Marine Tank -- Porcupine Puffers (Diodon Holocanthus)

The ultimate mix of cuteness plus unique-ness ( at least to me...), the fish I always wanted to keep in a marine tank. Took the chance to grab whatever I could lay my hands on once my marine lfs had stock.. scooped up 5 pieces of babies no more than 2cm.. Darlin' was also bought over by their super cuteness at this size.

Cycled a new tank for a week, with water and sand plus a hammer coral from my seasoned tank and once water conditions were fine we picked them up and brought them home... They each had their own unique personality that we could identify with them together with their nipped fins/ body markings-- the one with perfect fins chasing everyone else was "BULLY" and had to be confined solitarily...sadly the rest succumbed to infections from the bites and "BULLY" was left alone... My water was not as good as I thought it was and the tank couldn't cope with the bioload of bacteria from their slime and a dead body I determined... The lack of liverocks for filtration and thin layer of live sand from my less than 1-yr old "reef-tank" was not enough.. Lessoned learned the sad way...

The one bad thing about my fishkeeping ways is impulsiveness for stuff/fish less often seen and the buy-first-consider-later bad habit I still often regret doing.... Trying to rehabilitate myself by putting their pictures on my desktop to remind me of the cruelty I have done to them helped though...

Even so, they remain a very "prized" pet for me in the future. I hope to have a special tank with enough rocks and caves for them to steer clear from each other and keep them to palm size. For now, shall just focus on one marine tank and make sure it doesn't come crashing (in the integrity and stability of the system that is).

Diodon holocanthus

Common Name: Porcupine Puffer
Other Common Names: porcupinefish; Long-spine porcupinefish
Family: Diodontidae
Distribution: Worldwide; Tropical Oceans
Water Parameters: Temp: 23-26C (74-80F); pH 7.9-8.4
Personality/Temperament: Agressive; Hunts and searches for food
Max. Size: 19 inches (50cm)
Estimated Lifespan: ~15 years
Sexual Dimorphism: Unable to discern difference between genders using external features
Diet: Live and frozen foods (not fish), freeze-dried krill, frozen shrimp, squid, clams and other molluscs and crustaceans. Feeding and Diet article
Care: Not suitable for reef tanks - will nip at corals and other invertebrates. Keep in a well-established tank, preferrably with live rock. Larger tanks are better, for territory and water quality reasons.
Breeding: Unknown
Minimum Tank Size: 120 US Gallons (450 liters)
Links to Other Resources: D. holocanthus profile on Fishbase