This page will give a completely detailed profile of the selected fish, from A to Z. The profiled fish will be chosen randomly by Badman, and will come from the complete genre of tropical fish. New profiles are added on a regular basis. If you would like to submit a profile for the site please contact me. Don't forget to let us know you experiences with this fish by filling out the

Overview:

The smallest of the puffers these require special care and conditions. If you are willing to meet their needs they can be one of the most entertaining and rewarding fish you keep.

Quick stats: Listed tank sizes are the minimum Size: Up to 1" (2.5cm) Total Length Tank: 2 to 3 gallons per fish Strata: All PH: 7.0 to 8.0 Hardness: Soft to medium. dH range: to 15 Temperature: 71ºF to 82ºF (22-28°C) Classification: Family: Tetraodontidae Order: Tetraodontiformes Class: Actinopterygii Genera: Carinotetraodon Species: travancoricus

Common name:

Dwarf puffer , Pea Puffers, Pygmy Puffers, Blue Eyed Puffers

Image gallery:

Additional species photographs

Discuss:

Badmans' Forum

Distribution

Asia, India (Kerala)

Even though they are small in size, dwarves need roughly 2 to 3 gallons per fish to have adequate space. They will become aggressive to one another if cramped too tightly together.

Dwarf Puffers need places to establish territories. It is a good idea to add multiple caves throughout the tank for them to hide in if and when they feel threatened. Plants are needed to break their lines of sight which in turn will cut down their aggression towards one another. The one thing that is very important with a Dwarf Puffer tank is that no matter what kind of plants you use, you want to use a LOT of them! Another important purpose for the plants is to give the puffers an interesting habitat. If the puffers are bored, they will do a lot of swimming up and down the glass.

I feed mine live black worms, live brine shrimp, live snails (the size of their eyes), and live ghost shrimp. They also enjoy frozen blood worms. The live food I drop into their tanks and watch the puffers hunt down their food, as they would in the wild. The frozen blood worm (thawed) I feed through a dropper. The dominant male will eat first, then the others follow suit, sometimes taking the worms right out of each others mouth! The least dominant wait their turn."

Adult Males have a brown vertical line running along the underside of their bellies. During courtship and aggression behavior, this line will become thick and dark. Some males have “Wrinkles” behind their eyes.
Females do not have the brown vertical line, nor do they have the wrinkles. Their body shape is rounder then a males’, especially during spawning season.

Dwarves should be kept in a species only tank. They are a very aggressive little fish and will nip the fins off just about any other fish. They are capable of killing tank mates much larger than themselves with their relentless picking and nipping. There is one species of fish that many people have found compatible with dwarves.
Otocinclus - Known as "ottos". Almost everyone who has tried them has successfully kept them in a dwarf tank with little to no problems. They remain small and do not attract much attention to themselves.

Carinotetraodon travancorius are the smallest of the Fresh Water Puffer fish sold in Fish Stores today. They require 100% dechlorinated fresh water. Note: They can tolerate a wide variety of water parameters, but do best as stated above..

Dwarf Puffers are very interesting, intelligent and active fish. They are very observant fish, noticing everything outside of their tank. In time, they will come to know their owners . As soon as we walk into the room they swim right up to the glass, staring at us with those big eyes! They’ll stay in one spot for hours, observing everything you’re doing. One way to stop their staring is to feed them. They are ‘big’ time beggars for food!!

All my puffers are males and have no problem with territory. There is of course a dominant male in the group, but that was to be expected and he only claims dominance at feeding. Once in a while I'll see some chasing. The fish are not stressed with this chasing, it seems to be a natural behavior.

Special note on water changes: You also have to be careful when siphoning water from the tank, because their curiosity will sometimes lead them a little too close to the siphon tube! Accidental sucking up of the dwarves are common.

Slow moving freshwater rivers in its' home range.

Breeding:

Has been bred in aquaria, but few details are available. Here is a link to one account, it even has photos
Ren's Dwarf Puffer page.

Dwarf Puffer Click photo to buy

Your comments:

Add your comments:

From: Jared Date:02/10/2009 I have been keeping 3 DP's and an Oto cat in a rather heavily planted 10 gallon for 1 year now. I must say that though they are very small fish, they get very aggressive and I would not put with anything other than a single Oto cat in a tank this size. They will establish a pecking order when it comes to feeding time; not too long after they get settled into their own tank a dominant fish will emerge (I named my dominant fish "Dom"). They eat live black worm and snails. The chances are very good that they will not accept flake foods, so before you buy them make sure you are prepared. Either way, make for a very interesting tank. From: Robin Date:04/27/2008 These wonderful little fish need to be kept in a species only tank as they are know fin nippers and can be quite aggressive despite their size! You can get away with some shrimps and otos seem to work well with them. They should only be kept in a tank where they have 3-5 gallons each! Also, the tank needs to be heavily planted so that they have lots of hiding places and broken lines of sight to avoid any fighting. They love live food and freeze dried and obviously snails but flakes and dry foods are not suitable as they can be bad for the fish. They are really fun little fish and will entertain for hours when cared for properly. Enjoy!!! From: Thomas Date:05/12/2007 Let me just tell you what a great little fish this is. Funny looking, always active, interesting swimming pattern, inquisitive and full of energy. Another great thing about this fish is how it can move its eyes about so it properly looks back at you compared to other straight-eyed fish. Gives this fish real character. One of the best fish to keep in a small aquarium. They live in fresh water and prefer a high ph so water straight out of the tap is usually fine(aquasafe or reverse osmosis is of course still necessary). I have kept 7 of these fish together in a 5 gallon tank for over 4 months now. The only tricky bit about keeping this fish is their feeding. You need to be prepared to spend about 20 minutes a day feeding them. They need feeding twice a day, more than other fish do or they get aggressive. If fed regularly they are very peaceful, if not they get more vicious than piranhas. Another reason they are tricky to feed is because they do not accept flake food and ideally should be fed hard shelled food to help grind their teeth down. Breeding snails is a good idea with these fish. Ideally ramshorn snails are the best snail to feed but they are tricky to breed. Tadpole snails are easiest to breed but get too hard shells for the puffers to crush if they are grown beyond a certain size. My puffer's regular diet is live bloodworms and live daphnia although in nature they like to eat crustaceans most. A good idea is to get some freeze dried bloodworms in case you are in a hurry some days. Most people think this fish does not puff up but mine definitely do every time I feed them. This is the only time they do puff but it is great to watch. I have seen a few people mistake their puffers puffing as a sign of them having eaten enough and then being upset they do not puff... whereas the puffing up is a sign of excitement and the fish will probably still want more food. From: James Date:02/12/2007 The first month I purchased this puffer I did not know what to feed it. I tried flakes but he did not seems like it I am not sure what he ate during the 1st month. After that I tried frozen bloodworm he seems like it and became a lot more energetic. I keep him with a Betta and a swordtail in a 10 gal tank. Everybody seems getting along fine. But after the puffer staring to eat bloodworm I discover my Betta’s tail became shorter every day I did not suspect the puffer did the bad deed since his month is so small and my Beta is at least 5 time bigger the puffer. I did not believe it until one day I saw the Puffer nips the Betta's fin from below swift and clear. Now my Betta (known to be aggressive & intolerant) is transformed from a long hair hippie to a marine hair cut…super short! The betta is kind of aware if he stays on the top of the water his fin will be nipped so often he stays down the bottom of the tank. Still he got caught off guard from time to time and I think once his fin is all gone the fin nipping will stop. Puffer is a fish that does not like tank mates yet getting bored easily so he has to get something to do to pass time. He must think fin nipping is fun thing to do! He is a curios little guy often look out the tank see what is happening out there. Very hardy and cute! But just do not like companies and particularly those who swim slowly and have long finds. I don’t know once’ all the fin is gone what else he will do for his pass time. From: Trevor Date:02/11/2007 I have had my puffers for a while now. I have them with a rainbow shark, dwarf gourami, and a pleco. I feed them frozen bloodworms and a sinking algae wafer for the pleco. The all get along very well. I haven't had any problems so far. The puffers are the joy of the tank and seem very intelligent for a fish. From: Kathy Saunders Date:03/21/2006 We have a ten gallon tank that we put three of these little ones in it. In my eyes it is the best tank to watch in my home. They are always doing something interesting. I find that they love the snails as food more than blood worms. We found out from this site that they enjoyed eating them and had a problem with snails, not any more. We had to start breeding snails to keep up with the appetite. I love watching them eat. They will come to the top of our tank when we feed them blood worms and eat right from the plastic spoon we use. As far as how big the snails should be that you feed them, I find it does not matter to them food is food. They have cleaned off new snails as well as older and bigger snails we have put in. They are great!!!! From: Mkristo Date:1/04/2006 If you want a fish with Brains and Cuteness, the Dwarf Puffer is for you. I have had them for several years and just love them. It is best to keep them in a species only tank, as they are fin nippers. If you have a snail problem, you won't after putting some of these guys in, as they LOVE snails. They will not eat flakes or Freeze dried food, as live and/or frozen bloodworms and blackworms are what they desire along with the occasional brine shrimp. Don't be fooled by the slowness in which they swim around, as they can be superman fast if needed. From: Hikki Date:4/03/2005 I have kept dwarfs as well. I currently I have 6 in a 10 gallon. They are not aggressive to each other, but seem to have established a pecking order. I feed them bloodworms once a day, and they keep on looking out at me when I walk past. They are definitely intelligent and can recognize the container when I bring them food, sometimes jumping at the dropper i use to feed them.

Main index Aquarium Supplies Navigation Badmans Tropical Fish! Fishkeeping ABCs Favorite Fish Fish Families Detailed Information In Depth Definitions Natures Way The Equipment Whats That Mean? Want More Just For Fun Guestbook Site Search, What's New