#tropicalfish

125-Day Planted Aquarium Update (Inert Sand, No CO₂, No Root Tabs)

This is the latest update on my 70-litre (18 US gallon) planted aquarium, now 125 days old, and I'm really happy with the progress it's made so far. The tank is home to two honey gouramis, nine lambchop rasboras, and a mixed-line "Skittles" colony of Neocaridina shrimp. Despite using inert sand with no root tabs, the aquarium continues to grow a wide variety of plants surprisingly well under a Chihiros B Series light with filtration provided by a Seachem Tidal 35.

The honey gouramis only moved into this aquarium a couple of weeks ago, but they settled in almost immediately. One has claimed the back left corner while the other has taken over the back right, and one has already started building a bubble nest. The lambchop rasboras are thriving too, and I'm considering increasing the size of the school. I originally planned to add Panda Corydoras, but I'm now leaning towards moving my ember tetras and pygmy corydoras into this aquarium instead.

The mixed-line Neocaridina shrimp are still breeding well. The colony originally included red, orange, yellow and blue shrimp, although apart from the reds, many of the other colour lines have gradually faded over time. Even so, they continue to produce some really interesting wild-type shrimp with unique patterns and colours.

One of the newest additions is an Echinodorus 'Aflame', which is often recommended as an easy red sword plant. It'll be interesting to see how it develops over the coming months. The real star of the aquarium, though, has to be the Aponogeton ulvaceus. It's commonly recommended for nutrient-rich substrates, yet it's thriving in plain inert sand, producing long flowing leaves, runners, and even a flower.

Several plants that are usually described as heavy root feeders are also growing far better than many people would expect. The Cryptocoryne species and most of the Echinodorus swords are doing extremely well, although the Echinodorus 'Tricolour' seems to be growing more slowly than the others at the moment.

The emersed houseplants are beginning to fill in nicely too. The spider plants, Epipremnum, and Philodendron have all put on noticeable growth as the warmer summer weather has arrived, helping to create a more natural riparian look above the aquarium.

The biggest challenge right now is algae. I'm fairly sure it's being fuelled by excess organics released from the Centurion wood, which started decomposing much faster than I expected after it was added to the tank. Thankfully, the problem is slowly fading as the aquarium continues to mature.

"Bycatch"

Acrylic and reclaimed materials on canvas

This painting is inspired by a research article I read regarding plant biodiversity in relation to frugivorous (fruit eating) fish species.

One facet of the research that was highlighted was the noted drop in plant species diversity as a direct result of overfishing

I wanted this piece to feel very dreamlike and surrealist

Plastic mesh was added to create texture and allude to overharvest of freshwater fish

The three fish featured are frugivorous fish found in the region of the referenced research (top: Brycon, middle: Myloplus, bottom: Triportheus)

Betta Fish

This is my drawing of a Betta fish

Betta fish are also known as Siamese fighting fish, and they are very popular aquarium fish because of their many different vibrant colours and fin shapes. They are native to Southeast Asia so can be found in the shallow seas of countries such as Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia and Malaysia.

They are "anabantoids", which means they come from a rare suborder of fish which allows them to rise up and breathe air from the surface of the water.

Colour version of Stonelapper on Skull.  First layer only, will get a second brighter layer soon. 

Ask Aqueon to stop making under one gallon betta fish aquariums. 

Sign the petition

Their five betta fish starter kits range from 0.25 - 0.75 gallon per fish, and they're advertised as suitable environments. They create low quality conditions with no room for adequate heating or filtration.

Betta fish need at least five gallons, a filter, heater, and lots of environmental enrichment like plants and hiding spots. 

Aqueon's tagline is "it's all about the fish" but they have been deleting comments and silencing the voices of concerned fish lovers. They will probably continue to sell these as long as they can make a profit from them.