That Fish Blog – Aquarium Advice and Information

Patty here. Christmas is a time for giving, as is said, and more than a few out there might be receiving (or giving) something aquarium as a gift this year.  Some will get their very first aquarium kit or bowl, and will anxiously await the time a few days later when they’ll add their first fish and plants to the tank.  It may turn out to be that person’s first taste of what will develop into a life-long passion, hobby or even career. I’m sure that most of you reading this can relate to the experience, getting your first tank, setting it up, getting a second tank for that other type of fish you want to keep, or upgrading to the biggest tank you can fit in your living room. 

Working in the industry and in the hobby, I really find the advances in aquariums and aquarium keeping fascinating.  The technology grows by leaps and bounds each year, and the possibilities are almost endless to what can be housed in aquariums today.  With all the equipment and products available to us today, you have to wonder how it was all started.

An aquarium may be defined as a receptacle consisting of at least one transparent side in which water dwelling plants or animals are kept.  Did you know that people have been keeping fish indoors since Roman times?  The introduction of glass panes around 50 A.D. allowed them to keep sea barbels indoors. The glassed replaced one wall of the marble tanks that contained the fish, allowing them to be viewed with ease.  Fish were also kept by ancient Egyptians and Asians, both as a food source, and for aesthetics.  In the 1300’s large porcelain tubs were produced for keeping and breeding goldfish.  From these early ideas and developments, aquariums evolved in shape and integrity to accommodate the demand.  In the early 1800’s, Dr. Nathaniel Bragshaw Ward developed the Wardian Case, a terrarium that allowed for the successful cultivation and transport of plants.  This was the inspiration for aquariums that we know and love today.  By 1850, not even a decade after the first were produced, these aquariums enabled people to maintain freshwater and marine organisms in stable containment for years at a time.  This hobby popularized quickly in the United Kingdom. In addition to there being ornate, cast iron framed aquaria featured in the Great Exhibition of 1851, the first large public aquarium opened at the London Zoo in 1853, known as the Fish House.

The aquarium hobby exploded after that, spreading across Europe and to the U.S. with aquarist societies, literature, and aquarium advancements fueling the fire.  The interest grew stronger during the Victorian era, when models for society homes were made available, usually constructed of pitch-sealed wood and glass with a slate bottom that could be heated from below.  Native species could be collected and contained easily.

With the introduction of electricity to homes the hobby flourished.  Tanks could be installed in more homes, with artificial lighting, filtration, aeration, and heating.  The boom brought the industry to a boil, gave rise to a demand for exotic fish imports, and allowed it to grow into the phenomenon it is today.  You are one of around 60,000,000 aquarists worldwide and growing.

So whether you’re contemplating your first betta bowl, buying your kid an Eclipse Aquarium kit, or testing the integrity of your floor to see if it will support the weight of a huge new reef tank, know that it’s good to be a part of a hobby so diligently contrived and deeply rooted in history.  We’ve come a long way!

Thanks,

Patty

Hello, Frank Indiviglio here.

Sea slugs are shell-less, swimming mollusks that are much favored by marine aquarists for their beautiful colors and unusual lifestyles.  Studies at Texas A&M University recently (December, 2008) revealed just how unusual their survival strategies can be.

Stealing Plant Cells to Produce Food

It has been known for some time that that the emerald elysia, a sea slug native to North America’s Eastern Seaboard, is dependent, in an odd sort of way, upon one species of marine algae (seaweed).  Newly discovered details of its relationship with the algae are startling.  It seems that these sea slugs are unique among animals in being born with at least 1 gene that supports photosynthesis.

However, newborn sea slugs cannot actually harness the sun’s energy and utilize it to produce food, as can algae and plants.  For this they must consume the cytoplasm (internal material) of marine algae.  Within the cytoplasm are organelles known as plastids (chloroplasts), which trap solar energy and convert it into food.  Amazingly, the algae’s plastids continue in this role after being consumed by a sea slug. 

The Switch – Consuming Energy to Producing Energy

The newly discovered sea slug photosynthetic gene seems to be the key factor in allowing this unique relationship to function – without it, the alga’s plastids would not likely survive in such an alien environment.

In essence, the sea slug converts itself into a solar powered, plant-like animal – the only known example of such a phenomenon!  Some marine biologists speculate that, given time, the emerald elysia might evolve into a truly photosynthetic animal.

Something new and unexpected is always popping up in this wonderful field of ours – please pass along your own news tidbits.  Thanks, until next time, Frank Indiviglio.

Background information on the emerald elysia’s unique feeding mode is posted at:

http://sbe.umaine.edu/symbio/

Brandon here. If you’re like me and want to get the best growth and color out of your planted aquarium, you’ll probably want to add CO2 to your tank at some point.  The addition of CO2, in conjunction with adequate lighting, will greatly increase the rate of growth of your aquatic plants and is almost a necessity for certain hard to keep species.  Here at That Fish Place we carry a number of supplies for dosing your aquarium with CO2.

The first CO2 additive that I used on my planted 20 gallon was the Turbo CO2 Bio System by Red Sea.  This system is relatively inexpensive and fairly simple to use.  It works by attaching the reaction chamber to airline tubing which runs into a small powerhead.  A mixture of yeast and sugar inside the reaction chamber produces CO2 and usually lasts four or five weeks.  The downfall to this system is that the CO2 generated cannot be regulated and the duration of the mixture is usually inconsistant.

Once I upgraded to my 55 gallon aquarium, I decided I should upgrade my CO2 system as well.  To save money, I bought a 20 oz paintball tank instead of a larger tank similar to the ones we use in the fishroom.  To diffuse the CO2, I purchased a Maxi-Jet 400, attaching the airline to the venturi.  This actually diffuses the CO2 very well.  To regulate the CO2 coming out of the tank, I bought the CO2 regulator by TAAM.  The regulator comes with a needle valve for adjusting the amount of CO2 released into the tank and a solenoid so I can control when the unit operates by attaching it to the same timer as my lighting system.

My plants have never been healthier since I began CO2 additions.  I have several different species that have grown almost too large and need constant pruning, such as my watersprite, bacopa, and bronze wendtii.  If you decide to run CO2 on your aquarium, be aware of several complications you may run into:

CO2 will displace oxygen in the water.  If you add too much, your fish may suffer.

A high degree of surface agitation will drive the CO2 out of the water and make the addition of CO2 worthless.

CO2 will also lower the pH of the water.  Be sure your carbonate hardness is within the proper range (3-8 dkH).

CO2 will increase the rate of growth of your plants when used with adequate aquarium lighting.  Fast growing plants will deplete trace minerals in the water (iron, potassium, calcium, manganese). Plants that are deficient in these minerals tend to have health issues and even die.  Be sure to test your water and dose with trace minerals accordingly for the best growth.

Hope this helps,

Until next time,

Brandon

Until next time,

Brandon

Jose here. A South American brute that can give many Central Americans a run for the money (when it comes to aggression), the Red Terror is one of my favorites. Ranked in the top 5 among cichlid keepers, the festae is not afraid to bite the hand that feeds it, which is good cause feeding it should be no problem as it will eat anything. The downfall would be tank space.  As an adult male can top out at 20 inches, an adult pair would be looking at a 125 gallon just for the pair, larger if you wanted to keep tank mates. Sexing young fish is pretty hard, but it’s different with adults. Besides the size difference between male and female, the male will have blue dots on his body, while retaining the overall orange red coloration. The female festae is the one out of the pair that truly lives up to the name red terror in aggression and coloration. She takes on a very vibrant red coloration, with a black or blue area in three quarters of the dorsal fin. Males lack this marking. An adult pair of Red Terrors tending fry is an awesome and scary sight (scary for the owner trying to do a water change).

A word of caution in searching for Red Terrors if you choose to invest in them, there is another species that resembles the festae, Cichlasoma uophthalmus, the False Red Terror or Mayan Cichlid.  These fish are often misidentified in the trade, or simply labeled as Red Terrors in error, as common names are sometimes assigned for convenience.  You can tell the difference by looking at the spot on the base of the tail. The eyespot on the festae only reaches half way down the base, where on the False Red Terror, the eyespot extends below the midline.

Well there it is now you know!  In closing I would say this is definitely a fish worth keeping.  If you have an empty 75 gallon tank sitting around, and you’re looking for a “WOW” fish with a lot of attitude, Amphilophus festae will fit the bill.

Until next time have fun with cichlids,

JOSE

Hi, Melissa here. We are all familiar with puffer fish and what they are able to do. They have the ability to inflate their body 2-3 times their normal size. It is true they may look like a cute prickly little ball, but it is very costly to them. Puffers inflate themselves as a defense when they feel threatened or scared. They can do this by swallowing gulps of water. If they swallow too much water they can actually rupture their stomach. You can only imagine how much pain something like that would cause. So you can see why puffers should never be provoked to the point of inflation. Sadly, once their stomach is ruptured the puffer is a goner.

If puffers need to be transported it much be done very carefully. The puffer must remain under the water at all times. If they ingest air they will have a very difficult time getting the air back out. If the air remains inside the puffer it will mess with their buoyancy and will ultimately lead to their death.

While puffers may look cute when they are puffed up, always remember that it is very stressful behavior. So, next time you visit a pet store and you see a customer trying to make a puffer inflate please make them aware that puffer fish never puff because they are happy and that puffing up can potentially lead to their demise.

If you like puffers, check out our video on the Mbu Puffer: