Mudskipper
Scientific Name: Periophthalmus barbarus
Size: 6"-8"
Temperature: 29-30oC (79-88oF)
pH: Alkaline. Range: 7.5-8.3
Diet: Live or frozen foods, especially shrimp and crickets.
Behavior: Will spend about 90% of their time out of water. Highly aggressive and territorial, especially towards its own species. Only one mudskipper shoud be kept in the same tank unless ample hiding places are provided. Predatory, will happily eat anything that will fit in their mouths.
Note: An unusual and fascinating fish, mudskippers are very hardy if the proper arrangements are made. The tank should be spacious, with no more than 8" of brackish water. The substrate should be sandy and smooth, with large smooth rocks and pieces of driftwood provided for the mudskipper to climb on. It is advisable to sand down the sharp edges on driftwood, as mudskippers can injure themselves on sharp protrusions. It is crucial that the air in the tank is very humid, and roughly the same temperature as the water. Therefore, the tank should be tightly covered in order to retain humidity and to prevent the mudskipper from jumping out. Mudskippers are greedy eaters, so filtration should be efficient, and weekly water changes of 50% are advisable. Under the proper conditions and handling, mudskippers will become very tame, and will even learn to climb up onto a person's hand for feeding. Good tankmates include scats, monos, figure-eight puffers, sailfin mollies, and arius catfish. Spawning takes place in mud burrows, and has never occurred in captivity.
