TankBud

Redeye puffer

Carinotetraodon lorteti

Also known as Red-eye red-belly puffer, Lorteti puffer, Red eye puffer, Crested puffer, Somphong's puffer

FreshwaterFish

Redeye puffer (Carinotetraodon lorteti)
Павлик Лисицын · CC BY 4.0

Care at a glance

Temperature
75–82°F
24–28°C
pH
6.0–7.5
Adult size
2.4 in
6 cm
Minimum tank
14 gal
54 L
Temperament
Aggressive
Social behavior
Solitary
Own kind
One male per tank
Tankmates
Species tank only
Swim level
Middle
Diet
Carnivore
Difficulty
Medium
Breeding
Medium
Rarity
Rare
Family
Tetraodontidae
Origin
Native to slow, shady streams and flooded areas of the Mekong and Chao Phraya basins in Southeast Asia.

Overview

The redeye puffer is a small but feisty freshwater puffer with red eyes. It is a fish for a keeper past the beginner stage.

Did you know

A displaying male redeye puffer can raise a ridge along his belly and back. That keel gives the genus Carinotetraodon its name.

Caring for the redeye puffer

A single redeye puffer can live in a planted tank of at least 14 gal (54 L). Keep the water at 75 to 82°F (24 to 28°C) and a pH of 6.0 to 7.5. Feed small hard foods such as snails, plus bloodworm and other frozen meaty items.

Males are very territorial. Keep one male alone, or with several females in a larger, well-planted tank. It may nip slow, long-finned fish, so keep it in a species tank.

Males are far more colorful than the plainer, rounder females, with a red belly and a dark back stripe. Breeding it is moderately hard.

Good to know

The redeye puffer is one of the smaller puffers, in the family Tetraodontidae. Like all puffers, it can inflate, and its tissues can hold tetrodotoxin.

In the wild

The redeye puffer is native to slow, shady streams and flooded areas of the Mekong and Chao Phraya basins in Southeast Asia. It lives among leaf litter and plants there.

Common questions

What size tank does a redeye puffer need?

A redeye puffer needs at least 14 gal (54 L). It spends most of its time in the middle.

What temperature and pH does a redeye puffer need?

A redeye puffer is comfortable at 75–82°F (24–28°C) with a pH of 6.0–7.5.

What does a redeye puffer eat?

A redeye puffer eats small hard foods such as snails, plus bloodworm and other frozen meaty items.

How big does a redeye puffer get?

An adult redeye puffer reaches about 2.4 in (6 cm).

How can you tell a male redeye puffer from a female?

Males are far more colorful than females, with a red belly and a dark back stripe. Females are plainer and rounder.

Related species