Need help - ID puffer fish

**AlexHcp** · 14th Dec 2011, 04:57

Hi all, recently I manage to stumble across this puffer which looks quite nice, interesting and aggressive. Need fellow bro to help Id this puffer... If I am not wrong it should be the figure 8 puffer, which lives in the freshwater ...

Below are the pic:

Please help id this puffer, and also any pro out here can advice, if it is a completely freshwater species?

**taizi** · 14th Dec 2011, 12:35

figure 8. did u get it at qh for 2 ?

**AlexHcp** · 14th Dec 2011, 14:02

No ehh, I saw it at clementi... In a very bad condition... Is this freshwater ?

**taizi** · 14th Dec 2011, 14:51

yes abit brackish

**AlexHcp** · 14th Dec 2011, 15:19

....? Yes and abit brackish? I don't understand ...

**stormhawk** · 14th Dec 2011, 17:06

Did you get this puffer from one of the mini tanks on the shelves near the terrapins, or from the buckets on the floor?

They need some marine salt in their water to thrive. With the addition of marine salt at a certain specific gravity, they may live for up to 15 years.

**AlexHcp** · 14th Dec 2011, 17:26

It's from the mini tanks which got Betta and terrapin I guess.. The shop house all of the puffer together, and they were snipping at each other fin...
Bro shadow, I read alot on the puffers, and I got conflicting answers... Some website did suggest that they can thrive in freshwater cause their natural habitat is pure freshwater only...

Quite confused over this at the moment...

**delhezi** · 14th Dec 2011, 20:45

Just to confirm it. Definitely brackish, SG 1.005, add very small amounts of salt per week to not kill your filter media.

**stormhawk** · 15th Dec 2011, 18:23

They live in freshwater habitats but will venture out into estuarine waters so some marine salt will be fine for them. Delhezi has given the proper specific gravity so a refractometer or a cheap hydrometer should suffice as a rough measuring device.