Red Eye Red Tailed Puffer (Carinotetraodon irrubesco)

An uncommonly seen dwarf puffer species known from Borneo and Sulawesi, the Red Eye Red Tailed Puffer is a true freshwater puffer that in habits warm acidic waters. In the wild, they are often found in loose aggregations but are not necessarily as social as some other freshwater puffer species. Aquarium care should replicate their wild habitat as closely as possible, with soft water, little water movement, and plenty of cover in the form of driftwood, aquatic/floating plants, or rockwork. The addition of tannins from botanicals like Indian Almond Leaves are helpful to make this species feel at home in the aquarium. Like all freshwater puffers their specialized teeth form a beak that needs to be worn down by hard-shelled food items like freshwater snails or hard-shelled shrimp should be offered regularly in addition to other protein rich live or frozen foods. A relatively peaceful species, the Red Eye Red Tailed Puffer can be kept in groups provided plenty of space is provided, and the species is sexually dimorphic, with males displaying distinctive horizontal stripes along the body, and a more reticulated/spotted pattern shown in females.