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FAQs on Freshwater Biotopes

Re: Native (Austr.) fishkeeping; Ancistrus repro; the WWM BB?
Hi Neale,
<Silvia,>
Just after we came back from our little fishing trip our daughter came down with a bad flu. Even a 16 year old loves to be spoiled sometimes. She is now recovering but still stays for another day or two at home, just to be on the safe side. It seems there is a bad bug going around. Well, it is winter after all.
<Sounds as if you all had fun! Viruses notwithstanding.>
I think I might join a forum at sometime. The idea with the Native/ Australian section sounds good but I am by far an expert in those things and I am not very reliable when it comes to time spending on the computer. In addition I wouldn't have a clue how such a section would work.
<Please do get in touch with Lynn, and maybe asking her if you can help moderate such a section.>
The Corys are doing well. The bristlenose is sitting on eggs again since Sunday. He is so predictable and so reliable. I don't think I will take the fry out for space reasons.
<It's often fun to let the fish "do their thing" even if you only end up with a handful of fry. After all, they breed so often, it's more fun just to see their biology and marvel at Nature's handiwork.>
Cheers
Silvia
<Cheers, Neale>

Zaire River Biotope Tank 2/13/08
Hello WWM crew,
A little over a year ago I asked a question about the feasibility of housing two Polypterus palmas together in a 75 gallon aquarium, and at the end of your response you asked to see a picture of the set-up when it was complete. Well, the set-up is complete now, so I am sending you this picture. As you can see, the aquarium changed a bit between planning and actual set-up. For instance, I was unable to find any Polypterus palmas. But, I did stick to the West African idea to the point of making this aquarium a Zaire River biotope tank. The tank now houses five different kinds of fishes: six Phenacogrammus interruptus, two Ctenopoma acutirostre, one Pantodon buchholzi, one Xenomystus nigri, and one Synodontis brichardi. The tank also houses three kinds of plants: Anubias barteri var. nana, Anubias barteri var. angustifolia, and Bolbitis heudelotii. Also, I used pure peat moss for substrate—an idea I got off your web site. I enjoy this aquarium a lot, and I thank you for helping to make it a success.
Travis
<Travis -- absolutely love it. Making me jealous already. Some lovely fish in there... a mix of pretty things and oddball things. I'd be interested to know how the tank matures re: social behaviour, algae, etc. Anyway, good luck with it! Neale.>

Re: Non Planted FW aquarium. 11/30/07
Hi Neale,
<Bryan,>
Well the tank is done, it turned out great (I'll send a picture as soon as the water is in it and the plants are planted) I picked up a lot of 20 Red Mangroves off of EBay, it only cost 15 bucks including shipping!
<A sweet deal! Do read Anthony Calfo's great primer on mangrove husbandry in aquaria, here -- http://www.wetwebmedia.com/mangrovetrees.htm .>
Anyway, it is time to add the water and get the tank cycling, the problem is I cant find any info on the Sg requirements of the fish I plan to keep: Dwarf Mudskippers, Endler's livebearers, and Fiddler Crabs. do you have a suggestion for a good happy medium of salinity for this group?
<Anything from SG 1.005 upwards to SG 1.015 will be fine.>
I am thinking of maybe adding some of the blue-legged hermit crabs that you said could tolerate 1.010 and up, would the mudskippers, fiddlers and Endler's do good in 1.012-1.015?
<Yep, they'll be fine. HOWEVER, Guppies need to be acclimated very carefully, especially "fancy" varieties (there's a scientific paper about how fancy guppies are less able to thrive in seawater than wild/feeder/cross-breed guppies -- a clue to the fact selecting for colours and finnage doesn't always benefit livestock in terms of physiology). If you can, set the tank to SG 1.005 first, introduce the livestock, and let it run for a few weeks at that. After a couple months, gradually raise the SG a bit at a time until you get to SG 1.010 after, say, two to three months. This will bring along the filter bacteria and the fish perfectly well. Mudskippers and Fiddler crabs can tolerant virtually instant salinity changes, but Guppies not so much and filter bacteria not at all. There's also some reports than mangroves don't always like sudden salinity changes. Presumably this isn't the case in the wild, where mangroves surely experience salinity changes, but in captivity at least they don't like dramatic salinity changes.>
also, are there any corals that I could keep in that range of brackish water?
<Not really. If there are any corals that naturally inhabit mid salinity brackish water I'm not aware of them. The problem is that variable salinity environments tend to be silty, which is what corals don't like. Instead, brackish water habitats are the realm of scavengers able to process the vast amounts of organic detritus that wash out of rivers. So you have lots of bivalves, crabs, shrimps, polychaetes, etc. Lots of snails (Nerites, predominately) are in the trade if you can identify them properly. Someone wrote me recently that they obtained some brackish water ragworms, Namalycastis senegalensis, on eBay. Others have kept Actinia equina in high-end brackish systems but I suspect for long term care these need fairly high salinities. A store near my home has Asian mangrove horseshoe crabs, Carcinoscorpius rotundicauda, and these do very well in (large) mid-salinity systems provided they get enough to eat. So there is scope for adding inverts to brackish systems. Just not corals!>
Thanks again!
Bryan
<Cheers, Neale>

Planted river tank 3/6/07
I'm looking to set up a planted river system, with a 55gal set up and a canister filter, a nice fluor plant light on top, and, if I can get the chemistry right, some little frogs or something, depending on how it all works out. I am interested in seeing the water gently gurgle over some kind of "river bed" into a pool, but I'm a little concerned about the substrate washing away and the whole thing turning into a shallow pool.
Everything I have read about substrates suggests that I should forget about trying to slope it. I don't want to use just gravel, it doesn't seem to be attractive enough. My question is, what kind of substrates are suitable for a semi-aquatic tank, i.e. other than gravel.
<Mmm, most everything that won't dissolve too much, and/or adversely affect water quality...>
I know I could probably use some big flat rocks for the "river bed" but this leads to my second question, are any types of concrete/mortar suitable for aquatic environs?
<Mmm, only if cured properly, adequately...>
I've read that plain old Portland cement is ok if it's soaked for a certain time, and this would probably really help. It seems that peat would wash away and float all over. Any advice would be appreciated.
Ramsey Hussain
<I think that most faux rock looks... too faux. I encourage you to look at the works of Amano, Takashi... and the websites of Dennerle, Tropica... and to consider building (with glass panels, Silicone adhesive... supports for the rock you have in mind (to save space, cut down on maintenance worries, to support the "stream" portion here. Look to your LFS', sand and gravel businesses nearby... for rock. Bob Fenner>

Re: Setting Up A South American Tank
Hi sorry about all the questions but I want to set this tank up right the first time. My question is about water parameters. I wanted to know what the ideal water parameters we're for a tank containing 2 freshwater angels, 2 blue rams and 9 Rummynose tetras. As far as ppm total hardness, ppm total alkalinity/buffering capacity, pH and anything else important. Thanks for answering all my questions, I hope I'm not a pest.
--Sbatiste
< In the wild these fish come from warm soft acidic water. The pH should be between 6 and 7 with the total hardness less than 100 ppm. Get these right and the others things will take care of themselves. All these fish are available in domestic form. These can take a much wider range of water parameters than their wild counter parts.-Chuck>

What to feed newly caught lake fishies? NANFA.org - 4/24/2006
Hi there...
I did an internet wide search and came up empty handed on what to feed the fish we caught out of our local lake.
We'd love to be able to keep them in an indoor aquarium or our outdoor 90 gallon pond; but I have yet to find what to feed them...
We caught 10 spot-tail minnows, and 1 brim. (bream?)
<Can likely be easily trained onto pelleted "pond" or aquarium foods... do seek out high/er quality of these... as some do a good deal of polluting>
 Also.. could you tell me possibly whether they would survive better indoors or out?
<Mmmm>
We live in Alabama.. and the pond is made of black plastic with very little shading right now (newly installed)...
<Well, best to be where conditions are more like their natural habitat... but stability is very key. If your house isn't too warm... versus the pond being too small and/or shallow... I'd keep them indoors>
Anything else you might be able to add (or point me in the right direction) as to water temp/food/plants...
<Do look up the website NANFA (.org) A treasure of useful information on natives, their captive care>
for our new fishies would be wonderful!
Thanks so much for your time and attention regarding our newbies!
~Jennifer Darnell
<Welcome to the wonderful world of aquatic life keeping. Bob Fenner>

Cool water Companions - 04/04/2006
Hi,
<Hey, Nate!>
I am looking for some companions for some white cloud minnows. My tank is currently about 68 degrees. I have a heater, but I understand the white cloud minnows don't like anything above 72.
<Right, best to keep it cool.>
Right now I have a 75 gallon with about a dozen minnows, so I have room for more fish. I was thinking of maybe adding another dozen minnows. For other cooler water companions.
<Indeed!>
I understand I can add guppies, swordtails, platies and mollies (should I bump the temp up to 72 for these guys?)
<Actually, I'd skip on these and go for something a little "cooler" (pun heavily intended) like Goodeids or Skiffia. Don't mix species from the same genus (for example, Ilyodon xantusi can mix with Ameca splendens, but not Ilyodon furcidens). You can find a number of Goodeids available on http://www.aquabid.com now and often through local aquarium clubs. In fact, if you're in the SF Bay Area, I know where you can get a few different species pretty easily. Goodeids are big, beautiful livebearers that not only prefer but ultimately *need* the cooler temperatures that you're working with. You could probably be okay with some of the less heavily inbred swordtails, maybe mollies as well, but the best bet for fun fish is the Goodeids. You can also swing something like giant or zebra danios, as these fare quite well in cooler water.>
Are there other fish that like this temperature range (maybe a few bottom dwellers).
<Bottom dwellers - yeah - try to locate Etheostoma species, if you can; these are North American natives, kinda goby-like and very cute. Some are *quite* colorful. I believe there are a number of North American natives available at http://www.jonahsaquarium.com . For something more "common", your basic weather/dojo loach will appreciate the cooler temps, as will some of the more delicate and bizarre "hillstream loaches". There are even a few Loricariids that can be found in cooler streams.>
I am most interested in hardy, colorful fish. Thanks.
<Ilyodon xantusi, Ameca splendens, zebra danios and weather loaches would make fine additions for active, colorful, fun critters.>
Nate Terry
<All the best to you, -Sabrina>

Freshwater: Bio-topes and Water Color 10/28/05.... AKA Landfill Theme from Steve the Joker
Hi,
<Hello Steve.>
I am making every effort to make my take as natural as possible. I am having trouble achieving the murky brown of the local river. (It is right by a dump, so I think the leakage may be a factor.)
<Well if that’s the case I wouldn’t try to emulate polluted bio-topes. Thought the brown color could be caused by other factors such as sediment and weathering caused by the river bed or even plant/algae growth.>
Instead, I seem stuck at a greenish yellow. I think it is because of the frequent water changes.
<Water changes are important your green water is caused likely by an algae bloom or nutrient accumulation, continue with the water changes..>
Can I use river water for the water changes? It does not get more natural than that.

As an alternative, I get some of the river bottom mud and a wand mixer (I have a Costco coupon this month).
<<Oooo!! Costco, my favorite! MH>>
<No I wouldn’t recommend that, without knowing what’s in it, it is far to large a risk.>
I think the mud will interfere with the filter though. But if the fish are happier I will do it.
<No, try some peat moss, it will stain the water, is safe, and will possibly give you the look you want. Are the fish in your system from this local river, if not you may not want to copy this eco-system, as natural as it might be, it may not be natural for your specimens.>
Let me know,
<See above.>
Steve
<Adam J.>

New theme for my tank 8/7/05
Hey guys, you rule!
<Thanks>
I just need some advice about my 30g tank. in it I've got...
2 platies
2 zebra danios
2 white cloud minnows
4 neon tetras
3 glowlight tetras
2 pearl gouramis
2 small clown loaches
i know my tank is overstocked and i plan to offload the loaches to my LFS when they get too big. so no problems there. and i started off by wanting a central American theme, but now i find i have a lot more Asian fish. so i want to change to an Asian theme.
only thing is, i cant find any information on what my tank should look like. i know i need floating plants but that's all i know. what gravel and decorations do i need??? also what lighting is required??
thank you james
<James... please learn to/use your spellchecker... takes a bunch of time to fix folks mis-spellings, poor grammar... There is input for what you're looking for on the Net under some live plant companies sites... and books... Do look for both on the Net and Takashi Amano's works in print. Bob Fenner>

South East Asian Tank
Hello people <HI Mike how are you today?>
I’m currently in the process of planning a South East Asian themed aquarium. And since you seem like knowledgeable folks I’d be grateful if I could run the current set of ideas past you for your thoughts. <You are too kind> I’ve read general info on these topics across your site (and many others), but it is really useful to hear others opinions on specific setups. Nothing about this planned setup is set in stone yet – it’s literally at the drawing board stage, <Very smart to plan it out in advance.> but any advice you can give to help avoid problems in the future would be much appreciated. So here goes…Juwel Rio 400 system – I’ve not read anything on your website about these (so far! Its rather large…)<Bigger is usually much easier to take care of then smaller> but it’s a very basic aquarium ‘package’ that’s very popular in the UK (http://www.juwel-aquarium.de/uk/index.html).
Size: approx. 151 x 62 x 51 cm
Volume: approx. 400 litres
filter / heater - fairly large (8 Litres) internal basket filled with poly
pads, active carbon sponge and coarse / fine filter sponges - driven by a
pump (1000 litres/hour). A 300W heater is also located in the filter basket.
lighting - two 36 watt fluorescent tubes (fitted with reflectors).
Internal layout - substrate of fine gravel or sand mixed with an additional
"plant friendly" media such as peat or laterite, bogwood and a few pebbles. <There are some marvelous plant mediums out right now you are lucky to be doing this.>
Plants being considered,
Cryptocoryne affinis
Cryptocoryne crispatula
Cryptocoryne wendtii
Cryptocoryne willisii
Nymphaea lotus
Eleocharis parvula
Ceratopteris thalictroides
Hygrophila polysperma
Limnophila sessiliflora
Vallisneria spiralis <Very nice selection and should give you many different textures and heights.>
Fish,
Dwarf Rasbora Rasbora heteromorpha
Pearl Gourami Trichogaster leerii
Clown Loach Botia macracanthus
Glass catfish Kryptopterus bicirrhis
Flying Fox Epalzeorhynchus kallopterus
A few areas I’m already concerned about Pump power, too strong for this setup? Could be downgraded to 600 litres/hour. <Might be necessary unless you find a way to send the current out from two places.> Lighting, sufficient? The tank is upgradeable to carry another 2 tubes with reflectors bringing total to 4. Glass catfish, out competed for food? <I'd suggest you buy one of them that's a little big larger and I've had friends tell me they do better in pairs.> Overly boisterous clown loaches? <Start them out very small they will grow quickly.> Stocking levels, these have been hard to determine because of the potential size of the loaches and not knowing how long they will take to grow (assuming they achieve anywhere near full size) I’ve read eventual sizes anywhere from 10-50cm. Any suggestions for numbers & ratios of fish species? <My big concern with the clown loaches is that I've seen them pull plants up.>
Clown loaches/plants, The plan is that hopefully the plants will establish
when the loaches are small and being protected with a few (perhaps sizable)
pebbles should manage to survive – any loach that reaches anywhere near a
foot is going in another tank. <Good way to address that.>
I’m not planning to use any Carbon Dioxide injection apparatus, mainly
because I can’t afford the better equipment and cheaper models appear
incredibly hit and miss to me - I’d rather not take the risk. The filter
pump will be positioned to create little to no surface disturbance. <you have to have some surface movement or you won't provide enough oxygen for the fish at night.> Possibly running an air stone during the night to maintain oxygen levels – if I need to…? 
I actually have a smaller Juwel tank (54 litres/similar filter/heater on
smaller scale) that I can use for quarantine. <Very smart, don't forget to quarantine your plants as well.> Sorry for such a long meandering set of questions, thanks very much for your time. <Great questions Mike, Let us know how it goes, MacL>
Mike

A Sweet New Setup
> Hi, <Hello! Ryan with you>
> My name is Jeff. I am new to the hobby. <Welcome!> I am at work now but
came across your website. <Shhhh....I'm at work too.> I love your articles
and reasons behind what you say. I have visited lots of sites and forums
and everyone has different answers. I gravitate towards your knowledge and
I hope you can pass some my way.
> I have a 200-gallon tank. Can you help me in setting up the best filter
setup? The dimensions are 60ins L x 24 ins W x 30 ins D.
>
> I was planning on using 2- Ac 500 and a filstar-XP3 .I saw that you said a
wet dry or Fluidized sand filter would be better? What size sump and pump
would you recommend? For heating I was going to get either an EBO Jager or
Visi-Therm
> A rare earth magnet- hammer float for cleaning the glass.
> I was looking to set up an under gravel jet system to prevent dead spots.
> Two Maxi Jet 1200 for added circulation
> I have 80 lbs. of crushed coral.
> For decoration I was planning on buying Lava rock
> What would be the right mix of colourful cichlids that will get along in a
tank my size; and how many can I put in.
> Thanks
> <Jeff- Great tank! 200 gallons is the perfect amount of space for
cichlids. It's great to see someone new jump on in, most simply get their
feet wet. Cichlids, while generally very hardy, thrive in good water
quality. I encourage you to select a good beginner's fish. If you want a
monster in your tank, try a Dovii. As for color, African cichlids stand
out. You could easily house a community of cichlids from Lake Malawi, or go
with a few larger fishes. I am particular to Cyphotilapia frontosa, from
the deep waters of Lake Tanganyika. You could easily house 2-3 females and
1 male. Recently. I have seen a few bred for even more dynamic colors. I
recommend checking out: http://www.aquatiqterrors.com, a great sounding
board for cichlid info.
> As for filtration, I've found that a nice size wet/dry in addition to a
regular water change schedule is best. Skip the undergravel filter. Try a
Wet/Dry rated for 250+ gallons, should be rated 750 gph or more. Combine
this with a 10% weekly water change, and you're golden. Best of luck! Ryan>
> Jeff

Sweet new setup pt. 2
Hi Ryan,
I forgot to mention. I was offered the following for sale:
Steven Taiwan colony (G1) Group of 7(4 inch) $175 <Beautiful! A wonderful colony of Africans. Not sure about the pricing in your area, but I would certainly check out internet sellers as well.>
Tom Herman Fluidized Bed Fluidized bed, 40 gal sump, Grundfos pump, and all
fittings.$550.00 excellent condition and working order. The pump supposedly
outputs around 990GPH. I did some research and people were concerned with
the sand . What is your opinion? <Wet/Dry is a much more simple and debatably effective way of filtration. Keep it simple, and you'll enjoy it more. Best of luck! Ryan>
Thanks. Jeff

Asian River Biotope
Hello WWM Crew,
<Howdy>
I'm planning an Asian River Biotope aquarium. I'd
like some help/advice from you.
<Okay>
This system will have 2-3 goldfish, several white
clouds and zebra Danios. For plants, I plan to use
crinum, water sprite, crypts, hygro and maybe one or
two dwarf lilies.

I plan to use a Rubbermaid 150 or 300 gal stock tank
as the container. I can get these cheaper than glass
or acrylic. I also like the view from above. I'm not
worried about this being an open top system. Most of
my systems are open and I provide caves and other
hiding spots for those that need.
<Yes>
This is all easy enough to do, but I'd like to add a
waterfall (something I was against in the past.) I
just want a soft steady flow of water, down some
rocks (real or plastic.) I'd like the water from the
waterfall to join the rest of the water, with as
little splash as possible.
<Okay>
I believe that I need to keep some distance between
the lilies and the waterfall, so that the leaves
aren't constantly splashed. I'm unsure of how to do
the waterfall itself.
<Can build a "structural trough" much like outdoor falls (Please see here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/PondSubWebIndex/h2ofallconstr.htm with a bit of pond liner, stacked rock, a powerhead (with intake screen) and length of flexible tubing>
I know I could use a small water pump and some vinyl
or pvc tubing. If I went that route, how would I keep
the pump clear and at full power?
<With an intake screen... likely will come with the submersible pump or powerhead>
I wouldn't want to
have to constantly service this unit because it was
always clogged.
<Me neither>
I'd be fine without a waterfall on this system, but
this seems like a fun challenge.
<I'd add it for sure. Do take a look at Tropica and Dennerle (.com)'s site re the possible other livestock (plants and fish) you might use here. Bob Fenner>
Any help you can provide is appreciated.
Thanks

Re: waterfall question
Hello Mr Fenner and the rest of the WWM Crew
Thanks for your fast response to my message. I suppose using some of the larger Dania's instead of goldfish would make this system easier to manage.
<Yes, for you and the rest of your livestock>
I'll definitely look at your waterfall faq section, and try to build one into this system.
-------------
Maybe you can help me with one more thing. I was at a Petco not too long ago and they had a plastic waterfall on top of a large aquarium. It was on top of the back glass like a power filter. A tube brought the water out of the tank, the water slid down a series of plastic trails and then went back into the tank. I haven't been able to find anything like that online. I plan to call the store today to see if they'll tell me what the name of it is.
<Am sure they will if it's available.>
If you've ever seen anything like this and could tell me what it's called, I'd appreciate it.

Thanks again for all of your help
<Thank you for sharing. Bob Fenner>

Re: waterfall question
Hello Mr. Fenner,
I called the Petco, and learned that the waterfall is part of a display system. It's the MARs Cascade Display System by Marineland. http://www.marineland.com/products/commercial/retail/mars_cascade.asp <Oh, yes. I wonder if they (Marineland) would sell you a copy?>
I thought the molded plastic waterfall would look nice on a 55 gal tank I have.
I'll think about how to make something similar after I finish the Asian biotope aquarium.
Thanks again for all of your help
<Thank you for the follow-up. Bob Fenner>

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