They're both popular in aquariums and they can often live together in harmony. Plecos are a kind of catfish which belong to the Loricariidae family, but many will inflict serious damage on a planted aquarium, become extremely demanding or require high levels of algae to consume.
There are several different groups of catfish and it is recommendable for beginners and those keeping a fragile planted aquarium to stick with Hypoptopomatinaes. This group contains members of Otocinclus, Parotocinclus, Hypoptopoma and Microlepidogaster and the advantage of these species is that all of these fish stay small, normally within two or three inches. Although they love to eat algae, the bane of many an aquarium, they will largely leave your plants alone. However, this is not the case with all Plecos and additionally, some species will not only cause havoc in the aquarium but have extremely demanding needs to be kept successfully.
Worker catfish in the Ancistrinae, members of the genus Ancistrus are possible the best worker catfish you could keep, more commonly known as bushynose plecos. However, it is important to know that some species of Ancistrus will do a lot of damage to plants and this Plecos will require a lot of your time to keep successfully. This is due to the fact they generally need a strong current, very specific water temperatures and a high level of oxygen from the main body of the aquarium water. If you are planning a Dutch aquascape, it is advisable to keep to any of the species above.
Unless you are an advanced hobbyist, it is a good idea to attempt to stay clear of Farlowella, which are extremely efficient algae eaters. This may seem ideal to begin with, but they are so efficient at consuming algae it is possible for them to clean an aquarium in a few days and subsequently starve to death afterwards. In addition to these nearly all Hypostomus and Glytopterichthys, more commonly known as sailfin Plecos, will grow to extremely large sizes and love to eat plants.
Some Plecos are much easier on plants and are, by comparison, relatively simple to keep successfully. Research into the individual species should give a firm idea of what can be successfully kept with plants and what may need more attention from you to keep life in the aquarium harmonious. When choosing algae eaters, it is a good idea to wait for some algae to be present in the tank first, to ensure that they will always have enough to eat and do not become ill as the aquarium becomes clear.
With live aquarium plants you can overcome all the problems of a non-planted aquarium. You can improve the quality of your aeration, filtration, food and algae control. You can improve the lives of your fish. Find out how live aquarium plants can help you, help them.
By Sean Norman
Sean Norman is an environmental science student and freelance writer with a deep love of ecology.
Article Source: EzineArticles
Cryptocoryne Wendtii is one of many species of aquatic plant which belongs to the Cryptocoryne family. The Wendtii species if favoured by many aquarists because it is relatively easy to keep and can grow in a range of conditions. Cryptocoryne Wendtii is an ideal plant for someone who is new to growing aquarium plants and does not wish to try their hand at anything harder. It originated in Sri Lanka but has now spread to parts of America, notably Florida and is generally popular in planted tanks. They are hardy plants and do well under a range of lighting conditions.
Under high light it has been reported that Cryptocoryne Wendtii will become more compact, spreading horizontally over the substrate. The other noticeable affect from a higher level of light, is an increase in growth speed as well as a change in colour. In these conditions, some red varieties may turn also purple.
It is very easy to keep Cryptocoryne Wendtii because it is not a very demanding aquatic plant. A noticeable characteristic is that under stress, such as large changes in water conditions, most if not all of the leaves will fall off. This condition is commonly referred to as "Crypt Melt". If this does occur in the aquarium, do not panic, in a couple of weeks most of the foliage should have regrown. It is rare that Cryptocoryne plants will die from the affects of Crypt Melt, although it is not impossible. It is important to try and maintain balanced water chemistry in so far as possible.
If you are a beginner to keeping aquatic plants, or you would just like to introduce a low demand and easily kept plant to your current aquarium, Cryptocoryne Wendtii is a good choice. There is not too much risk of it over-running the aquarium, though as with all easily grown aquarium plants, some thought should be given to this possibility. As with all aquatic plants that you could grow, they offer a range of benefits to your fish. Biological filtration, aeration, protection, additional food and algae control are all reasons to grow.
There are some good alternatives to Cryptocoryne Wendtii, such as Java Moss, Java Fern and Anubias Barteri. For a beginner all four could compete for space in your aquarium and they would all equally be worth the space.
With live aquarium plants you can overcome all the problems of a non-planted aquarium. You can improve the quality of your aeration, filtration, food and algae control. You can improve the lives of your fish.
Find out how live aquarium plants can help you, help them.
By Sean Norman
Sean Norman is an environmental science student and freelance writer with a deep love of ecology.
Article Source: EzineArticles
Dive into a wonderland of underwater fun, while at the Melbourne Aquarium. Commonly known as MAQ to locals this wondrous attraction is the most recent addition to the school of aquariums in Australia as well as the most state-of-the-art.
Melbourne Aquarium view near the Queens Bridge (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
The Melbourne Aquarium is home to over ten thousand exotic sea creatures and synonymous with the MAQ tagline, there is "Always Something New to Sea". Home to many beautiful animals, the main attractions of the Melbourne Aquarium's Underwater Zoo are the King & Bentoo Penguins and Broadnose Sevengill & Grey Nurse Sharks. Other splendid sea creatures include Weedy Seadragons, Big Bellied Seahorses, Eleven Armed Sea Stars, Green Moray Eels, Moon Jellies and much more.
This marine wonderland in Melbourne includes an array of activities for visitors. A truly amazing journey, the Melbourne Aquarium offers a complete interactive experience to visitors, both young and old. With group tours for every age and category be it a group, senior visitors, corporate tours, family tours or even glass bottom tours, MAQ has it all for you. If you prefer a more interactive, take a dive with the sharks and other marine creatures or even indulge in 'Hands on Activities'. The Melbourne Aquarium also offers educational programs for Kindergarten children and adults, such as "An Aquarist for a Day", "Smart Water", "A Watery World in your Classroom", "Melbourne Aquarium's Underwater Zoo IMAX adventure" and much more.
Apart from the interactive activities and educational programs, the Melbourne Aquarium Underwater Zoo has more to offer. Partake in the 360 degree Oceanarium filled with sharks stingrays and walk through the tunnels while viewing the live feeding session occurring twice a day. Also, indulge in the likes of the Great Barrier Reef display, Australian Billabongs, touch tanks and simulator rides to thrill each and everyone one.
This wondrous location offers an array of function spaces to host functions along while in the company of marvellous sea creatures. Whether it is the Fishbowl or the Coral Atoll, or even the entire aquarium, guests are sure to experience an event like no other.
Taking visitors to a land like no other, the Melbourne Aquarium and its Underwater Zoo truly offers a marine wonderland to indulge on while in Melbourne. With serviced apartments such as the Somerset Gordon Place, indulge in the comfort and warmth of staying in Melbourne serviced residence catering to all your needs and wants and visit the many attractions nearby.
By Naveen Marasinghe
Naveen Marasinghe is an e-marketing executive at eMarketingEye(Private) Ltd. eMarketingeEye is an search engine marketing company offering integrated Internet marketing solutions, specializing in serving the online travel and hospitality industry.
Article Source: EzineArticles
A balanced diet for your aquarium fish is essential to thier survival. Most of the commercially available dry fish foods are almost always unbalanced. In many cases, the vitamin content will gradually decline at room temperature and since majority of the dry food for tropical fish commonly used will only keep for about three months, it is always advisable to buy fish-feeds in many small packs rather than in one large pack.
Aquarium - Dried foods for fishes (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
The feed could preferably be kept absolutely dry in a refrigerator. However, all fish appreciate a change of diet and will thank you for your consideration with more interesting behavior, better colours, and greater readiness to breed and better general well -being. This change of diet should be supplemented with live food; majority of which now come in irradiated freeze dried forms to make sure that they are disease free.
I will mention a few that could be found handy in some major aquarium shops and I will group them into two. And they are flake foods and freeze-dried foods
Most popular and highly recommended brands are Aquarian®, Tetra®, and Wardley®. They are varying in cost and quality. Wardley is the least expensive among the three. However, the Aquarian and Tetra are richer in specialty flakes compare to Wardley.
Freeze-dried foods
You will also find freeze-dried foods available in aquarium stores. They are favorite foods for aquarium fish. They have single animal-ingredient like mosquito larvae, blood worms and Tubifex worm each. Aquarist should note that freeze-foods are not in themselves complete diet but they can be combine to flake food or other type of freeze-dried foods. We shall discuss more about Tubifex as a popular freeze-dried food.
TUBIFEX - This is a traditional favorite food relished by most fishes. They are small red worms that live at the bottom of streams and rivers particularly where large amounts of organic matter are present. Therefore, it is difficult for the aquarist to collect them life from their habitat. It is therefore preferable to buy Tubifex from pet shops where they are already clean, freeze-dried and concentrated into cube forms.
From personal experience, Tubifex tubes could probably be the most exciting feed to use for fishes. The cube can be stuck to the front inside wall of the aquarium. The fishes in the tank will immediately come forward and bit off pieces of worms excitedly until satisfied.
You need not bother to remove the rest worms since they seldom pollute and in most case fishes return to the feed for further fill.
As a marine aquarium keeper, it's your job to maintain an environment as close to what your organisms are accustomed to as possible. Unless your livestock came directly from Utah's Great Salt Lake, too much salinity in your water can be harmful. However, not enough salinity also can make your fish or coral uncomfortable. This is where a piece of equipment called a refractometer comes in handy.
What Is a Refractometer?
Because a refractometer can determine the salinity of your aquarium water, it is a tool worth having on hand, especially if you have a reef aquarium. A refractometer is a piece of equipment that measures the speed of light passing through a liquid, in this case through a sampling of seawater from your aquarium. The more particulates there are in the water, the slower light travels through the water. Depending on where the light falls on the refractometer's built-in scale determines the salinity in your marine aquarium. This also allows you to measure the specific gravity of your seawater. The specific gravity is the density of salt in your aquarium water as compared to fresh water.
The determination of salinity is based on the index of refraction. For example, if you use your refractometer in a vacuum, such as in outer space, the device's index scale should read 1.0000. The index for pure water is 1.3330. For seawater at 35 parts per thousand (ppt), the index reading should be 1.024-1.026. If your refractometer reads higher or lower than 1.024, then you may need to adjust the chemical composition of your aquarium water.
What to Look for When Purchasing a Refractometer
When buying a refractometer, make sure the one you choose is specifically for seawater use. Many refractometers on the market are manufactured only to measure the salinity of sodium chloride solutions. These types are referred to as brine or salt refractometers. They are good for measuring the saltiness of Aunt Sally's blue ribbon pickles, but, as you know, a marine aquarium contains more than just sodium chloride, such as trace elements, calcium, carbonates and magnesium. A seawater refractometer takes these into account.
You also want a refractometer that, once calibrated, automatically takes water temperature into consideration in the reading. Without this automatic temperature compensation (ATC), your reading can be misleading, since warmer water expands slightly, allowing light to pass through more easily. This means your tank of warm water may appear to have less salinity than is actually present.
Other handy aspects of a good refractometer include a dual scale that measures both specific gravity and parts per thousand, and an eyepiece you can adjust in order to clearly read the scale.
How to Read a Refractometer
First, open the cover to the refractometer's prism. Using a clean pipette, take a sample of aquarium water and place a drop or two onto the prism plate, then close the cover. Hold the refractometer to the light and look through the eyepiece, adjusting the eyepiece until you can clearly see the scale. One side of the scale measures the salinity of the water in parts per thousand, which for seawater should read 35 ppt. The other side of the scale lets you know the specific gravity, which is 1.024 for seawater.
As you look through the eyepiece, you will notice that the top part of the scale is blue, while the bottom portion of the scale looks white. Your reading should be taken at the spot where the blue and white meet on the scale.
For the serious marine aquarium person, a refractometer can be a great addition to your tool box, because you can receive more accurate readings than from the traditional hydrometer. But, the refractometer does need to be calibrated in order to give you an accurate reading. Follow manufacturer's instructions to properly calibrate your particular refractometer.
Are you looking for a wonderful breed of fish to add to your aquarium? African Cichlids are a tropical fresh water species and they are quite popular for use in home tanks today. Why is this? They have amazing and brilliant colors, making them a great addition to any underwater habitat! Not only are they beautiful to look at, they live much longer than most fish suitable for aquariums. They can live up to eight years with the proper care, and they are fairly easy to maintain as well.
African Cichlids are curious too, and they love to stay active! Yet, you need a bit of education to make the right choice when at the store, to ensure the best outcome with your new fish. To help you in this endeavor, let's examine African Cichlids in more detail below.
Interesting Qualities
African Cichlids are found in many lakes in Africa, the foremost being Lake Victoria, Tanginika and Malawi. They display a fascinating specialization, and are thought to be the most colorful fish which are freshwater in origin. These lively fish can have intricate behavior patterns, and can sometimes be aggressive. This is especially true if they are in a group, and it is best to feed them often if this is the case. Why is this? It gives them something else to focus upon, and will keep them otherwise occupied. How many feedings per day is appropriate? You can feed African Cichlids up to four times per day if necessary, to keep their fighting at bay. If they are more docile in nature, you can feed them less often.
The reason this tactic works so well, is that food is sometimes scarce in their natural habitat. African Cichlids live in large schools in the wild, and they must fight each other for any food which they obtain. By feeding them often throughout the day, you'll eliminate this source of conflict, by providing them with an abundant food source.
Another way to reduce their aggressive tendencies, is to buy fish that are nearly the same size. With this type of approach, no fish will feel that they have a clear advantage over the others, and more peaceful interaction will develop naturally. If you buy one African Cichlid which is much bigger than the other fish, they will try to dominate the rest, causing problems in your aquarium.
African Cichlids are usually on the move as well, and will provide you with endless hours of entertainment! They love to explore their environment, and will be interested in any decorations in your aquarium. They'll also be curious about the other fish in your tank as well, and often times they will even dig in the substrate to stay busy.
Experienced Care Needed For African Cichlids
For all of these reasons and more, this species is a great addition to any tank, yet some care should be taken. They are not really suitable if you're just starting out, as it can take some research and experience to have the best outcome. In fact, these fish are part of a large subset which includes about six hundred other species, and each one has its own specific needs! The variations can run the gamut from small behavior differences, to special food requirements. As you can see, you shouldn't buy these fish if you haven't prepared to care for them beforehand.
Other potential issues to be aware of, are their breeding habits as well. If you want to produce offspring, you should be aware that African Cichlids can be hard to mate. Incompatibility is a common problem, and these fish can often get into fights instead of breeding. It is best to add one fish at a time, to ensure the most harmonious atmosphere possible. This will also help you to balance the nitrogen levels in your tank as well, keeping it well below the danger zone.
However, once successful mating takes place, African Cichlids are wonderful parents! They will keep their young safe and well cared for, and they stay around even after the eggs have hatched. This is in contrast to some other species, which leave their eggs to fend for themselves. In fact, African Cichlids have even been known to care for one another's eggs when in the wild, displaying remarkably strong social behavior.
Other Considerations
While there may be some variation in their needs, all African Cichlids require a large tank to do well. Also, water which is quite basic on the pH scale is best for them, and will give them conditions which most closely mimic those found in their natural habitat. If you are at a loss for how to do this, add some crushed coral to your aquarium, which will work to promote a base environment.
Also, there are now hybrid species available, which cross African Cichlids with other varieties of fish. While these may be interesting, and boast unique characteristics, there are several drawbacks as well. They may not be as resilient as fish with a pure genetic strain, meaning they may be harder to care for. Also, their behavior may be a bit more erratic, as you don't know which species traits they will display most dominantly.
Conclusion
Though African Cichlids can require some extra measures of care, they are well worth the effort! If you are a novice when it comes to aquariums, you should wait until you have more experience. Yet, if you have some knowledge in this area, these fish are a wonderful addition for your tank! With their high energy and curious nature, they'll always give you something to watch with interest. They may hide behind your decorations, or even burrow into the sand or gravel at the bottom of the aquarium. If you have any problems with aggressive behavior, just remember to feed them often. With this simple strategy in mind, you can often eliminate any issues with ease, and go back to having a peaceable tank in no time at all.
With their brilliant colors, African Cichlids will add new hues and tones to your aquatic environment as well. They have a reputation for being intelligent, and they can be quite loyal as well. If they do have little ones, they make excellent parents too. So, for all of these reasons, you are sure to love this species of fish, and will enjoy having them in your tank for many years to come!
Having had fish tanks for over ten years, enjoying freshwater tropical fish, I now decided to write about my experiences on FreshwaterTropicalFish.org [http://freshwatertropicalfish.org].
The Diamond Tetra fish, better known to aquarium lovers as the Moenkhausia pittieri, is a member of the family Characidae and was originally found living in the Venezuelan Lake Valencia and a few select Venezuelan rivers. Male species of the fish may grow between two to 12 inches, but females are usually smaller. Though not a brightly colored fish, the Diamond Tetra is a silver color with greenish-colored highlights, and it stands out due to its beautiful reflective scales. In baby Diamond Tetras, the shimmering effect of its scales hasn't developed yet, but it will become evident as it ages.
In terms of aquarium environment, the Moenkhausia pittieri should always be part of a school with a minimum of six fish. These should include others of their own species, and fish of others species should be around the same size. Within this school, one male will always be the dominant one. This male tolerates the others, but is always in control. Diamond Tetras have an ideal pH range of 6.6 to 7.0 and temperature preference of 74-82 degrees Fahrenheit (26-28 degrees Celsius), and if kept outside of this range, might take on a different appearance. Also, these fish like having lots of plants in their aquarium, and are luckily not very picky when it comes to feeding time. Moenkhaussia pittieri will love you for offering living food, but can eat anything from flakes to frozen food. Having learned a bit about this type of fish and its basic requirements, steps towards breeding it can now be taken.
Breeding Diamond Tetra Fish
The most difficult process of breeding Diamond Tetra fish is getting the right pairs together. Mature males have longer fins than females, especially when it comes to dorsal fins. Though females will most likely be smaller than the males, females that are ready for breeding often appear to be of a stockier shape. After selection of a pair of Diamond Tetras is complete, they should be separated and conditioned with good food. During the conditioning phase, they should be fed their preferred live food and also some frozen food. This should last for around 10 days.
While conditioning is going on, a separate spawning tank should be prepared. It doesn't have to a very large tank, but needs to include lots of plants, especially those with dense leaves. The conditions in this tank should be similar to the tank that the other Diamond Tetras live in, though at first, there should be no light in the spawning tank. Soft water should always be used over hard water. Gravel is not required, but some netting should be included towards the bottom of the tank. It should be far down enough to give the breeding pair enough space to swim. The holes in the netting also need to be large enough for the eggs to fall through to the bottom of the tank. The spawning tank should also be placed in a quiet area of the home where there can be no disturbances to the fish.
After the allotted time for conditioning has expired, the selected pair should be placed in the spawning tank in the evening when it is dark, and again, no lights should be used in the vicinity of the tank. In the event that the pair of Diamond Tetras is compatible, spawning might take place immediately upon the fish being placed in the spawning tank or might not take place until a day or two afterwards. Sometimes the lighting that is present in the environment where the tank is situated will help speed up the process. Though the male may spend most of his time following the female, when the time has come for spawning, the female will release the eggs at the same time as the male releases the sperm. The eggs must then become fertilized, in which case it is helpful to have soft water in the tank. The netting is very important here, because Moenkhaussia pittieri tend to eat their eggs, and in order to prevent this, the eggs must fall through the netting, separating the eggs from their parents. After spawning has taken place, the male and female fish should be removed from the spawning tank and returned to their regular aquarium.
Though the eggs may see movement within 36 hours, it can take up to a week before the baby fish are capable of swimming around their spawning tank. The fry will be very hungry, but in an aquarium with lots of plants, will find things to eat in their first few days. After that, fry food is acceptable, and once they are large enough, appropriately sized live food is good for them. Keeping the spawning tank clean while the fry are developing is very important. Because they grow so quickly during their first few weeks, baby Diamond Tetras soon look like the adults, though smaller. Their coloring will be plain at first, with their breathtaking shimmering scales being fully developed around the time the fish are 9 months old. Once they have reached a size that wont put them in danger, they can be moved into the adult tank and the spawning tank can be utizilized again with a new pair of adult fish.
Breeding Diamond Tetras can be a challenge, mainly because it may take several tries to find a compatible pair of male and female fish. It is important to keep the adult Diamond Tetra environment healthy so as not to adversely impact their well-being and ability to spawn at a later time. Likewise, the spawning tank should be kept clean and the temperature, pH, and softness should be checked regularly. Enough time and resources should be spent on the conditioning portion of the breeding process, as it is of great importance. Keep different types of food, including fry food, on hand at all times, even if you are doubtful that spawning could occur. Within several weeks or months, you will be rewarded in all your efforts as you watch the eggs hatch and can see your fry growing up and gaining those beautiful shimmering scales the Diamond Tetra are known for.
By Leslie Bogaerts
Having had fish tanks for over ten years, enjoying freshwater tropical fish [http://freshwatertropicalfish.org], I now decided to write about my experiences on FreshwaterTropicalFish.org [http://freshwatertropicalfish.org].
Article Source: EzineArticles
