Boleophthalmus boddarti
A.pseudo-mudskipper

This little fish belongs to the mudskippers. As such it is close relative with Periophthalmus papilio pictured at the bottom on the left. It lives at the coasts of Southern- and eastern-Asia and the Malaysian archipelago. Contrary to the animals out of the genus Periophthalmus, they nearly don't go on land. They seldom come in sweet water and in real sea water neither. So it is a real specimen for the brackish water.
The dorsal fin, that on our picture hides from observation, is divided in two parts, is relatively short, but the first part has beautifully extended fishbone. The ventral fins have a strongly muscular join and are just like many others of this kind of fish, grown together to a kind of sucking cup. This enables them to hold out in strong tidal streams. The pectoral fins also are robust and muscular and can be used as a kind of paw. The genus Boleophthalmus counts only a few specious. Besides the specious that is pictured here also the Boleophthalmus pectinirostris is found. To be quite honest, I'm not 100% sure which of the two specious the animal in the picture concerns. After all the animals only very seldom occur in trade. Judging by the description in Süszwasserfische aus aller Welt, by Günther Sterba (one of my first reference books, but still verey good suitable) I decide it te be the animal mentioned upwards.
In a fact al thes fishes are so much specialisic, that suitable quarters are difficult to imitate. I'm reerring here to the difference in water-hight, and the fluctuating chemical construction of the water. Moreover ther occur only very few plants that will hold out in such a milieu. In short to be honest I extremely seldom have seen (so never in fact) a successful biotope for fish out of the brackish water.
That of course is the cause that again and again candidates take up the gauntlet. What strikes the most in it is that the greater part of them are rather inexperienced aquarista. Who wants to know more: In Datz once there was a series worth to read about the subject brackish water (Datz 1985 page 41, 82, 122, 164). Very worth the while, but the problem how to keep up the little biotope, is not referred to.
Literature:
Günther Sterba: Süszwasserfische aus aller Welt, Leipzig 1968
Horst Piché: Brackwasseraquarium, Datz 1985
Dr. Rüdiger Riehl en Hans A. Baensch: Aquarienatlas, Melle 1990

ventral fins