![]() ![]() These fish are found naturally in Florida but have since been introduced to other regions. Like other mollies, they live in open water and prefer to swim alone or in small groups. This freshwater fish can be found in North America. The scientific name of the gold dust molly is Poecilia sphenops Habitat Their common name comes from a golden glow they develop when breeding. They reach a maximum length of about 4 inches. There are several subspecies of Poecilia sphenops that vary in coloration from grayish-green to yellow-orange with black spots on their flanks. These fish are native to Mexico and Central America but have been introduced into Florida, Hawaii, Australia, and New Zealand. Other members of Poeciliidae include guppies and swordtails. The gold dust molly belongs to the family Poeciliidae, which is also known as livebearers. ![]() They grow up to 10 cm in length but stay smaller than many other livebearers because they don’t require as much oxygen as others do, due to their labyrinth organ which allows them to breathe air directly through their gills. Their dorsal fin has an orange edge that makes them easily distinguishable from other livebearers. In other populations, they can be found with silver, brown, or orange colors. ![]() The common name is derived from their bright golden coloration in some populations of fish. This refers to their relatively flat heads and wedge-shaped snouts. The species name, sphenops, comes from Greek and means wedge-faced. They are members of the Poeciliidae family, subfamily Poeciliinae, tribe Vandelliini, and genus Poecilia. They are very peaceful and enjoy hanging out in schools. We design, build and maintain your tank for you so all you have to do is enjoy it! You can contact us here with your ideas.Gold dust molly originates from Panama. If you’re not sure how to go about setting up your aquarium for a stars and stripes puffer or some of the many other amazing saltwater species available in the trade nowadays, we can help. It’s also a challenging fish to keep and not one we’d recommend for absolute beginners. The stars and stripes puffer is an amazingly intelligent fish that you can really build a bond with. You can also offer commercial foods on a regular basis if your fish will accept it. To make sure your stars and stripes puffer’s teeth stay trimmed, offer fresh or frozen clams, cockles, crab legs and unpeeled shrimp daily. In the aquarium their teeth will quickly overgrow if only soft foods are offered, leading you to have to clip them manually or the fish might end up unable to eat. Even rock is scraped for algae deposits.Īs a result of their diet, puffer teeth have evolved to never stop growing. Clams, snails and other invertebrates are cracked open with no issues. In the wild, pufferfish feed on challenging foods that rapidly wear down their teeth. When figuring out the diet for your stars and stripes puffer there is one very important aspect to keep in mind: tooth growth. Larger tankmates should be no problem as long as they’re not too aggressive. That includes corals and small tankmates. These are juveniles adults can grow up to 18” in length.Īlthough they are not particularly aggressive and can actually be timid, stars and stripes puffers will still eat anything they can get to. When threatened, though, they honor their common name by sucking in water and puffing themselves up.ĭon’t be fooled by the size of young stars and stripes puffers at the aquarium store. In a normal relaxed state, these fish are relatively slender (unless they’ve recently eaten). Pufferfish are easily recognized by their hovering manner of swimming. The species features yellow fins and a very powerful beak with teeth emerging from both the top and bottom. The stars and stripes puffer (or white spotted puffer) lends its common name from its pattern, which is a mixture of white dots (body) and stripes (belly) on a brown-gray body. Stars and stripes puffer, white-spotted puffer, Arothron hispidus Keep reading for everything you need to know about keeping a stars and stripes puffer in your own aquarium! Name (Common, Scientific) Highly intelligent, they can develop a real bond with their owners and recognize who feeds them. Why in the world would anyone want to keep the stars and stripes puffer (Arothron hispidus)? It might be their funky pattern but more likely it’s down to puffers’ amazing personalities. They’re not reef safe, will happily munch on anything they can get between their powerful teeth and need a pretty massive aquarium to thrive. ![]()
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