish has been
infected at somewhere outdoors like a fish farm or the wild. By all
means siphon out the worms if you object, but otherwise, I wouldn't
worry too much. Most aquaria contain thousands if not millions of
non-parasitic nematodes, they're just usually too small to see.
Cheers, Neale.>
MBU's next cage 12/22/08
Hello everyone, I wanted to see how my setup sounds for my 7-8 inch MBU
puffer. He is in a 100 gallon tank now and doing great.( thanks for the
advice with the Ick he had, it is now gone) The new aquarium is 200
gallons, with 2 Theo 400 watt heaters, 2 Eheim 2250's, 1 Fluval x5
and an 18 inch air stone. There is about 2 inches of small to med.
gravel, plants and lots of drift wood and 2 nice size rock made caves.
<Sounds nice. There is of course the problem than Tetraodon mbu get
ridiculously large. Maximum size in the wild is said to be over 60 cm,
and in even in captivity they comfortably reach 45 cm or so. That's
"standard length", and therefore excludes the rather big
tail! It's a sad truth that rather few specimens get to full size
though because most seem to die in captivity, often under mysterious
circumstances.> I am letting this tank cycle, one of the 2250's
was on the 100 gal. tank for a month to add some bacteria to the mix.
<If you move mature filters from one tank to another -- assuming
water chemistry/temperature are similar -- the new tank will be
instantly cycled. I do this all the time. The bacteria don't
"know" where the water is coming from. In any case, if
you're cycling a new tank with a mature filter, it's important
to keep a source of ammonia in that new tank, or the bacteria in the
mature filter will die back.> Obviously I only have some ammonia
after 3 days, 1 PPM. How is this sounding? <Sounds all wrong. If the
mature filter was not "upset" in some way by being switched
off for too long, and the water chemistry/temperature in the new tank
was the same as the old tank, this filter should be fully functional.
So where you're getting the ammonia from eludes me. Are you adding
ammonia? If so, quite possibly far too much. A 200 gallon tank for this
pufferfish will need 6 x 200 = 1200 gallons per hour filter
turnover.> Any recommendations? I only have 2 small eels and 2 Corys
to put in this set up with the MBU. Thanks Ed <What
"eels"? Spiny eels? I'd honestly not mix anything with
Tetraodon mbu. Best kept alone. It is, in part, a piscivore as well as
taking the usual algae/invertebrates common to puffers generally.
Cheers, Neale.>
My MBU puffer -10/31/08
Thanks for such a great site! Several months ago my wife gave me a MBU
puffer about 3 inches long for a anniversary gift to go in my 30 gallon
aquarium.
<Oh boy...>
(we all know this story) So after reading about them on your site I
have him in a 100 gallon tank with med. size natural gravel, 2 Fluval
405's and an Eheim eco 2236 with bio material and the floss pads. 2
150 watt heaters, temp at 80 deg., ammonia 0,-nitrite-0, nitrate 20,
ph-7.6. There is a 3 inch Pleco, 2 Cory's and a Tire track eel with
him.
<While that's a fine tank for now, do understand these Mbu
Puffers are ridiculously large when mature and annoyingly sensitive to
poor water conditions as well. So you end up needing a gigantic
aquarium with a massive filter just to keep it alive. Not recommended
for home aquaria at all.>
And even though he bit me <!!!> when I was doing a water change I
am still in the process of getting a 265 gal. or larger cage for him.
Is this over filtered?
<Not even close to being over-filtered... Seriously, these fish need
swimming pool-sized tanks.>
And Do you have recommendations for the next cage.
<As a baseline, we're talking some hundreds of gallons, and
there's a good argument to be made for tanks around the 1000 gallon
mark. A lot depends on the quality of your water supply, because
it's the nitrate that's the killer. If you have zero nitrate
right out the tap, then tanks around 250-500 gallons may be viable, if
coupled with generous filtration and large scale water changes. But if
you're in area where the nitrate level in your tap water is 50
mg/l, as is the case where I live, your margins for error are much
reduced. Do see Stuart Morse's article on this fish, here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/fwsubwebindex/mbupuffer.htm>
As of now I have to fix the house to support the weight of anything
larger than the 100 gal. and locally 265 gal. is the largest I have
found but I am happy to go bigger.
<If this was me, and I liked the idea of a big puffer, I'd try
to rehome him in favour of getting myself something a notch down the
size scale, maybe Tetraodon lineatus. It's about half the length,
and therefore one-eighth the mass, and consequently a heck of a lot
easier to look after.>
And lastly, is it safe to feed him the $2.00 snails ( mystery, yellow
assorted ) from the LFS, and there crayfish. Thanks again Ed
<Well, they're probably "safe", but why bother? Most
any frozen seafood sold for humans will be readily taken and a
combination of mussels, prawns, and squid will cover all the major
dietary needs for this species. Unshelled seafood like frozen crayfish,
crab legs, whole prawns, and live mussels can be offered as required to
wear down the teeth. Much cheaper than live snails or crayfish, and
certainly much safer. Cheers, Neale.>
Re: My MBU puffer -10/31/08
Neale, Thank you for the fast response. I live in Northern Virginia,
can you give me any pointers as to were I might want to look for
Aquariums around 1000 gal.. And what type of filtration would you
recommend for 1000 plus gallons. Ed
<Hello Ed. Since I'm in England and not really very familiar
with American retailers, this isn't a question I can easily answer.
If you can wait a couple weeks until Bob Fenner gets back, he's the
guy to ask about such things. In the meantime, do browse some of the
FAQs on large tank design/purchasing; there are some links and comments
that may be of interest. http://www.wetwebmedia.com/lgsystks.htm
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/lgsysdes.htm There's no real rush, as
Mbu Puffers doesn't grow especially fast, so you've got lots of
time to research things carefully. Mbu Puffers are widely and
successfully kept, so spending a bit of time e-mailing other keepers or
visiting forums would probably pay dividends. They're fantastic
fish, but also incredibly challenging: a bit like getting a wolf cub as
someone's first pet dog. For the right person, a Mbu is a superb
pet that is smarter than any ten fish stuck together, and frankly
smarter than most dogs and cats. But Mbu puffers are unquestionably
hard work, so while centerpiece fish at zoos and aquarium shops,
they're strictly for the ambitious fishkeeper. As for filtration,
it's hard to fault a reverse-flow undergravel filter for systems
where sensitive fish are being kept. This is basically one or more
large canister filters with outflows that push water into an
undergravel filter plate and up through the gravel. This system is
fantastic in terms of biological filtration, and also keeps the
substrate extremely clean, since it's constantly being rinsed with
filtered water. So the only maintenance is cleaning out the canisters
every month or so; the gravel itself shouldn't need anything more
than the occasional sift and siphon. The old "pros" of the
hobby do swear by filters like the larger Eheim canister filters, and
these certainly are extremely reliable and well worth their slightly
higher initial cost. But I'm hearing good things about the big
Fluval FX5 as well. It doesn't much matter what filter (or filters)
you use provided it's [a] reliable; and [b] offering upwards of 4
times the volume of the tank in turnover per hour. Cheers,
Neale.>
Mbu Puffer, fdg...
sys. 7/17/07 Hello Crew, my name is
Kevin. <Hi Kevin, Pufferpunk here> I have a Mbu puffer fish that
measures about 7 inches, in a 100 gal tank with several species of
cichlids. <You are aware of this fish's potential size &
that he will need a MUCH larger tank (1,000 gallons is
recommended)?> He has not eaten in at least 6 weeks. I have done
everything, water changes, <How large, how often?> adding salt,
offering crayfish, crabs, snails, shrimp, to no avail! Before he
stopped eating I tried to feed him some dead crayfish that I had frozen
that he was very hesitant to eat, so I think that may have something to
do with it. Please let me know what I can do to fix this before he
dies. <Have you checked his teeth to see if they might be
overgrown?> I have also treated the water with Melafix since, it has
worked with so many other problems. <Can't hurt... I really
can't give you any kind of diagnosis, without knowing the exact
ammonia, nitrite, nitrate & pH levels. In the meantime, check this
Mbu profile:
http://www.thepufferforum.com/forum/ug.php/v/PufferPedia/Freshwater/T_Mbu/
and please read:
http://www.thepufferforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=150 Your
input will be much appreciated! <Please write back with more info.
~PP>
Mbu Puffer in Non-Cycled Tank 11/16/06
Hey, <Hey yourself, it's Pufferpunk here.> I own a 4 inch
(not including tail) MBU Puffer and I've had it for a week so
far. He had been introduced to a tank that had been matured
for a month and he has a very healthy appetite, eating everything from
cockles, mussels, shrimp, bloodworm but the ammonia, nitrate and
nitrite levels in the tank sky rocket so high that I have to do a 50%
water change every 2 days to stop him from dying! <I'd raise
that to 80% daily, until you can get that tank cycled or your puffer
will definitely not make it. They are extremely sensitive to
those toxins, because they are scaleless & have no gill
covers. What do you mean by, "matured for a
month"? If you just let the tank run for a month,
that's not cycling the tank. Or were there other fish
that would equal the bioload of that puffer in there for that month
& the water parameters were perfect (0 ammonia & nitrItes,
<20 nitrAtes), then removed, when you placed the Mbu in
there? How big is the tank? That puffer will grow
VERY quickly, needing at least a 300g tank in 2 years, upgrading even
larger after that. If you don't understand the facts of
cycling a tank, you may not be ready to house such an exotic fish like
the Mbu. Please do a search for "fishless
cycling". If you insist on keeping this fish & are
prepared to buy it much larger tanks & huge filtration systems
(including veggie refugiums, to keep the nitrates down), in the very
near future, then you can instant cycle the tank with
Bio-Spira. Do an 80% water change, before adding it to your
filter.> I have a fully functioning filter and I regulate the amount
of food he eats (around 2 cockles or 1 mussel a day) but the water gets
dirty so quickly that I'm worried about his health. What can I do
to keep the levels stabilized so I don't have to change the water
so often and why is this happening? I use Amquel to reduce
the levels when I don't have time for a water change.
<You're going to have to MAKE time for
this! Eventually, plan on a 1,000 gallon tank for this
beautiful, 30" tank-buster. Forget about Amquel, it is
just inhibiting the cycle. Bio-Spira is the only way
you're going to save this fish. You may have to search
around for it but more shops seem to be carrying it. To
dechlorinate, use Prime. Please read this Mbu story,
written by a puffer keeper of over 50 years: http://www.thepufferforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=150
I know it sounds like I'm being really hard on you but personally,
I think these fish only belong in public aquariums or in the wild,
where they have room to grow & swim. ~PP> Thanks,
M
Tetraodon Mbu Hi, 1.What tank size for Tetraodon Mbu?
<Starting size of the fish? How long do you want to keep it...
happy, healthy? A twenty to a two hundred gallon...> 2.How much
swimming space? <About the same as specified by tank dimensions
above> 3.What tank mates? <Only very aware, and or tough, mean,
fast fishes... perhaps some live plants. Doubtful any
invertebrates...> 4.What filter? <Outside power and internal
powerheads for added circulation, aeration> 5.Any other important
information? <Frequent partial water changes with pre-made water of
high alkalinity, some salt... see here: http://www.fishbase.org/Summary/SpeciesSummary.cfm?ID=10103&g
Cut and paste URL. A very mean fish species... best kept either in a
"species tank" or a biotopic presentation with other fishes
from the region (Lake Tanganyika, Congo...> Thank you <You're
welcome. Bob Fenner>
MBU Puffer 8/4/05 I hope you can help. There are so
many conflicting issues on the net and from my LFS. My tank is
approximately 5ft(long) x 2ft(high) x (just under) 2ft(depth) Its
currently running at ammonia=0 nitrite=0 and nitrate=5ppm My PH is
about 7.6 I am trying to create perfect conditions for a MBU
puffer. My LFS has said that he needs soft water, which I
have since found to be incorrect. I actually bought an RO
unit so that I could soften my water, a complete waste I know, but I
thought perhaps by adding more minerals I could control the water
levels more...any comments? Really what I would like to know is what
are the perfect water conditions for a MBU puffer including GH and
KH. Bearing in mind that I also have 2 Pictus cats and am
planning on getting 2 clown loach. (As long as this does not overcrowd
the tank). I hope you can help. >> Certainly your Mbu will
eventually eat the Pictus cats, or damage their sensitive whiskers,
clown loaches are fast and should be able to live with him long term.
Most Mbu puffers are caught in the Stanley Pool area of the Congo
River. pH 6-7, GH 5-10, KH 0-8 sounds right, but for puffer species
like the Mbu the water chemistry is not so important. More important is
a varied diet and strong filtration and frequent water changes. This
fish will get big, and it will have an even bigger appetite. You should
try and see how the fish will do in your tap water, because altering
the tap water every time you do a water change may become a hassle, and
is usually not needed for this species. Good Luck, Oliver Mbu
Puffer--Tank Size 6/29/05 <Pufferpunk again> Yeah,
I actually have some nitrates but the tank has been set up for over a
year, <So why did you say nitrates were 0?> the tank is only
about 65 litres (17 gallons), although he will go in something like a
400 (105g) when bigger. <Hmmm, that's going to be a
problem. Did you read the article I linked you
to? 400l is no where near large enough for that
puffer! Even at 2", it should be in a larger tank, due
to its messy eating habits & large bioload. If you
aren't prepared to house that fish in a MUCH larger tank, please
return it for a more suitable fish.> The only food I have given him
are mussels and cockles. <Puffers need a large variety of
foods. Look through The Puffer Forum for more diet
ideas. ~PP>
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