A beach covered with driftwood near Porirua, New Zealand. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
DIY driftwood takes time, but it will save you tons of money. Some small pieces cost well over $20. Also, the soak method (minus the salt) will work for store-bought driftwood. Store bought driftwood is cleaned and has not been soaked. This may lead to tannin’s being leaked into your tank
What you’ll need:
Driftwood, which can be found anywhere. It doesn't necessarily have to come from the water. You could find it in the woods, as long as it is weathered down and looks unique. Also, make sure the wood is not rotting.
BIG soaking container, I use a 15 gal rubber maid container.
Aquarium Salt, I use Doc Wellfish brand. This is used as a natural way of killing bacteria and parasites.
The first step, clean off your wood! Make sure all debris and bark are removed from the wood (or it’ll fall off in your tank!). Once complete, boil the water in the BIG pot and add aquarium salt. I use about a tablespoon per gallon. Boil the entire piece for about 2-4 hours depending on your size. If you can only fit half the wood in the pot then you will need to boil the other half.
Once the boil is complete you can transfer your wood into the rubber maid container. Add water until the whole piece of wood is underwater (you can also add salt if you want). If the wood does not sink place something on top of it until it does. It’ll sink after a week or two. You’ll notice the water turn into tea-ish color. It is the result of the tannins that are released into the water. If you didn’t soak the wood, the water in your tank would be this color. Tannins are natural and some fishes actually like it because it’ll make them feel more at home. It’ll also affect your PH, I’m not sure about GH or KH. You’ll need to do water changes every other day to clean the water. This may take weeks or months.
When the color of the soak water suffices, you will need to soak your wood for another week without any salt. This will make sure that the wood does not hold any salt that may leak into your tank.
Once soaking is complete wash the wood well and transfers the wood into your tank. Do not keep the wood out of water for a long time or it will float.
For more information and pictures about this project, please visit www.CarolinaFishTalk.com and check the DIY section.
The article was written by krayzievanh@yahoo.com, member of CFT Community - Proofread by Brandan Njagu b.njagu@gmail.com
There really comes a time when a pet owner would love to breed their own fishes. As a matter of fact, African cichlids breeding has been a common practice for most fish enthusiasts. Since these types of fishes are very popular, it is somehow rewarding to have a few of your own. Inter-breeding different species of African cichlids enables one to come up with cichlids with a unique color. Now, that's another feather on one's cap.
Although breeding African Cichlids is exciting as it may sound, it still involves some sort of hard work and discipline. It would also require you to do some research. Studying the ins and outs of the process like what you are doing now can really help.
The first thing you should know is that most species of African Cichlids are mouthbrooders. When this is the case, the female cichlid keeps her eggs inside her mouth. Male African cichlids do a dance-like routine to woo the female cichlid. Once you see this seemingly unusual behavior from your male cichlid, you should start monitoring the next events.
After the actual mating process, the female will lay the eggs in the water. The male cichlid should be able to fertilize the eggs before the female takes it in her mouth. The whole process is repeated until there are fertilized eggs. The unfertilized ones are just left behind.
There is sometimes a stumbling block in breeding African Cichlids. How do you get the female and male cichlids to mate? You won't have a problem with this if you have a few female cichlids in your tanks.
You see, male African cichlids tend to fight with one another when the female cichlid is ready for mating. The fights can turn ugly and may lead you to lose some fishes. The key to this situation is to have one male and probably three female cichlids. This way, the male would have controllable aggressiveness.
Bear in mind that female cichlids must undergo necessary preparations prior to her spawning period. She must be at the pink of health. Also, take the time to ensure that she's well-fed. Female African cichlids usually go by without food during her spawning season.
Remember those female cichlids are mouthbrooders. The eggs stay inside the mother's mouth for at least two months. Feed the female as frequent as you can because she can only take little food during this time.
After the fry hatches, you need to put them in a separate tank. Otherwise, the mature cichlid will mistake them for food. The fry needs to be in a tank away from other mature fishes. Also, try to separate the mother cichlid as she needs to recover. She won't be able to do so if she has to deal with bullying from other fishes.
There is surely a lot to learn when it comes to African cichlids breeding. However, your patience would surely pave way for more worthwhile discoveries. Just pay close attention and love your cichlids more. They would surely reward your hard work.
Hyphessobrycon pulchripinnis - Zitronensalmler (Länge: ca. 3cm) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Glassily transparent, the lemon tetra (hyphessobrycon pulchripinnis) could appear to be just a sunbeam flashing through your community tank if not for background elements like plants and driftwood. Another member of the large characin clan, the lemon tetra has a fairly elongated body like its smaller relative the neon tetra and like neons and other characins, the lemon tetra does best if kept in small schools of six to eight fish.
One of the most distinguishing features of the lemon tetra is their large eyes. The upper part of the lemon tetra's eye is brilliant red, which is a sharp contrast to the yellow pastels it displays in its body colors. Actually, though, the lemon tetra is quite colorful on close inspection. Body coloring is a delicate pale yellow, flanks are silver, and the leading edge of the anal fin is shiny-bright-yellow and sharply divided from the other rays, which are black.
In the male, the rest of the anal fin is broad and fringed in black, a characteristic that is missing in the plumper female. As many male characins do, the male lemon tetras also have tiny hooks on their anal fins. Both males and females have the tetras' characteristic adipose fin, which is also pale yellow in color.
Although omnivorous and able to exist on a diet of flaked food, the pale yellow color of the lemon tetra displays best if the fish's standard diet is well supplemented with live treats. The lemon tetra is an egg-scatterer. However, breeding can be tricky since females often have a problem expelling their eggs and after spawning, the lemon tetra like many others of its species is quick to cannibalize its eggs if not removed from the breeding tank. However, eggs will hatch in about 24 hours after spawning. Fry should be fed alive diet and if they survive, they'll be about two inches long as adults.
African Flamebacks or Centropyge acanthops are members of the family Pomacanthidae. They are natives of the western Indo-Pacific. Significant populations can be found around the shores of the Archipelago Island chain as well as along the entire East Coast of Africa. These shallow to mid-water reef inhabitants occupy depths from 20 to 130 feet.
This is a small fish, even for dwarf angles. It only grows to a maximum adult length of 3 inches. What they lack in size they more than make up for an exotic beauty. This is one of the most striking of all the dwarf angles. The bottom half of their bodies are a royal purplish blue. This is contrasted by dazzling yellow-orange upper bodies. The upper body color starts just below their mouths sweeps upward behind their eyes and then follows the curvature of their backs all the way to the base of their tails, hence the name Flameback. Dorsal, anal and pectoral fins are accented in neon blues. Caudal fins are typically yellow and semi-transparent.
This species is very similar in appearance to the Brazilian flameback angelfish even though they are entirely different species. Brazilian Flamebacks can be distinguished by their solid blue caudal fins. This species is sold by the aquarium industry under several pseudonyms including; African Flameback angel, African Pygmy Flameback Anglefish, African Cherubfish, Orangeback Angelfish, and Jumping bean. The latter reference should imply that this fish needs to be housed in a tightly lidded aquarium.
This fish has a moderately aggressive temperament. They are generally peaceful in a community setting provided they are in the company of equally sized or slightly larger fish that are not docile in nature. This species may be reef compatible if it is introduced to your tank as a small juvenile. An abundance of cured live rock will help deter the possibility that it will develop a taste for coral and mollusks as it matures. Flamebacks may express territorial behavior toward similar looking species. These are harem fish. A single male and several females can be successfully housed together. The introduction of two males into an aquarium could easily result in a battle to the death. This species is rated at a moderate care level. A minimum tank size of 20 gallons with plenty of hiding spaces is recommended. Flamebacks can live up to 8 years of age.
This is an omnivorous species. Juveniles are primarily planktonic feeders. Adults learn more toward being algaevores. They will, however, also eat small crustaceans, mollusks, and coral in their natural habitat. This is why only a very young flamebacks should be added to a marine reef aquarium. If the fish's diet consists of plankton, it can be conditioned to finding all the sustenance it requires in supplied aquarium foods and lives rock before it develops its adult dietary habits. A well-fed fish will be less likely to discover that clams and corals are its favorite taste treat.
These fish should be fed a high-quality marine angelfish food preparation. Foods formulated especially for angelfish contain the essential nutrients needed to maintain a healthy specimen. Its diet can be further supplemented with vitamin enriched brine shrimp, mysis shrimp and dried or frozen spirulina algae.
There is more than one benefit to buying this species when they are still quite young. There are no distinguishing characteristics between males and females. Thus you will not be able to determine their sexes. Two males cannot be housed in the same aquarium together.
Problem solved: These fish are protogynous synchronous hermaphrodites. They enter life genderless. They will all develop into females early in their lifecycles. If there are no males present in the population as they reach sexual maturity, the largest most dominant fish will change into a male. The introduction of several of these fish when still young into an aquarium will result in a single male with a harem just as it would in nature. Despite their ability to change gender, these fish have not been known to breed in captivity.
By Stephen J Broy Saltwater fish and marine reef aquariums are fun and rewarding hobbies. Just thirty years ago the thought of successfully maintaining a home nano reef was almost unheard of. Less than a decade ago Jellyfish Fish Tank Aquariums were only found in large public aquarium facilities. Raising Moon Jellyfish & Pet Jellies is the hottest new trend in home aquarium ownership. Article Source: EzineArticles
If you are fond of aquarium fish then Angelfish can be a priceless addition to your aquarium. They are beautiful and graceful and can give immense pleasure to the beholder of their beauty. However, before adding angelfish into your freshwater fish tank you must ensure that you are not putting these fish with other fish species which do not get along well with angelfish.
Although apparently, angelfish may appear to be very peaceful and gentle, it is a fact that they can sometimes be quite aggressive as well. Moreover, they also have this tendency to eat smaller fish species present in the tank!
Angelfish are a part of the Cichlid family. They are available in a number of varieties and colors. But being an owner of angelfish you should keep this in mind that they can be a little fragile as well when they are young. But once grown up they are generally hardy. Moreover, it is always good to keep them in groups of six or eight. If you keep two or three only there is a possibility that the bigger ones will bully the little ones. But if they are in a bigger group they tend to behave well.
If you wish to add angelfish to your aquarium fish collection, you will require a big fish tank for it. The best option is 29 gallons or a larger one and if you have a great number of these fish then a much bigger fish tank is advisable. Moreover, ensure that your gravel is at least 1/4" thick. Apart from that you also need to maintain your tank temperature between 70 and 82°F. Another thing that you need to ensure is that your fish tanks are around 24 inches deep. It is essential for the health of your angelfish. They will grow large in deep water and can even grow up to 12 inches.
It is relatively easy to feed angelfish. There is no need to arrange any special food for them. If you give them flakes, it will be enough. The flakes are easily available in any pet store. However, for adding some variety you can also provide some blood worms. It is true that the angelfish are a little aggressive but there are a lot of fish species available who can comfortably live with your angelfish. For example, big Tetras and Silver Dollar live very well with angelfish. Apart from that, you can also select Swordtails Mollies and Platies as well. But do not put Guppies in the same tank as your Angelfish because sometimes the angelfish can eat them. Some other fish that can be kept with angelfish in the aquarium are Gouramis and Clown Loaches and even Bala Sharks.
Angelfish are not very difficult to take care of and they are generally hardy. But sometimes they can fall victim to some other aggressive fish that attack them and injure at their fins. Moreover, your angelfish can also become affected by a common aquarium disease named hole in the head disease. This disease comes in the form of a wound on the head of the fish and this can lead to the death of the fish.
So, if you take proper care of your beautiful angelfish and are careful enough not to put too many fish in your aquarium, you will see that your angelfish live healthy for a long time. But ensure that you regularly care for them and maintain proper fish tank environment. If you do so your angelfish will then definitely live for 10 years!
By Chintamani Abhyankar Chintamani Abhyankar is an angelfish enthusiast and has been raising and breeding angelfish for many years. He is an expert on their care and an advocate for raising healthy angelfish the natural way. Article Source: EzineArticles
Some people prefer having reptiles as pets rather than the more conventional dogs or cats. If you’re someone who loves having exotic animals, such as reptiles, for your pets, choosing the right cage for them is a priority. Even more so if you expect the reptile to grow to a certain size. Reptiles such as lizards, snakes, and alligators need to be placed in large reptile cages for a proper and safe enclosure.
Choosing your reptile pet enclosure
If you must keep reptiles as your pets at home, proper knowledge of their needs is highly important. Reptiles feed differently than most domesticated animals such as dogs, cats, or rodents. Also, reptiles need to have the right cages to keep them at a certain distance. Not everyone is thrilled about the idea of associating with a reptile, so to be safe, you need to keep them in sturdy cages.
Large reptile cages for security and privacy
The size of the cage matters a lot, especially if you expect your reptile to grow even bigger in the months or years to come. Certain types of snakes can grow anywhere from 5 feet to 7 feet long, and even longer. Young iguanas typically start small, but once they grow to a bigger size you might want to consider getting a bigger pen for them.
Typically, a selection of reptile cages is found in pet stores, so choosing the ones you need don’t have to be difficult. The sizes may vary as well so you need to make sure that the cage you are buying is big enough or deep enough for your pet. You would not want your reptile pet to live in a constricted space or in a cage that feels threatening or uncomfortable.
Building cages on your own
Some pet owners have difficulty in finding the right cages due to size problems or issues on quality. Fortunately, you can find a range of cage making plans online, wherein you will only need to follow the right instructions and procure the right materials for your cage. This means that you can build your cage using the right materials, and you can monitor on its quality and durability as well.
If you are not handy with tools or if you are still a novice in handling reptile pets, you might want to think twice about assembling cages on your own. Also, you can seek advice from professional cage makers or get some helpful tips from pet store owners.
Cage accessories
Buying cage accessories is also important, such as carpets or substrates. As reptiles are cold-blooded animals, they need sufficient heating as well. Thus, heating lamps in cages are also indispensable.
Since most reptiles can easily grow to bigger sizes, large reptile cages can easily accommodate them. Going for bigger cages can prove to be a better investment in the long term especially if you are a reptile pet owner.
Our author likes exotic animals and pets. He owns some reptiles which he keeps in reptile cages in his home. He uses special reptile lighting to keep his snakes nice and warm. To find out more about reptile pet products, please go to petstore.com.
Practically every reef-keeper can identify tales of the numerous hours put in checking out their new aquarium, observing to determine exactly what new life may appear from the liverock. It's virtually a magical period, particularly for someone new to reef-keeping, as the miracles of the sea gradually happen inside the modest glass world we've designed for it.
The majority of experiences which involve Aiptasia begin in exactly the same way. All of a sudden, a brand new little anemone is noticed on a freshly added item of liverock or live coral fragment, just a 'baby'... However, quickly that one 'baby' will become two, then several, then a lot more. By the time most reef-keepers realize who their new house guests happen to be, they quickly understand that this problem grows and multiplies at a very quick pace.
In keeping with their name, Aiptasia sp. Anemones (this means 'beautiful') tend to be exquisite critters, but they are additionally obtrusive and hostile competitors. Left uncontrolled, they will often completely over-run a fish tank. This doesn't take much time either, as we quickly discover.
Aiptasia has developed to be dominant neighbors and house-guests. They replicate both sexually and asexually, and they are effective at regenerating an entire creature from a single cell. Furthermore, they're armed and dangerous hunters! When Aiptasia are disrupted (possibly by way of a passing fish or invertebrate) they eject harmful white-colored stinging threads called Acontia which contain venomous tissues known as Nematocyst. These Nematocysts are designed for supplying a powerful sting that can cause tissue regression in sessile corals, immobilize prey, and even kill unlucky corals, crabs, snails or fish. Considered by many experienced reef enthusiasts as a pest (or worse), early identification and action are necessary to quickly remove Aiptasia from your tank before they reach epidemic proportions - making control/removal far more difficult.
Step one to managing an Aiptasia outbreak is proper identification. It accomplishes little to commit time and expense towards a means to fix the wrong issue.
Aiptasia anemones could be revealed by their similarity to miniature palms, with a polyp body (the Coelenteron) up to two inches in length and an oral disc one inch across outlined with a combination of several prolonged and lots of small tentacles (up to one hundred tentacles may be found) situated in thin bands about the outside border of the oral disc. The tentacles tend to be lengthy slim protrusions that form well-defined tips at their ends.
In the middle of the oral disk is the mouth in the form of an elongated slit. At the bottom of the polyp, the body is the pedal disk which features as an anchor for the anemone in addition to a means of asexual duplication.
Pigmentation of Aiptasia is a result of the existence of Zooxanthellae (microscopic photosynthetic dinoflagellate alga - species Symbiodinium Microadriaticum). For this reason, specimens living in bright locations are often light greenish brown to dark brown, with those in areas which receive less light are typically medium to light brown or tan in color and those from low light areas tending toward a transparent appearance. Often an anemone's column or stalk is lightly marked with parallel longitudinal lines. Sometimes white or light green flecks can also be found close to the tentacles, and it's also not uncommon for juvenile specimens to be completely engrossed in them.
As with any members of the Cnidaria phylum, Aiptasia is able to sting for both offensive and defensive reasons. Just about all Cnidaria possess stinging cells called cnidocytes, each that includes a stinging mechanism, cnidae or nematocyst. Aiptasia has got both cnidocytes on their tentacles in addition to specialized cinclides around the lower area of the column (small blister-like protrusions) by which it expels acontia.
Acontia is threadlike protecting organs, made up mostly of stinging cnidocytes cells which can be expelled from the mouth and/or the customized cinclides once the Aiptasia is agitated. (A lot of anemones don't have acontia or cinclides yet Aiptasia does.)
The nematocysts of Aiptasia possess a contaminant which is stronger than the vast majority of corals held by the enthusiast (with the Elegance Coral - Catalaphyllia jardinei being one exception) and may cause cellular material regression in sessile corals, immobilize prey, as well as kill ill-fated crabs, snails or fish.
As an additional shielding mechanism, Aiptasia may also pull away into tiny holes inside your liverock if confronted. Taking advantage of this trait, it's possible to poke a diagnosed Aiptasia anemone with a probe and view its response. If it quickly pulls itself downwards (as opposed to folding in on itself), it's likely an Aiptasia.
Aiptasia is a formidable enemy, and pose a significant threat to any reef aquarium. Anyone harboring such species in their aquarium should look into natural predators, as chemical fixes don't work in the long run. Peppermint shrimp can often suppress Aiptasia, while Berghia Nudibranches can eradicate the problem pests.
