That Fish Blog – Aquarium Advice and Information

Hello, Craig here again with with another answer to a common plant problem! This time I’d like to address a problem some aquarists have with Cryptocorynes. Crypts are generally described as hardy, low maintenance plants, but not everyone finds them to be that way.

Why do my Crypts look like they’re melting?

So, you are standing in a fish store and over hear someone talking about Crypt Rot. Sounds pretty nasty doesn’t it? They aren’t talking about mummies or some weird disease you get from exploring pyramids. They are talking about an unfortunate problem with an otherwise very sturdy group of plants known as Crypts.

Members of the Cryptocoryne genus are well known and well established within the aquarium hobby. The most popular of the Crypts, Cryptocoryne wendtii, is tolerant of lower light, higher heat, and just about anything else you can throw at it. Though there are some types that can be tricky to keep, the species that are regularly available to hobbyists are certainly considered to be among the most reliable and versatile plants around. Read More »

Hello, Craig here again! With 15 years on the retail side of this hobby, I have been asked a lot of questions, many of which have been centered on the well-being and growth of live plants for the freshwater aquarium.  In my next couple of entries, I thought I would explore some frequently asked questions about aquarium plants. Here we go!

Why is my sword plant losing leaves when I just bought it?

As a general rule, most aquarium plants are not actually true aquatic plants. Most of them are found along the banks of rivers, streams, or lakes. This is the case with Echinodorus sword plants. In their natural environment wild Echinodorus are very rarely fully submerged and some individuals may never be fully submerged. Rainy seasons are part of what allows hobbyists to keep these beautiful plants in a fully aquatic environment!

When swords are cultivated at an aquatic nursery, they are typically grown in a bog like setting, or even grown hydroponically in a greenhouse. The growth rate of an emerge-grown sword is more rapid and transportation and shipping of that plant tends to be safer than if the plant was grown completely submerged. Knowing that the plant has been grown emerged helps to explain why some of the leaves die off when you get the plants to your home aquarium.  It helps to explain why, even though you have a nutrient rich substrate and bright light, your swords still seem like they are dying. When that plant is fully submerged in water, the growth form changes somewhat. Those long, rigid stems and smaller leaves that you see will begin to decay shortly after the plant is placed fully underwater. Once you see that emerge-grown leaf start to turn brown, simply clip it off near the base of the stem and the plant will pop a new leaf out to replace it. This new leaf will grow from the center of the sword’s rosette and will often have a slightly different shape and/or color. The new growth may start slow, but adding the proper nutrients will ensure that the sword maintains growth. Fortunately, most plants make the transition to fully submerged form rather quickly and easily!

So, next time you see a big beautiful Sword that you can’t resist , just show a little patience and give it a little pruning. You will be amazed how resilient swords can be!

Thanks, Until Next Time,

Craig

In my first blog, I talked about why the Zebra Loach (Botia striata) is well suited for smaller aquariums, and why it was certainly a more sensible choice for snail control than its larger cousin, the Clown Loach. The Zebra Loach is one of the most under rated of the snail eating Botia, in my opinion. But what if you have a planted aquarium and you’re keeping small shrimp? Zebra Loaches may very well eat them! Or what if you have a small tank, but don’t have room to house 4 or 5 of these fish? Well, I think there may be something that is just as effective, does not appear to want to eat the little shrimp, and won’t take up a lot of room. A somewhat new introduction into the hobby called the Assassin Snail.

The Assassin Snail (Clea helena or Clea Anentome helena) comes from lakes and ponds in Southeast Asia, where it feeds on decaying protein, worms, and other snails. That’s right, a snail that eats other snails. Voracious little predators, the Assassin Snail has an attractive yellow shell with a spiraling brown stripe wrapped around it. While they do have an appetite for snails, predation does not occur within their own species. This allows several individuals can be kept in a single small aquarium. At an adult length of just under an inch, a 10 gallon aquarium could easily house a dozen of these snails. They are pretty durable and can take a wide range of water chemistry, as long as it does not fluctuate greatly. While preferring a pH of 7.0 or 7.2, they can tolerate a range from slightly above 6 to about 8.2. Water hardness, can also be somewhat flexible. Reports of keeping them in water with GH values of 5 and a dKH of 1 seem to be pretty standard. Fine gravel or sand is always preferred, but not a necessity. If you do have fine substrate, these little guys will burrow and crawl through the substrate in search of food.

Assassin Snails are known to be extremely active. The idea that snails are slow and plodding is definitely challenged by this gastropod. Assassin snails will scale plants, glass, large stones, and wood with surprising speed when hunting for food. I have even seen them suspended upside down on the surface of very still water! Being able to move quickly gives this snail an advantage over slower moving prey items, such as the troublesome pond snail, Physa sp. In large numbers, Physa sp. pond snails can damage soft plant tissue and can present a real problem if you are trying to keep a well-groomed planted aquarium. A handful of Assassin Snails will eventually clear the aquarium of unwanted snails. After the problem snails are eaten, Assassin Snails will take up a somewhat more laid back role by eating left-over fish foods and decaying protein. While some reports of shrimp predation have occurred, it is a pretty rare occurrence.

Watching a group of these curious little snails cruising around your aquarium is really fascinating. I have never really gotten absorbed into the snail world, but seeing the Assassin Snail hunt and forage for food has definitely piqued my interest! From my personal observations, I have to say that these snails are definitely more than capable of ridding an aquarium of unwanted snails. They may be the predator you’ve been looking for.

Thanks, until next time,

Craig

Living in the Edge is actually more like it, with Hagen’s new aquarium the Fluval Edge.  Unlike many of the other new nano or desktop aquariums that have come out in the last few years, the Edge is something different.  Difficult to describe, and easy on the eyes, this cool little 6 gallon aquarium gives the small aquarium a twist in design.

The tank is made of glass, and is filtered by Hagen’s proven Aquaclear filter technology.  The unique design of the aquarium has it “hanging”out in space around its base and top.  The top conceals an access opening for cleaning, feeding, and filter access.  It looks like it jumped out of a sketch book of Frank Lloyd Wright designs.  The Edge comes in 3 colors so that you can fit it in with whatever your décor or taste may be.  Check it out, I think you will find it really interesting.

We couldn’t resist setting one of these little wonders up on display, if you visit the store find the display on the info desk on the sales floor.

Thanks, Until the next blog,

Dave

Patty here.

So, Summer is rapidly passing us by, and before we know it, Fall will be upon us.  I always dread the end of warm days for my plants.  After perfectly sunny and humid days provide them with perfect conditions to thrive, I have to shove the plants into every spare corner and windowsill of the house and pray that they will make it through another long, cool, dry winter.  This year I am especially dreading it, since this spring I invested in several ferns and trailing plants that are humidity loving, like Maiden’s Hair Ferns, and some others that are thriving in moist soil that I fear will not handle the transition to indoors for the long duration.

I think the solution to my problem might be one that I have been contemplating for a while now, the construction of a new Paludarium.  In my last entry, I wrote about Archerfish and the possibility/benefit of keeping them in a large Paludarium.  For anyone who is unfamiliar with the concept of this type of set-up, it is kind of a hybrid aquarium/terrarium with a land area and a water area capable of supporting a variety of plants and also a potentially terrific environment for fish and amphibians.  The set-up ends up looking like a slice of marshland or rainforest, and I think that some of my plants may be in for a winter holiday if I can pull it together for them. 

I actually have 2 spare aquariums to potentially use for this project, an old 55 gallon and a 65 gallon.  The 55 has been used before as a terrarium, but not as a true paludarium as the shallow aquatic side was completely divided from the terrestrial side with a length of plexiglass.  It served its purpose at the time, a green home for a couple of green tree frogs.  The water side was too shallow to keep any fish, but that will be remedied in the new 65 gallon project.

 Before I get started I’ll be doing some rearranging, so the project isn’t going to get off the ground for a while yet.  For now, I’m considering the components I’ll need.  Materials that I have on hand for the project are planting media (soil, flourite, clay pellets), submersible pumps/filters, heaters, lighting (though I may need to upgrade), plants (always on the lookout for more), and some other decor like stone fountains, wood and rock.  I’ll be acquiring or collecting some other materials I’ll need for construction gradually so that I can get set up by the time the weather turns cold.   I’ll need some PVC pipe and fittings some egg-crate, screen or landscape fabric, charcoal, sealant, and some other bits and pieces, maybe some plexi-glass and some cork bark depending on the layout I choose.  Design will be the next step, and the second part of the great paludarium blog.

I’d be interested to hear any ideas from readers who have attempted this before and have some insight. With such creative possibilities here, anything can be helpful.

Check out some interesting paludariums on YouTube.

Until next time,

Patty