If you are working or want to go away for one day, and you have fry who need Brine Shrimp. Then this is the solution. This cost you not more then $ 5,00 or so. The Do It Yourself Brine shrimp Feeder

Short working description

Dropwise clear water is falling down from upper bottle to the lower  bottle. Lower bottle will overflow. While the drops from the lower  bottle contains Brine Shrimp So you can feed Brine Shrimp for  about 8 to 10 hours with a 1L bottle  This idea came from a Dutch Discus Breeder Frans Quakernaat  who is not always at home to feed the Fry Brine Shrimp. So he has  made the following automated Brine Shrimp Feeder wich cost are  about $ 5,00

Description: This is a simple feeding mechanism which contains the following materials

2 plastic bottle's 1 plastic water tap 1 air tube 1 airstone 1 tube (for overflow) 1 hanging mechanism

The methode works as follow, you fill the upper bottle with fresh water. Through the water tap you can regulate the water drop speed from the upper bottle to the lower bottle. In the lower bottle you do salt water with freshly hatched baby brine shrimp untill the tube did not overflow. Through the water drops from the upper bottle falling into the lower bottle, the lower bottle will be filled with water and therefore water with Brine shrimp will go through the overflow into the aquarium. This is tested and it works fine for these breeder and it is a good idea

*Instead of using the upper bottle, you can also use à tube directly connected to a water tap

*Instead of a water tap in the upper bottle you can make tis with a tube a siphon with a water tap to get a greater pressure

This article/picture is written/designed by Walter Soestbergen with permission of Frans Quakernaat

For reactions on the automated Brine Shrimp Feeder please contact Walter Soestbergen

You may not use this design for commercial purpose without permission from the creator. Use freely this Brine Shrimp feeder

Today, marine aquarium keepers face the challenge of providing immaculate water conditions for their pet marine inhabitants. A hobbyist is forced to be familiar with topics, like mineralization, pH balance, specific gravity, and parts per million, in order to achieve a successful marine aquatic environment. The aquarist acquires satisfaction when balance is achieved, and disappointment when unwanted and sometimes unexpected diseases appear.

Labroides dimidiatus

The true marine hobbyist immediately rushes to the aid of a disease stricken fish by providing medication and quarantine techniques. Unfortunately, sometimes death appears when the hobbyist has misdiagnosed or treated a disease too late. As marine hobbyists, we are taught that the best way to avoid this unwarranted outcome is to be proactive by providing ideal water conditions. The reality is that we are human and mistakes are bound to happen.

Mother nature has provided us with a little friend, the cleaner wrasse (labroides dimidiatus), to naturally combat the parasitic diseases that challenge and sometimes destroy our hobby.

The natural assistant originates from the Indo-Pacific and the Red Sea through to the central Pacific Ocean. This amazing creature is our biggest ally against the onslaught of parasites by eating them off other marine fish. Once acclimated to your marine environment, the cleaner wrasse services marine clients daily by ridding them of parasites on their mouths, gills, and bodies. If two specimens are kept, the natural assistants will mimic their natural behavior by setting up a cleaning station. Marine clients will tilt their head to signal the cleaner wrasse to begin when the time comes for servicing. This very necessary act also provides a staple diet to the natural assistant. The wrasse also feeds on small meaty foods to complete its diet.

The slender creature with horizontal and light blue bands can grow to the size of four inches in the wild and two inches in captivity. The assistant can be placed in an invertebrate aquarium, and thrives in a community tank. Its ease of keeping for beginners ranks high in the aquarium world, and the wrasse is safe with other small marine fishes. The cleaner wrasse swims at all levels and prefers an aquarium temperature of 77 degrees Fahrenheit. The natural assistant’s breeding method is currently unknown and is rarely aquarium-bred. Beware of placing the cleaner wrasse with aggressive fish, for example the niger trigger (odonus niger), because a death may appear, one not caused by disease.

Marine hobbyists can use the skills of the cleaner wrasse to better their aquatic environment; however, one must remember to use the talents of our natural assistant as a second priority to preventing parasitic diseases. The first priority should always be maintaining ideal water conditions (consistent water changes, water testing, filter maintenance, and temperature levels). With the aid of our cleaner wrasse, marine aquarists can successfully control the catastrophic outbreak of parasitic diseases while enjoying the beauty of this magnificent creature

by  Jack Epstein

by Carlos Ferrandiz Calvo
Photos and Illustration by the Author

Everything began like the simple things begin: with a vocation, already at 15 years I gave egoistically an aquarium to my father, my father liked animals a lot, he had a couple of spaniels cockers that took out go for a walk regularly two times daily and a lot of cages with canarys that were the desperation of my mother since they filled the room of shells.
I wanted to study biology but my father told me that the only future will be as professor of natural sciences of institute; sure in that times, but...!! that mistake of future!!

I studied medicine and graduated with honors and finished being surgeon in Lerida, city of 120.000 inhabitants near Barcelona. At 30 years and with the secured life I began my first true vocation, first it was an aquarium and later another and another and another....until I gathered a group of 30 aquariums in 5 tons of water, then beginning the breedings, the selection, the icthiologyst studies, the contacts with the aquarium of the zoo of Barcelona, searching for rare speciesm ect. ect....until I arrived to occupy so much time that I could not follow and I had to choose!! to get my profession with the one which earned money!

From then until today!! Neither aquarium at home!! I learned that if should have been set up one, surely after one more and one...and another one....and in this way...25 years!! Now I am 57 years old and have free time and that....is my opportunity.
I have set up a bungalow of 72 square meters in the garden of my house, perfectly isolated with injected polispan and double wall, three windows of 150cm x 50cm, with isotermic crystal and a system of heating with gas that maintains the room at 27°C regulated with termostat; a system of central air with capacity in order to air 50 meter cubics of water, and an automatic system of entry and exit of tanks water.
Total aquarium water capacity is 15.000 liters, another 5.000 for estorage water and 4.000 liters of deposit of deshionized water (reverse osmosis) that I'll set up with a production of 4.000 L / daily.
The internal structure consists of two floors for aquariums of 500, 300 and 150 liters in series, the first floor is 25cm from the floor (that is lightly inclinated with six drainages), and the second floor 140 cm; the walls are made with waterproof cement, coloured with plastic washable painting, also the floor and the roof are made with cement.

The structure holding the aquariums of the upper floor is solid iron (square tubes with a thickness of 4 mm) with a separation of 150 cm between columns, this structure coloured with triple anticorrosive covering. The upper floor is formed by wood planks of 4'50 m x 9 cm, assemblied with stainless steel screwed and with four covering for protection (anticarcomer and theee stratums of marine varnish) and covered with artificial washable and very short grass exteriorly, it has a green colour and gives tanks a good support .

The distribution of the conductions of water allows to emty or fill half way or totaIly each aquarium individually, or well in groups of 10 or all joined, in this way can individualize the change of water of different quality relating to the category of the fish. Since everything has been thought for Discus the water will be different for adults, youngs until one month and half of age and breeding pairs (pH=6; hardness = 4 to 6 dGH and 200 m/s), and for youngs until the age of 9 months (pH=6; hardness=12 dGH and 350m/s) with a daily change of water of 30-50%.

Filter inside filter. It's possible to see the dismount enamel aluminium  on the top of tanks, for reinforcing.

Another advantage is that if a diseas appears it is possible to isolate and treat the tank individually, without necessity of interrupting the cycle of change. The water will be prepared in the estorage tanks, from there to the aquarium thanks to a pump. Also each 500 liters aquarium will be provided (see photo) of an external filter with a capacity of 125 l., containing a fine sponge and Bioballs or Siporax with higher density than the water in order to maintain an effective bacterial colony in case of failure. The 150-300 liters aquariums wiil have inside filters with similar characteristics but smaller, adapted for the breeding pairs and fry.

The aquariums will be bare of finery and plants in order to mantain the most perfect hygiene, probably will put some sabanna root (I suppose I'll fall in the temptation of setting up a great aquarium of exhibition, set up according to the direction of my friend Takashi Amano).
All the conductions, filter, faucets and drainages will be constructed in PVC of 16 at of pressure. One of the numerous errors of mine was been setting up the central air system with soft air tubes; result, the air pump didn't operate 'cause the tube elasticity, I had to change all the instaltation with loss of time and money.

500 l. tank with 125 l. filter, now with sponge and peat moss, in the future full up of Bioballs

Filter built by the Author with PVC

There is no metallic component in contact with the water, except the aluminium reinforcements of the larger aquariums that are also exterior.
The room is illuminated with 8 fluorescent tubes of 60 Watts and each aquarium has also four plugs with protection (one of them with clock time) for termostats, additional ligth (not necessary), C02 (if precise ), U.V. (disinfection).. ect.
The fiber glass tanks near the door, where there is more movement than the others on the first floor, will be built for myself as 500 l. deposits for distilled water, cutting the front part and putting a 8mm crystal; in the superior floor all the aquariums will have a 10mm. crystal. There are another two rooms: a 9m. laboratory-desk and another for the reverse osmosis and cleanliness.

The fiberglass tanks near the door

Details

Everything I explain here is an abridgement of many hours of manual and mental work; for setting up an installation of these dimensions only for hobby and without any profit goal, I have had to buy and read a lot of specialized books and fix in my memory the photos of the bigger professional hatcheries; aim at the Internet in order to get information and send and receive a lot of correspondence and....!!I still start!! ,but is my revenge after 25 years of abstinence.
It will not be well finished without a few autocritic:
1) The structure will be of aluminium and not of iron ('cause I'm very guarded));
2) Have not put wood for the support of the upper floor, now it's perfect and it doesn't seem affected by humidity but...???i
3) I have many doubts and a lot of small problems I hope tyo resolve thanks to the help of you all.
I hope to receive your constructive criticisms and suggestions in order to finish my my equipment. This artiche will be published in any magazine that will consider it interesting, especially in AquaWorld Magazine. I'd like to thanks the Italian friends, especially Raffaele Bufo; my Spanish friends (thank you, Miguel!), and German , American and Asiatic ones, without them the communication should have been very difficult.
After installation will be finished and tested, I'll write another article with photos, giving more specific details.

www.aquaworldnet.com

by Ralph Peters
Photos by Ralph Peters

www.aquaworldnet.com

by Ted Coletti
Photos by Raffaele Bufo

Microsorium pteropus, the Java Fern

Java Fern, or as its known to scientists (y'know, patient people), Microsorium pteropus. Java Fern is, in my eyes, the perfect aquarium plant and still my favorite. And this is coming from a person who keeps such beauties as Cryptocorne axelrodi and Bacopa carolina. Why do I think Java Fern is the perfect aquarium plant? Quite simply, because anyone can grow the darn thing (like algae) and its beautiful to boot (unlike algae). For those aquarists who have never experienced Java Fern, consider these features: It can be cultivated in tap water, dim or bright light, with or without gravel, fresh and brackish, soft or hard. It flourishes without added fertilizers or CO2. It is more snail resistant and actually grows better with higher fish loads.

Thus, if you' ve had trouble growing aquatic plants, you can probably grow Java Fern. Add to this a beautiful medium to dark green color with forms ranging from bushy to leafy spikes and you have what experts call a "beautiful" and "decorative" aquarium plant (James, 1986; Rataj & Horeman, 1977). Now that my shameless expounding is complete, we can describe the care and maintenance of this great aquarium plant.

Java Fern's Place in the World of Plants
To understand why Java Fern is so hardy and easy to propagate is to understand the evolution of plants in general. For simplicity lets group aquarium plants into three orders. At the lowest order is algae. Easily propagated by all aquarists (whether they want to or not) algae spores are carried through the air. At the next level are non-flowering plants. In this primitive group we find Ferns (such as Java and Watersprite), as well as mosses and minute floating plants such as Riccia. Many hobbyists may be suprised to learn that these plants not only reproduce vegetatively, but like algae, also by spores carried by the wind. The highest order of plants are flowering plants. This includes the popular aquarium plants including Echinodrous swordplants and Crytocornes. By now, you should realize that the difficulty in keeping many aquarium plants has much to do with their genetic simplicity.

So What is a Java Fern?
Java Fern is an amphibious jungle plant that grows attached to tree trunks, rocks, and the ground. It can be found growing on the water line of mountain streams and waterfalls, as a wild grass in tropical rain forests, and even in coastal brackish areas. But unlike many other aquarium plants, it can prosper submerged indefinitely. Its growth is such that as old leaves grow tall and die, new ones have already stole the spotlight. Java Fern (Microsorium pteropus) is widely distributed in tropical Southeast Asia, especially southern China and the Indo-Malayan area (that includes the island of Java and the Phillippines). Java Fern has also been recorded in Japan and the Pine Barrens of the New Jersey coast. This later location supposedly hosts a different Microsorium variety.

I have also heard some hobbyists claim there is an African variety of Java Fern, although this may be a reference to another aquatic fern, Bolbitis heudeloth. Furthermore, a Malayan plant similar to Java Fern is supposedly sold in shops. The hobbyists can distinguish this plant from true Java Fern by its thinner rhizomes and stems. A variety known as the "Windel v" is very attractive. These "other" Java Ferns may explain the recent discussions I've had with aquarists regarding different varieties of the plant. Hopefully someday an article will appear which will clear up the nomenclature!

Java Fern is composed of three important parts. The roots of the plant are its most unique aspect. They appear to function not as nutrient carries, but rather, as anchors. The roots are dark brown and hairlike and attach themselves to wood, gravel, and even rocks! This last anchor site still amazes me, since I have seen Java Fern become "stuck" to completely smooth stones. It is as if the roots become sticky, or find some way to adhere themselves to the seemingly smooth surface. The roots can become quite long when they are not attached. A Java Fern situated at the top of an aquarium can really "let its hair down" as it seems to "search" for an additional anchor site. The heart of a Java Fern is its durable rhizome, which creeps in length and thickness with age, and eventually branches out to cover wider areas. A Java Fern on the end of piece of 6" driftwood will eventually makes its way to the other side of wood. This could take a year to accomplish, though, as rhizome growth is slower than leaf development. The leaves of Java Fern are equally hardy. Healthy leaves are a stunning dark green with a leathery texture. A well-kept specimen can have a few leaves up to 10 inches long and 1.5 inches wide. It has been my experience that some plants tend to "stay low" in height as they branch out. This form is more like a bush. I have found that this characteristic develops in plants that are "floated" for a long time. By contrast, plants with thick rhizomes tend to develop a few tall, thick, "spiky" leaves. I think this may a species difference. Regardless of type, to encourage taller growth, new plants should be pruned so more energy is available for rhizome and leaf growth. Trust me - the leaves will come back, albeit taller. I have also seen shop varieties with trilobate leaves, but I have never, unfortunately, experienced these in my aquariums. This happens when the leaves are allowed to grow large.

Reproduction in Java Fern
Java Ferns' reproductive flexibility is one of its great strengths. Aside from airborne spores (which are supposedly rare even in nature) I have found four (4) ways new plants or leaves develop in the home aquarium. One is through the ever creeping rhizome, which sprouts new leaves as it grows in width and length. A second is through the development of tiny plantlet "babies" at the tips of other leaves. This is especially common with leaves that are long or older. Eventually the plantlet grows to about 1 inch and breaks off the mother leaf. This is similar to how Watersprite (Ceratopteris sp.) reproduces, which is in the same family of ferns. "Impatient" aquarists can break off the plantlets early without any harm to either plant. Two other methods of Java Fern reproduction are less frequently described. In fact, I have yet to read descriptions. I have observed that older leaves of Java Fern, as well as large leaves that are transplanted, often develop black "spore" spots on the underside. You can anticipate this when a leaf looks weathered, with more pronounced vein lines. These spots eventually develop into plantlets, and it has been my experience that these plantlets usually grow quite large and hardy. In fact, they must be broken off manually. It is as if a dying Java Fern leaf wants to "go out with a bang!" One leaf on a plant I had was torn and decayed but still produced babies for a year until I pruned it. The last method of Java Fern reproduction I have witnessed involves planlets growing from the roots. This only happens when the roots are hanging in the water without attachment. I cannot find any documentation of this reproductive method, but nonetheless I have witnessed it. It makes for a very attractive cascading effect, almost like a hanging houseplant. Recently I have discovered little Javas growing inside a cave from the driftwood in my tank. I am not sure if these are from adjacent roots which made their way into the cave, or by spores!

Keeping Java Fern in Your Aquarium
With all its beauty and ease of propagation, I often wonder why Java Fern is not more frequently available in pet shops. It appears well-suited to the low-light and hard/alkaline conditions often found in dealer tanks. The slow growth of Java Fern could be a factor (fish farmers may be impatient too). When you do find Java Fern, it may be planted in the gravel. Having a good idea what Java Fern looks like before you ask for it helps a lot as many dealers are unfamiliar with the plant. When you request some, I recommend you ask for it submerged in water. Dry air is the Achilles heal of Java Fern. This hardy plant needs to keep wet. True it is most often found in the wild as an emersed pant, but as Yoshino & Kobayahi (1993) recently pointed out, it is most abundant in areas exposed to water sprays. The leaves of Java Fern dry quickly, so as you set up its new home, keep it submerged or use a spray bottle to keep the leaves moist as you prepare the tank.

To facilitate acclimation of any new plant, I like to initally add a bit of electrolyte-based water conditioner, such as Jungle's Plant Saver. After purchase, you now have the option of tying it down, planting the roots, or letting it float. The former method is preferred by me. I like to use black thread (which matches the roots) to gently tie down the rhizome to a piece of driftwood. Java Fern seems to grow best when attached to a nice piece of wood and given room to "spread." But there's no harm in tying it to small scrap wood, ornaments, rocks, and gravel. It will grow well there too. Holding the plant down in the gravel by its roots can be cumbersome at first, but eventually it will be anchored by its attachment to bits of gravel. Some people have had trouble acclimating Java Fern initially. It has been suggested that this is often due to the fact that imported Java Fern is collected along brackish coastal areas. However, it will rebound. You may want to ask your dealer where his stock is from and how long has it been in freshwater. Since Java Fern is often found near moving water in emersed form, it likes swift oxygenated water during the evening (hence, the leathery leaves). This is usually no problem in the home aquarium, where powerheads and filters increase oxygen saturation. This is a refreshing change from dealing with flowering plants in search of lots of CO2, which is often not available in large enough quantities in home aquariums.

Java Fern accepts a broad range of water temperatures from the mid-60s to the mid-80s. but is best at temperatures in the mid-70's. Yoshino & Kobayahi (1993) report on a peculiar disease affecting aquatic ferns during periods of high water temperatures. They advise that tank temperatures do not exceed 82 degrees and that any dying leaves or runners be pruned. However, I have never experienced this disease with my Java Ferns in the 4+ years I have grown them. And this includes the usual Jersey summer when my Java Fern tank stays in the mid-80's for weeks at a time. Perhaps I have been lucky. Water hardness and pH ranges are equally liberal. Java Fern is found on jungle floors where soft, acidic water sprays on its leaves, on the edge of mountain streams where near neutral conditions exist, and in the hard, alkaline tanks of African Cichlids keepers who use it as their plant of choice. Aggregate recommendations for Java Fern range from a 5.0 to 8.0 pH with a 2-25 DH. Here in New Jersey, my tap water ranges from 6.6 to 7.8, with a German hardness of 10 DH and my Java Fern grows fantastic. Most experts recommend optimum conditions at a pH of 6.0 to 7.0 with hardness from 2-12 DH.

Lighting for Java Fern is similarly easy. Java Fern does well in subdued to bright light, and unlike other aquarium plants, even seems to prefer more dim conditions. One fluorescent strip light sized over your tank is plenty. In my Java Fern tank, one side is exposed to diffused morning sun from an adjacent room. The ferns really respond well on this side of the tank. I use a trace fertilizer occasionally for the minute amount of potassium required by the fern, or when I see the leaves yellowed, which is a rare occurrence. If you have an unaeratd gravel bed, you may want to occasionally use a ion-excahnge resin such as Aquarium Pharmaceutical's Phos-Zorb to take care of phosphate build-up. But these are routine practices for general planted tanks. Java Fern is most forgiving in these areas. Java Fern is an efficient utilizer of ammonium products ( the preferred nutrient of plants). So unlike the usual recommendation for planted tanks, stocking levels for fish can be higher without detriment to the plant. Ammonium is in smaller quantities in alkaline tanks (where ammonia is more produced as the first step in the nitrogen cycle) but my Javas still do quite well in my alkaline tanks. A good geographic aquarium display using Java Fern could include fish that also prefer cooler, oxygen rich waters. China's Golden Barbs such as Barbus semifascioltus or schuberti, Spanner Barbs from Java (B. lateristriga), or Black-Spot (B. filamentosus), Purple-Headed (B. nigrofasciatus), or Cuming's Barbs from the Sri Lanka mountains would all be geographically appropriate. An aquarium manual some years ago briefly mentioned that a scat ate the leaves of a Java Fern and died. Since then there have been numerous reiterations of this tale with the conclusion that Java Fern is poisonous. The only fish I have seen eat a Java Fern was a team of hungry Goldfish - and they all lived. Clearly this theory needs scientific substantiation. Aside from the pruning strategies already mentioned, your Java Fern will now pretty much take care of itself. It is an extremely economical plant. I have filled up many tanks from just one small plant I received a few years ago. And that's without extra lighting or gravel or CO2 canisters. With Java Fern any hobbyist can have a beautiful planted tank. Even impatient ones.

www.aquaworldnet.com

by Luís Gonçalves

Preface

These articles series about the setting up of a marine tank are directed to an universe of people that desire to get in this wonderful world of marine fish keepping. It will be usefull both to whom are unfamiliarity with all the basic factors in the way to set a stable tank, and to whom that have some experience of fresh water fish keeping and want to set up a marine tank. It can be seen as an impossible task for a beginner to set up a marine aquarium before he had get some experience with a fresh water aquarium. Wrong idea. It’s perfectly possible to do it. In what conditions ? The first condition is that you must be a person that like to do things well and you have a large appetite to get new knowlege. The secound condition is that you are a patient person.

Subjects will be progressively treated. This will be so because you have many things to understand and to learn. To the realy beginner I also recomend to read my fresh water article in this magazine The marine tank setting up and maintenance methods that I’m going to present are based in acquired knowledge and applied in a large number of tanks with extremely positive results. The greater satisfaction I can have in my effort to help someone setting up and maintaining a marine tank is to make possible and easy a thing that in a first view could be considered difficult. I hope you also obtain the best results and that this serie of articles can offer you a succefuly entrance in the marine fish keepping.

I want to thank Dr. Raffaele Bufo and Dr. Mark Bethea for the magnificent pictures that are showned in this article, and to recomend you to visit the interesting site of this last one Dr. MDB's Reef Page. I also want to give a big kiss to my daughter for the help in the translation into english and a hug to all my friends for the trust and enthusiasm that they provide me and for the incite they are giving me in this great adventure of being here giving my best for you.

For love to Nature.

Luís Gonçalves.

1. Generalities

One of the main reasons that makes some people to set up a marine aquarium is the beauty and intensity of the colours, the magnificent shapes that both fishes and invertebrates can show.

Chaetodon chrysurus

It’s very important to take in account that these forms of life are very sensitive. If we understand the reasons why this is so, we are walking in the right way to set up a successful marine aquarium.

These lovely creatures are completely adapted to their environment, which is the sea.

About 2/3 of the Earth surface are covered with salt water. Life in our planet began precisely in these waters about 3.000 million years ago. Since then primitive creatures developed a serie of mechanisms to garantie their survival. One of this mechanisms is the animal’s capacity to make enormous transformations in their body for millions years to adapt to changes in the surrounding environment.

In what consists this adaption to the surrounding environment ?

Animals need to eat, to reproduce and to avoid to be eaten. So to garantee that they will do successfuly this three tasks they adapt their organism to the natural resources that they find in the surrounding environment. Let me give you some simple examples:

1) Suppose that in a large prairie we have, of course, some herbivorous species. Suppose two more things: in the same prairie proximity there are a carnivorous animal that hunt those herbivorous and the existent grass is creeper. What characteristics we should expect that the herbivorous have ? Probably they have long legs because they need to run fast to escape from the carnivorous hunt and a long neck because they need to reach the grass.

2) Suppose now a desert. We don’t expect to find there herbivorous, because they have nothing to eat, and therefore no carnivorous. What kind of animals have the capacity to survive there ? Some insects and some kind of reptiles that eat them.

3) Suppose now the Artic. All animals that live there must have the capacity to maintain the temperature level inside their body in spite of the cold temperature that are both in the air and water. What kind of animals live there ? We may think in the seals that eat fish and in the white bear that eat the seals.

4) Imagine now a jungle . The quantity of species that live there is absolutely amazing. There is no other place in Earth with such a diversity of animals.

These very simple examples show us that the animals survival depends on the environment and from each others. This is what is called an ecosystem. So we have seen four major types of ecosystems: the prairie, the desert, ice and the jungle with their own creatures because they are adapted to each place.

The sea isn’t uniform, also as land, there are various ecosystems with their inhabitant creatures that are unique.

The lovely and coloured fishes and invertebrates that we want to deal are from a very particular region of the sea called The Reef. So if we want to set up a reef tank it’s better that we know something about the reef.

2. The Reef.

The tropical oceans are the Earth’s most stable environment. Nothing changes from day to day, week to week, or from year to year. All fishes surroundings parameters are practilly constants: the salinity, the temperature, the PH level, the oxygen content and the water composition never changes. So the marine reef creatures has no built-in mechanism for changes. The marine fishes do not adapt readily to life in an aquarium. We must pay attention to a very high water quality parameters that we must maintain constantly in our aquarium. All the animals that we want to keep become from very clean waters and we know that in our tank there will be an accumulation of poisoning substances that we must avoid. The way this situation happens in the tank is described in my fresh water article: if you don’t know nothing about this subject I recommend you to read it before you go on.

The degradation of organic material inside the tank will produce toxic substances that are dissolved in the water and that are lethal to fishes and invertebrates. Fortunately there are proccesses of transforming these dangerous substances in other more harmless through tank’s water filtering systems. The filtration plays a fundamental role in the tank so it will be analised in a proper chapter.

The reef is itself a world. Corals are creatures very demading. They need a very good light, warm and very clear water without pollution. They find this conditions in tropics, generally, around islands. Reefs are the places in the sea with the biggest diversity in animal types, such as, fishes, anemones, corals, shrimps, and so on. The reefs are really sea jungles.

3. The Reef Inhabitants.

We must keep in our minds that all the creatures that live in the Reef are difficult to keep in captivity. But there are ones that become much more difficult than others. In a general way fishes are the easiest to keep. This doesn’t mean that fishes are easy to keep. In fact there are fish species that are very difficult.

Observing the following reef’s picture we can expect that feeders on coral polyps, small worms and litle shrimps have a needlilke mouth and a compressed body to access easily and deeper between the coral and rocks searching for food.

And so it is.

Regarding the four next pictures we can say that the last two fishes are much more easier to keep than the first two.

Pomacanthus imperator	Chaetodon lunula
Amphiprion ocellaris (percula)	Glyphidodontops (Abudefduf) cyaneus

Why is it like that ? I will tell you two main reasons:

1) The two first fishes are adapted to eat a kinf of food very difficult to provide in captivity: Coral polyps. Regard their mouth shape. They will never be able to eat large pieces. It’s always a doubt when we get one of this fishes if he is going to change his feading habits to the food that we can provide him or not, because we aren’t surely disposed to give him coral polyps to eat. We want that corals stay alive. 2) The fish sensivity to the toxic substances present in the tank are not the same. The last two aren’t so demading and can better tolorate this presence. They don’t depend so much from their natural environment: they have a much better capacity to adapet to new situations than the first two. So they quickly and gladly accept new kinds of food and new environment. Certainly they are good fishes for the begginer.

Conclusion: The depedence of fishes to their natural environment varies from specie to specie. You will need to choose well your first fishes, because you need to get experience and you need to learn a lot of things but you can’t do this in only one day. So it’s better that you begin with the easiest animals and, by getting confidence in yourself, you try progressively dificult animals.

You can think to try a only fish tank. It’s much easier, and gives you time to learn the things you must know before you begin with the invertebrates. This precaution could not satisfy some who don’t want to loose the beauty of the invertebrates.

In fact this is a difficult decision to the beginner. The beauty of this animals let us completely brathless. They deserve our absolutely respect, and this means that if we are decided to keep them at the first try, we have the obligation to know absolutely the tank conditions that we must have to garantee their survival. Another important factor in this decision is the fact that not all the fishes are suitable with coral, anemones, shrimps and so on because, as I have already suggested, they eat them. So if the decision is to include invertebrates in the tank the range of choice on fishes is highly reduced. On a further chapter I will show you what kind of fish species aren’t suitable with invertebrates. I think this will help you to make your decision on a fish only tank or not.

4. Final Considerations

We have now the perception that we will have the following concerns with the marine tank setup:

1) We will need to garantee a first class water quality. This means that we must have great concerns with the filtering system.

2) We must garantee that there are no abrupt changes in the water chemestry, such as the minor components, PH, oxygen level, temperature, hardness. Stability is a goal that we must reach. So the time you have to care the tank and how often you can do it plays an important role. Today there are a great diversety and quality of equipments avalable that reduce the nead of human interference. Nevertheless, it’s better that we keep always an eye on the water quality. This is so because in a marine tank we will instantaneously have very elaborated chesmistral reactions that are changing the water parameters. We don’t have the way to mesure them all, so it’s better if we really care with the ones that we have the possebility to know.

3) We will have more concerns with water quality and chemestry if we want to keep corals and anemones. In this case the tank’s lighting must be improved to high levels of quality and quantity.

4) We must know something about the fishes, corals, anemones and crustaceans habits and needs. We only want to join in the same tank species that are really compatible to avoid that some will be eaten by others.

All this aspects and others will be treated in next chapters.

WATER QUALITY

1. Sea Water and Marine Creatures - Their Relationship

In last chapter we saw the dependence of living creatures with their habitat. Sea water is an extremely stable environment. This means that we don't find significative changes on it's physical and chesmistral composition in the same place as time goes on. Of course when we set up a marine aquarium we have to get a characteristic water in everything very similar to the Natural Sea Water as marine creatures are not able to adapt to changes in their natural environment and consequently they would' t survive.

So , our first task is to obtain this almost perfect water. How to get it ? How's Natural Sea Water composition ?

2. Sea Water

No one doubts that sea water is salty. Often we call Sea Water of Salty Water. In ordinary language this way of calling sea water has no problem. As we'll see there is a difference between Sea Water and Salty Water.

There is not the slightest doubt that Sea Water has got a lot of salt. This one, which we are familiar with is called Sodium Chloride. This is a compound substance of Sodium and Chlorine. What else can we find in Sea Water compositon ?

Sea Water contains almost all natural elements. Many of them are essential for life. Others we don't know yet their role.

Pic. 2.1 - Sea Water Composition

On the contrary we can think, owing to the very litle quantity that trace elements are present in Sea Water composition, these are essential to marine creatures in our aquarium. Trace elements are quickly consumed by fishes and invertebrates. A constant concern of the fish keeper is the replacement of these substances in the water. In the market there are several products to this purpose.

We must notice that some trace elements must be present in very small quantities; otherwise, they may bring serious problems. For example, copper is used for the treatment of some marine fish deseases but its presence in the water above certain levels is mortal to invertebrates e it can also kill fishes if levels continue to grow.

The main conclusion that we can already learn from this brief presentation is that the water that we want for our aquarium must contain a great number of elements and these have to be present in rigorous proportions. But why all these concerns if we can simply go to the beach to get sea water, and bring it back home. This solution apparently simple may become very complicated for a lot of reasons. Most people can't do this as they live far away from beach and water transportation may become very annoying. But other serious problems may appear with this option of using natural sea water in the aquarium. These problems are the result of environment degradation that has been occorring in this century. We all know it and have this present in our conscience. It has been verificated the sea water contamination with various chemistral substances discharged by industries directly in the sea or in the rivers that will be later drained into the sea corrupting its chemistral composition. We also have domestic pollution produced by all using hygiene products in our homes that will also go to the sea. I could continue giving a countless number of examples but I think that the main idea is already given. It's obvious that this polution will have a larger expression in the seashore . In fact until a distance of about 50 Km from the coast pollution is present. This means that if we don't want to have problems we should search for water beyond this limit which for many it's impossible. Nevertheless who lives near the seashore with mild or cold water, characteristic of the European Countries, even trespassing the 50 Km barrier we can't solve all the problems.

It means that other types of problems may appear in the aquarium with the use of natural sea water. For now I will refere one of them that in my opinion it's very important and also very easy to understand. The reef aquarium temperature must be 25-26 Celsius degrees. In many parts of the globe the sea water temperature it's colder. As we walk from the tropics to the poles the water temperature reduces. So, for many of us the sea water temperature of our coast will be lower.

Let's imagine a situation in which the natural sea water temperature is 15 degrees. We all have heard about plankton. This tiny marine creature is transported in the water that we collected and will be introduced in the aquarium. It will be noticed a 10 degrees increase in the water temperature, so the plankton will begin a reproduction process with astronomic proportions. But this plankton isn't adapted to survive in such temperature. So after this amazing multiplication process it will completly die. The various types of bacteria present in the aquarium will thank this because they will have much more food and this will be a lot easier to get. With this we will proportionate conditions which will provoke a large reproduction process of the bacteria.

The various bacteria types will begin competing among them. The law of natural selection will provide that the strongest and most agressive will survive and multiplicate more and more. Plankton finishes and all this enormous bacteria population will have no other choice than to look for another source of food. In the aquarium they only find an alternative: THE FISHES. Without desiring we may be creating serious problems in fishes health. Because of that unless you live in a paradisiac island in the tropic forget this process. Fortunately it exists nowadays salt mixtures that combining with fresh water have the capacity of reproducing natural sea water with a extraordinary ressembling level. This must be the process to obtain sea water in our aquarium: appropriate salt mixtures mixed in a convenient amount with fresh water. In the market there are several salt manufacturers claiming their salt is the best ! In fact it's to difficult for the beginner to know what salt mixture to choose. But this is a fundamental decision. An aquarium may be setted up with the best wet dry filters, the best skimmers, the best ozonizers, and so on ... but if the salt mixture doesn't have the capacity to reproduce the sea water, it means, if in its composition there aren't all the necessary and fundamental elements in the right proportion all that equipment is useless !

The choice of the salt brand is essencial. Ask your local pet shop staff or send me an email and we'll talk about it. You must choose the best even if it's the more expensive.

It seems that all the problems are finished. There are others things that we can't forget.

What kind of fresh water are we intend to use ?

In a great majority of cases it will be the so called tap water, supplied by the water companies. This kind of water has in its composition undesirable components that can become dangerous, even letal to the aquarium species. The supplier companies use the chlorine or chloramines to desinfect their water. Both of this two substances are very dangerous if they are introduced in the tank. Other negative characteristic of this kind of water is the fact that they also have mixed heavy metals in dangerous quantities such as copper, aluminium, and others. It may be also present substances such as Nitrates and Phophates, that are nowadays extensively used in farming and that can become mixed with the subterranean running water that will be captured by water companies and integrated in the supplier network. This subject related with nitrates and phosphates is very important because as we'll later see it will be necessary to do an important investment in equipment to avoid the formation of this two substances in the aquarium. We are also going to spend some money in choosing the best salt brand that should not have these substances but if we don't pay attention to the fresh water that we are going to use we may being introducing this problem in the tank. So we must pay all attention to the chesmistral of the fresh water that we are intended to use.

At the first place we may get nitrates and phosphates tests before we begin the tank set up and do these analysis to make a first contact with the water characteristics. If we note the nitrates and/or phosphates presence we can't use that water. It's best that we find other alternative otherwise we sooner or later we'll have troubles in the tank.

We should never use tap water after a supplying failure. When the supply is re-established the initial water chesmistral composition becomes unbalanced and may have on its composition all these substances that can serious harm all the living creatures in our tank. I know some disastrous situations in which it has happened. The tap water composition isn't stable. So it's advisable to do tests always we use it.

In the market there are various products brands that are intended to eliminate chlorine, chloramine and the heavy metals. It's a good idea to use a product of this type choosing a brand with "name" in the market and use it in the recommended quantities by the manufacturer. I use with great results Haloex manufactured by Waterlife. Additionaly we may use activated charcoal on the water preparation. The aquarium's weekly maintenance recommend to do a 10% water change. We may set up a litle tank to this purpose with a power-head on which we put the fresh water, the salt a the dechloriner, and if we also equip this tank with a canister filter with activated charcoal we will produce an effective remotion of the chlorine and heavy metals mixed with the water. Save money in this matter makes no sense. We must use a activated charcoal of a good brand and the top inside the brand. I always have used Ehfipur from Eheim with great results.

We have made an analysis in this chapter of one of the fundamental beginnings in the aquarium setting up: having as a start point a synthetic sea water with a quality level that makes it as similar as possible with natural sea water. As we shall see the aquarium's water will suffer changes on its chesmistral. These changes must be controlled and corrected. This is what we shall see in the filtration and maintenance chapters

www.aquaworldnet.com

by Mark D. Bethea
Photos by the Author

Full picture of my Niger Trigger

This month I will discuss my favorite marine fish, the Niger Trigger (Odonus Niger). This beautiful Triggerfish is one of the many different fish in the Balistidae Family. Other popular triggerfish are the clown triggerfish (Balistoides conspicillum), the Undulate Triggerfish (Balistapus undulatus) and the Queen Triggerfish ( Balistes vetula). The name Triggerfish was given because of the first dorsal fin that is used to lock the fish in place when it takes cover in between rocks or crevices.

It is almost impossible to dislodge a triggerfish once its trigger is in an erect position. The Niger Triggerfish is found mainly in the Indo Pacific and Red Sea.. There seems to be little difference in coloration from the two different regions. The coloration of the Niger Triggerfish seem to vary from blue to purple with many having a combination of the two. The most interesting feature in this triggerfish is the fact that the front teeth or fangs as many people call them, tend to have a reddish hue to them, hence the common name of Red-tooth triggerfish. Triggerfish can deliver a very painful bite easily drawing blood, so use caution if you must put your hand in the tank. Another feature of the Niger Triggerfish is that it has a lyre tail that can extend a few inches beyond the body reminding one of the Naso or Unicorn tang. They are extremely disease resistant and they have been known to survive the cycling period of a newly established aquarium (I would not recommend it). Triggerfish are also equipped with their own moving company, rearranging the tank decorations to suite their taste.

Close-up of teeth

All Triggerfish have aggressive tendencies and the Niger is no exception. It is, however, tolerant of other fish in the closed aquarium and will get along peacefully with most species that are as large as it is. When adding any triggerfish to an already established aquarium, make sure that it is the smallest fish in the tank. The Niger is one of the least aggressive triggers and suitable tankmates should not be hard to find.

They are known to be incompatible with Blennies, Cardinalfishes, Dottybacks, Mandarinfishes, and Invertebrates.Triggerfish are not compatible with a reef aquarium and should be kept in a fish-only aquarium since they will eat crustaceans as well as some mobile and sessile invertebrates.

A variety of foods can be used to satisfy the nutritional requirements. Crustaceans, mollusks, fresh seafood, frozen seafood, vegetable matter and fortified flake food are enough to keep them healthy and growing. Niger Triggerfish can reach lengths of up to 20" in the wild and over 10" in the home aquarium. They can live over 10 years in the public or home aquarium and even longer in the wild. The general rule of thumb with any marine fish is 1" of fish for every 5 gallons of water which translates to a tank with a minimum of fifty gallons for a juvenile and at least 125 gallons for an adult.

After seeing an extremely large Niger Trigger at my local zoo, I immediately went home and started reading about this fish and decided to purchase one. I have had my Niger Trigger for over 4 years and have watched it grow from just over 2" to over 7". I think the colors on this fish are magnificent and the fact that I can indeed keep other fish with it was a plus. Everyday when I go to check on my fish tank, there he is, my Odonus Niger probably reminding me that I did not feed him yesterday. I tend to feed my Niger twice a week with frozen krill, frozen seafood, and fortified flake food. Fresh Seafood should be used sparingly since they can quickly spoil and contaminate a tank if some is left uneaten. I currently keep 3 large Bigeye Soldierfish, a 12" snowflake eel, a Lutescens Wrasse, a Honeycomb Grouper and a 4-stripe damsel fish with my Niger Trigger in a 125 gallon tank.

If you are really interested in purchasing a Niger Triggerfish, I suggest you have an adequately sized aquarium, and feed it a wide variety of food and you can have years of enjoyment watching this spectacular fish grow. The next time you are in your pet store looking for a marine fish, take a good look at the Niger Triggerfish and give one a happy home.

Peace!!!

www.aquaworldnet.com

by  Alan Dunne
Photo by Raffaele Bufo

If you have ever wanted to keep the Belonesox belizanus but was put off by the amount of live fish you would have to feed it! Well so was I until I had a 3 foot tank full of Goodea atripinnis and guppies and I found that Alan Rothwell had 2 young fish about 1 inch long. I set up a 2 foot tank for the little monsters and then collected the 2 fish at Western Super Mare festival of fish keeping 95, that Sunday night I settled the two fish down in their new home. Once I had released the monsters into there tank I added a couple of feeder fish to the tank and was amazed that the pike feed almost immediately, from then on the fish were feed twice a day with a fish about half the size of the pike. At about 2½ months the pike started to sex out and turned out to be two males, then a shop in Portsmouth had some 6 inch females and I obtained a nice female.

A pair of Belonesux belizanus, the female in the foreground

So far all was fine but after 6 months my fish stocks stared to deplete very quickly.Any spare fish was now going to this pike, I had to change her diet, I tried river shrimps (live) but she had other ideas as one of the two small pike (now 3½ inch fish) disappeared, a 4 inch giant danio went the same way, and she even killed my gibbiceps (but she could not eat the heavily armoured pleco). At this stage most revert back to the live foods.

I gave her a few days of live foods then starved her for 2 days. Taking a single strand of cotton I tied a double knot, then threaded the other end thorough a sowing needle then pushed the needle thorough the back of a lance fish (frozen) under the dorsal fin, then pulled the cotton thorough the fish until the knot gets to the fish then with a small tug pull the knot just thorough the skin and into the flesh, put the lance fish in the tank with the pike then gently pull and twitch the fish around the tank, don’t do it to fast as if you spook them then they will not feed for a while. After doing this for 2 days then the male was feeding perfectly, the female was not so easy and had just started to feed after 2 weeks but the fish had to look natural with no sudden movements, the male on the other hands was much easier to feed all you had to do is drop the lance fish in and he would eat it on the drop, this is the one thing the female would never do. After watching my fish for awhile I noticed that the males would switch to feeding on frozen fish much easier than any females would. The fry has to be feed on life foods, from day one they can be feed on daphnia, adult brine shrimp or you can try finely chopped fish but you can’t beat live fish. Only after they are two to three month old can you start to wean then over to dead bait without suffering poor growth. Below is the results of a feeding trial I have carried out on the young fry born to my female. Feed trial 1 fish, born on 17 August 96 was feed on only live foods, after 8 weeks had reached 1½ inchs and start to sex out to a male. 2 fish (same age) were feed solely feed on finely chopped pieces of fish. They took till January 97 to sex out and had only reached around 1-1½ inches. Most of food wasted as you can’t hang the food in the water and once the pieces of fish had reached the bottom the Belonesox took no further interest in them and they had to be siphoned out to avoid pollution  www.aquaworldnet.com