Indian mudskipper

Care at a glance

Overview

This is a mudskipper, so it is more of an amphibious paludarium project than a normal fish tank; it spends much of the day out of the water on damp land. It is mostly peaceful and social, and small groups do well when there is space, though males set up little territories on the mud. It needs a warm, humid setup with an exposed land or mud bank, shallow brackish water to return to, and a tight cover to hold humidity and stop it walking out. Feed meaty foods such as small crustaceans, insects, and frozen bloodworm, offered both in the shallows and on land. Because it needs land and water side by side, give it a footprint of at least 110 liters.

In the wild

In the wild it lives on tidal mudflats and mangrove edges around the Bay of Bengal and the coasts of India, skittering over wet mud and slipping between rock pools. The water is warm and brackish and the air is humid. Recreate that with a paludarium: a large land or mud area, shallow brackish water with salt added, steady warmth, and high humidity under a sealed lid. Keep the water at 24 to 28 C and hard and alkaline, about pH 7.5 to 8.5.

Good to know

Periophthalmus novemradiatus is a member of the family Oxudercidae and was described by Hamilton in 1822. It is a small mudskipper of about 10 centimeters, and its name novemradiatus means nine-rayed, a reference to the fin rays. It is an air-breather that shuttles between water and land, taking in oxygen through its skin and the lining of its mouth. It is amphidromous, and there is no established record of it being bred in the aquarium.

Did you know

It spends much of its day out of the water, breathing air through wet skin and the lining of its mouth, hopping across the mud on its front fins, and staking claims with little push-up displays.

Common questions

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