That Fish Blog – Aquarium Advice and Information

Melissa here. Have you ever wondered if fish actually sleep? Well, wonder no more. They do in fact sleep, just not the way we typically know of it. Fish do not have eyelids to shut when they sleep do nor do they have characteristic brainwave patterns like REM sleep. Fish do, however, appear to have periods of reduced activity and metabolism.

Many reef fish like damsels and clownfish frolic around during the day, then tuck themselves into a crevice or cave to sleep at night. Parrot fish have an odd way of tucking themselves in bed: they secrete mucus to make a little seeping bag for themselves. Some wrasses tuck themselves under the sand while others are like parrot fish and encase themselves in mucus.

I used to have a clownfish that laid on his left side in the back corner of my tank. The first time I saw him after the lights went off laying on his side I thought he was dead. When I approached the tank I must have startled him enough to make him swim erratically for a few moments then act normal. My blue devil damsels have a particular rock they like to sleep in. As soon as the lights go out you can see both devil damsels turn dark in color and head into their rock.

I am sure many of you reading this have seen interesting behaviors with your fish when the lights go out. Please feel free to share.

As aquarists, we want our aquariums to be the best environment possible to support the beautiful fish, plants and inverts we love. One recent email presented a FAQ topic that may be helpful to some of you out there on the topic of water conditioning.Mike asked:

What water conditioner would you recommend to replicate the water conditions in the Amazon Basin that would be ideal for discus and freshwater stingrays? When a product is called water conditioner, does that mean it is used to turn tap water into water that is ideal for fish?

MarineBio@thatpetplace.com responded:

Making a home aquarium the ideal environment for the fish you want to keep can sometimes be daunting with all of the products available on the market today. Some fish can live and thrive in variable conditions, while others prefer or need specific conditions for optimal health and appearance.

“Water conditioner” is a general term for any water additive that alters the existing chemistry of the water. They are used to make the conditions in the aquarium friendly for fish in general, especially after water changes and other disturbances. These products usually do several things such as dechlorinating water, detoxifying ammonia, and help the fish to maintain or recover electrolytes caused by being stressed amongst other things. Each product may be a little different from the next, but they are all intended for the same basic purpose.

Some specific types of fish benefit from additional additives or equipment that helps you to mimic water conditions from their natural habitats. For example, discus and freshwater stingrays prefer soft, acidic water which may be created by using an RO unit to purify your tap water and adding a pH buffer to set the pH where you would like it. Seachem’s Discus Buffer would be ideal for buffering the pH on the low side where these types of fish prefer it. It will also help to reduce the hardness of the water if you’re not using RO. Additives like Blackwater extracts and Discus essential can also be beneficial as they add essential minerals, nutrients and elements that are found in their native waters.

Feel free to send us any questions you may have about your tank.

Until next time,

Patty

Back for another installment of FAQs submitted to Marinebio@thatpetplace.com!  Here are two questions we hear pretty often.  We’re here to help, so keep the questions coming.

Ryan wrote us with a common question about anemone behavior:

I have a pink-tip anemone in a seventy five gallon tank. I have had it for a couple months now and it seems to be doing good, but it never stays in one spot. It is always moving around on the glass, around the rock work, everywhere.  Is this normal? Is there anything I should do or just leave it alone?

Marine Bio responded:

That sounds like a fairly typical behaviour for that type anemone. They move constantly it search of favorable conditions as far as lighting, water flow, and feeding opportunity, as they depend a lot on food items passing by in the current that they can grab onto. It may eventually find an area that it favors and it may stay there for awhile, but probably not for extended periods.  Host anemones are often more prone to finding a position they like. In a spot with good conditions, they can anchor onto a solid surface for longer amounts of time, expanding to feed and take in the light, though they do move periodically as well.  Just make sure that any intakes to pumps or filters are covered with a sponge so that if he crawls on them he won’t get sucked into the equipment! Other than that you shouldn’t have to do anything except feed and maintain the aquarium as normal. They move to a happy place, maybe every day, maybe once a month.

 Beth wrote to MarineBio with a question about feeding:

I have a 75-gallon saltwater aquarium housing a lawnmower blenny, false-eye sharp-nosed puffer, long-nose hawkfish, spot-tailed wrasse, and 2 blue damsels. I feed my fish the frozen food and pellets recommended by the professionals at That Pet Place. I have been reading about the freeze-dried foods–shrimp, plankton, etc. I was wondering if freeze-dried food would be acceptable as an additional supplement to what I already feed them so that they are getting a healthy variety of foods to include all vitamins and minerals they need. If freeze-dried foods are appropriate, what would you suggest I get for my fish?

Marine Bio response:

Freeze-dried plankton and/or Mysis would work well for you. It is hard to give you fish too much variety. It is important to vary their diet as best as you can so that their dietary requirements are met and they don’t develop nutritional deficiencies, and that goes for any type of fish tank.  I typically recommend a good basic flake or pellet like Spectrum or Ocean Nutrition supplemented with a frozen mix and freeze dried treats appropriate for the fish you’re keeping. In your case, the fish you have will be most interested in a meatier diet, though some of them will happily take vegetable matter too, like sea veggies or bits of algae in the frozen formulas, especially if you lack natural algae growth. You can customize your feeding regimen according to their needs, but be sure not to overfeed the tank. Smaller amounts of a variety of foods can be fed at different times, or at your scheduled feeding time, but make sure the fish are consuming the foods and they are not falling to the floor of the tank or collecting elsewhere where they can cause water quality issues.  It sounds like you’re doing just fine!

One of our most frequently asked questions is answered below.  There tends to be a spike (pun intended) in cloudy aquarium questions after the holiday season has passed and all of the new gift aquariums get set up.  This might help if you’re a newbie!

Tom wrote:

I have a 90 gallon fresh water tank with a Fluval 405 canister filter. The tank is about 4-weeks old. I have been using Cycle to speed things along, but my water for the most part of 4-weeks has a white cloudiness to it. When I do water changes, the water clears up and then a day or 2 later it’s cloudy again. I have well water with a built in water softener and sediment filter.  My main question is, do you recommend the use of resins in conjunction with carbon to battle this problem?

From Marinebio@thatpetplace:

If the cloudiness is caused from particulates in the water, then yes a resin will help. If the cloud is from a bacterial bloom, which is highly likely, then resins will not solve your problem. Have you tested your water? Any ammonia or nitrite present? If either of those are showing levels above 0ppm, small weekly water changes of around 5% will help keep the toxic levels of ammonia and nitrite diluted, while still allowing you to cycle the tank. The trick is to keep the levels low enough to not lose fish, yet high enough to not to disrupt your nitrogen cycle and the beneficial bacteria that are trying to colonize. Large water changes can lengthen the amount of time it takes to finish your cycle, thus lengthening the time your tank stays cloudy. So if you can test the ammonia and nitrite levels, we can see where you are in your cycle.

For additional info on beginner aquarium basics and the nitrogen cycle view the following articles:

http://www.thatpetplace.com/pet/displayArticle.web?Filename=../Article_archive/Fish/Aquarium_Setup-Beginners_Guide.html

http://www.thatpetplace.com/pet/displayArticle.web?Filename=../Article_archive/Fish/The_Simplified_Nitrogen_Cycle.htm

Bettas are one of the most popular fish for aquarists of all levels and many betta-keepers chose to combine their love of fish with their love of gardening to give their fish a natural planted environment. So what are the best plants to keep with bettas? The choices are endless! We’ll discuss a few options here as well as how to choose the best plants and how to set up your display.

Before we begin, it is important to note that the plant DOES NOT feed the betta! When the trend of keep a plant on top of a betta bowl first became popular, it was a common misconception that the betta would feed on the roots of the betta and wouldn’t need to be fed…that could hardly be farther from the truth. Bettas are carnivores, meaning they eat meaty food…NOT plants. A betta seen nibbling at a plant is more likely bored, starving, or picking off tiny animals on the surface of the plant. Even if you have live plants in the tank, you still need to feed your fish.

While bettas can be kept in tanks or large bowls (preferably at least 1 gallon at the absolute bare minimum) without a filter, the lack of filter means that the water would need to be changed more frequently. Those frequent changes can actually be harmful to some plants (especially rooted or bulb plants) if they are disturbed often.

On to choosing your plants…

Aquarium Plants:

This one may seem obvious but any live aquarium plants would be safe with a betta. The key is making sure that the water parameters and lighting on the tank are suitable for the plant. You can consult a Plant Requirements Chart like ours to make sure your lighting, hardness and other parameters are suitable. If your tank doesn’t have its own lighting, consider investing in a fixture if you would like higher-light plants or stick to low-light species. These plants are all generally tropical, meaning they need water at a consistent temperature, usually about 74-78 degrees…coincidentally, the same temperature your betta will thrive at as well. You may need a heater in the tank for both the fish and plants if your tank is in a cooler location or somewhere drafty that may cause the water temperature to be inconsistent. The plants (and fish) will also thrive better with a filter and gentle water movement.

Some popular and easy choices are fast-growing stalk plants like Anacharis, Hornwort, Myrio, Ludwigia and countless others. These plants are typically sold in bunches held together with a lead weight or rubberband. This should be removed when the plant is added to the tank and the stalks planted individually or left floating for some plants. Java Fern and Anubias plants are also popular low-light choices. These plants grow from a rhizome with roots coming from it that should be planted in the substrate. They would benefit from a plant substrate rather than decorative gravel and should be disturbed as little as possible once they are planted. Mosses are also good for betta tanks as well as floating plants like Duckweed or Azolla (just make sure they are allowed in your area as some areas prohibit some floating plants as invasive species). Many tissue-culture plants are also good for bettas since they are offered at a smaller size and are snail-free.

Partially-submerged plants

Many planted betta tanks can give you the opportunity to really think outside the box…literally. Some popular “betta plants” actually do much better with part of the plant extending above the water level. The two most common of these plants are the Brazilian Sword (also known as a “Peace Lily”) and “Lucky Bamboo”. For both of these, you can either plant the plant into the substrate so the top sticks out of the water or suspend the plant towards the top of the tank. We’ll cover how to do that later.

“House plants”

This is what we get questions about the most… “Can I keep my <insert plant here> in with my betta?” Unfortunately, there’s no easy answer but we can help you find the answer. The most important thing to consider here is the moisture level of the plant. Any plant that needs dry soil – cactus, succulents, Aloe, etc. – can’t be kept in a wet environment and would make a poor choice for your betta. At best, the plant wouldn’t survive. At worse, the dying plant would pollute the water and take the betta out with it. Instead, look for plants that can handle constantly wet soil. During the spring and summer, you can look for plants sold for outdoor ponds as “bog plants” or “marginal plants”. These plants live at the edges of ponds or swamps and are used to having their roots in water. Some popular species of these plants are the Peace Lilies and Bamboo we mentioned above as well as some ivy, Philodendrons, Spider Plants, Water Clover, Sensitive Plant, Violets and many more. Many plants sold as pond plants can grows very large or need full sunlight so just make sure you consider the needs of the plant carefully before adding it to your tank. As with any plants, you may need to prune or trim the plant as it grows so it doesn’t take over the tank. Also, some fertilizers or insecticides can be harmful to the betta so choose your plant carefully.

Suspending your plants

As we mentioned above, may popular set up with plants involve suspending the plant above the level of the tank. The most common of these is the hourglass-shaped betta vase with a “Peace Lily” (the Brazilian Sword from earlier) suspended at the neck of the vase but any plants that need their leafy bits above the water level can be kept this way. There are many ways to accomplish this and depend on the size, shape and setup of your tank. Some modern, high-end tanks even have a built-in section just for a live plant above the water but even if yours doesn’t you can create your own.

If you have a vase or tank with a narrow opening, you can set the bowl containing your plant right on top….just be sure to keep a fair amount of space between the water level and top of the vase, because bettas need an open space to breathe atmospheric air. If your tank has nothing to support the plant dish, you can suspend it using supports like bamboo rods, dowels, chopsticks or a similar material that is strong enough and will keep its strength with the moisture…avoid anything that will soften or metal that may rust. You can also use clips to hold the cup onto the side of the tank as long as they are strong enough to support the plant without stressing the tank. For a few ideas, check out these photos:

For the cup itself, you can use a clean plastic cup like the one pictured here in any size suitable for your tank and the plant, or a pot made of a plant-safe material like terracotta (as long as the support system can hold it). If the dish you choose doesn’t have a hole or holes for the roots to extend through, cut the center out while leaving a ledge around it so you can add some stones to support the plant. With the cup we used in our example, I would cut out the black area in the center. When adding some stones to keep the plant upright, it is best to use larger pebbles or gravel so it doesn’t fall through the hole into the tank below.

Hopefully, these ideas help you with some ideas for your own new betta display. As always, feel free to let us know if you have any questions or need help making your idea a reality!

For more information on bettas and their care, please read these helpful articles in our archives:

http://www.thatpetplace.com/pet/displayArticle.web?Filename=../Article_archive/Fish/Betta_Basics.html

http://blogs.thatpetplace.com/thatfishblog/2008/06/26/carnival-fish-part-2-the-betta/