Mbu puffer
Tetraodon mbu
Also known as Giant freshwater puffer, Giant puffer
FreshwaterFish
Care at a glance
- Temperature
- 75–82°F
- 24–28°C
- pH
- 7.0–8.0
- Adult size
- 26.4 in
- 67 cm
- Minimum tank
- 396 gal
- 1,500 L
- Temperament
- Aggressive
- Social behavior
- Solitary
- Own kind
- One per tank
- Tankmates
- With caution
- Swim level
- Middle
- Difficulty
- Difficult
- Breeding
- No record
- Rarity
- Common
- Family
- Tetraodontidae
- Origin
- Native to the Congo River basin and Lake Tanganyika in Central Africa, over open sand and rock in large rivers.
Overview
This is a huge, messy fish that needs an enormous tank: an adult around 67 cm requires at least 1500 litres with very strong filtration. Keep it at 24 to 28 C and pH 7.0 to 8.0. It is usually kept alone, as it may nip or eat tankmates, though some keepers manage large, fast companions. Feed a varied hard-shelled diet of snails, mussel, prawn and crab to keep the beak worn down.
In the wild
The mbu puffer is the giant of freshwater puffers, a round-bodied fish with a maze-like green and yellow pattern and expressive eyes. It cruises open water and crushes snails, crabs and mussels with a powerful beak. It is intelligent and interactive but produces a very heavy waste load.
Good to know
Tetraodon mbu belongs to the family Tetraodontidae and reaches up to around 67 cm, the largest of the freshwater puffers. Like other puffers it can inflate with water and its tissues can carry the toxin tetrodotoxin. The four fused teeth form a beak that grows continuously and is worn down by hard-shelled prey.
Did you know
An mbu puffer's beak never stops growing, so a steady diet of snails and shellfish is what keeps it from overgrowing and starving the fish.
Common questions
What size tank does a Mbu puffer need?
A Mbu puffer needs at least 396 gal (1,500 L). It spends most of its time in the middle.
What temperature and pH does a Mbu puffer need?
A Mbu puffer is comfortable at 75–82°F (24–28°C) with a pH of 7.0–8.0.
How big does a Mbu puffer get?
An adult Mbu puffer reaches about 26.4 in (67 cm).
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