FRESHWATER AQUARIUMS & TROPICAL DISCOVERY

Aquarium
Wizardry
❙ Inventions, Gadgets, &
Low-Tech Innovations
❙ Rio Negro Biotopes
❙ Pike Cichlids

JULY/AUGUST 2017
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EDITORIAL Dear Readers,
Many aquarists evidently have the “DIY Gene”—at least that’s the impres-
sion I get when I visit friends in the hobby, which is many more than a few
times per year. Everyone likes to try this or that little gadget, and some special-
ists and inveterate tinkerers like to build their own solutions to problems that
arise. In recent years, some amateur aquarists’ inventions have been so good
that commercial concerns in the trade have started making their own versions
and offering them for sale. A good example is the catfish clay cave, originally
developed by breeding wizards working in basements and home fishrooms!
I have been looking forward to this issue for a long time. It is full of gadgets
and introduces some very clever ideas from aquarists, for aquarists. Of course,
we couldn’t pass up an interview with Gerd Arndt, one of the most active “gad-
geteers” in the trade. English-language readers will be fascinated by the tech-
niques used by Steve Waldron in his ongoing “Creating Nature” series and Mike
Tuccinardi’s creation of authentic Rio Negro biotope aquariums.
For those of you with spring fever and reproduction on your minds, we have
compiled several husbandry and breeding reports, and the story behind cultur-
ing the stately new Santa Isabel Angelfish is likely to create a lot of envy and
discussion. For catfish fans there is a group of pretty Corys from Suriname. I
am particularly pleased with the contribution on the Banded Bushfish. These
well-known labyrinthfishes from Africa are still cultivated by some aquarists,
and they have lost none of their fascinating nature. Given all the novelties that
we encounter over the course of time, we always enjoy reminding you about
“ancient” aquarium fishes like these.
We still have many beautiful arrows in our quiver for coming issues, so
there’s a lot to look forward to. In the meantime, savor the issue you hold in
your hands!

Yours,
Hans-Georg Evers
AMAZONAS

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Finally!
Hans-Georg Evers • Pleco experts, as well as
H
attendees
a of the International L-Number Days,
have long known that the beautiful Scarlet
Cactus Pleco, L25, from the Rio
Xingu had been examined by
scientists and would soon
be described and receive
a name.

L25 finally has a name:

Pseudacanthicus pirarara.

THE WELL-KNOWN L24, sometimes called the Flame Pleco, We can finally call L25 by its scientific name and en-
was described last year as Pseudacanthicus pitanga Cham- joy knowing that there are ichthyologists who work well
on, 2015. Now Chamon & Sousa (2016) have described with serious aquarists and value our findings. Contrary to
L25 as Pseudacanthicus pirarara. The species epithet refers radical “pets’ rights activists,” we “consume” no animals,
to the Brazilian name for the Redtail Catfish, Phractoceph- but strive to observe, breed, and appreciate them.
alus hemioliopterus, which is called pirarara in reference By the way, descriptions of other new species from
to the bright red scarlet tailfin of both species. the Rio Xingu are expected. Stay tuned!
The aquarium fishers of Altamira call L25 “Assacu-
Vermelho” or “Assacu-Pirarara,” a reference to the REFERENCE
Assacu tree (the Sandbox Tree, Hura crepitans, Family Chamon, C.C. and L.M. Sousa. 2016. A new species of the leopard pleco
Euphorbiaceae), which frequently occurs in the Ama- genus Pseudacanthicus (Siluriformes: Loricariidae) from the Rio Xingu,
zon. Pseudacanthicus pirarara lives endemically in the Brazil. J Fish Biol, doi:10.1111/jfb.13184: 1-14.
Rio Xingu and some tributaries, including the Rio Iriri
and the Rio Bacajá.
We now know a total of seven species in the genus
Pseudacanthicus. The new species has been known among Portrait of a male
aquarists for many years and is regularly exported from Pseudacanthicus pirarara.
the Rio Xingu all over the world. For the fishermen of the
Rio Xingu, the species is a seasonal source of income. The
species description is very insightful, and aquarists will
appreciate the underwater observations and photos. The
second author, Leandro M. Sousa, is not only a profes-
sor of ichthyology at the University of Altamira, but also
a respected guest speaker at the biennial International
L-Number Days in Hanover, Germany. He is well aware
of the enthusiasm and dedication that many aquarists
AMAZONAS

devote to the care and rearing of the plecos of the Rio

H.-G. EVERS

Xingu. It is not surprising, then, that the importance of

P. pirarara for aquarists is mentioned in the description.

6
AQUATIC

Panaqolus tankei
Hans-George Evers • Just before this issue’s editorial deadline,
the scientific description of another pleco from the Rio Xingu
reached us. Panaqolus tankei Cramer & Melo de Sousa, 2016 lives
below the recently completed Belo-Monte dam.

THIS PANAQOLUS HAS LONG BEEN KNOWN AS L398. It was
named after Andreas Tanke, a well-known German
aquarist, who is a noted expert on the genus and was
the first to report the breeding of this attractive species.
He has been working intensively with the care and
breeding of this fish and exploring its natural habitat
for years.
In their present work, Cramer & Melo de Sousa
(2016) provide images of all the species of the genus
that have been described so far, thus giving aquarists a
nice overview of their diversity. They also publish many
locality data and pictures of the new species in its natu-
ral habitat. Photos of the Panaqolus in the aquarium
were provided by different aquarists—the description is a
perfect example of good cooperation between scientists
and aquarists and expressly mentions that the species
was named in honor of Andreas Tanke for his contribu-
tions to research and his exemplary cooperation with
participating scientists.
REFERENCE
Cramer, C.A. and L. Melo de Sousa. 2016. A New Species of Tiger Pleco
Panaqolus (Siluriformes: Loricariidae) from the Xingu Basin, Brazil. PLoS
ONE 11(11): e0165388. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0165388.

Tanke’s Dwarf Pleco,

Panaqolus tankei
aka L398.

AMAZONAS
A. TANKE

7
AQUATIC

Riddle of the Rams

This specimen, caught in 2015
in southern Peru, is probably
Mikrogeophagus altispinosa.

Hans-George Evers • In 2004 American fish collector Lance Peck, who lives in Puerto
Maldonado, Peru, near the border with Bolivia, caught a single specimen of a dwarf
cichlid, apparently a Mikrogeophagus—perhaps the Bolivian Ram.

A RUMOR THAT A THIRD SPECIES of the genus might exist in southern Peru
started going around. Peck tried to corroborate the species’ existence,
but, unfortunately, he did not immediately succeed.
The site of the single specimen is located on a laterite road that The calm, clearwater
branches off the new highway from Cuzco to Puerto Maldonado and Peruvian brook where
the Ram-type species
continues on to Brazil. I visited these waters in the years 2014, 2015,
has twice been found.
and 2016 in search of Corys. This is a moderately to very fast-flowing
clearwater biotope with very low electrical conductivity of 20-45 μS/
cm and water temperatures that range from 74.5 to 79.7°F (23.6–
26.5°C), depending on the season.
In November 2015, Peck and Ian Fuller managed to capture
another specimen of this species in exactly the same place, a calm,
flowing outcrop overgrown by shore vegetation. Peck and I tried
again in September 2016 and were able to catch a single fish. Fuller’s
fish has now grown well and is the subject of the photo that accom-
panies this story. Along with several dwarf cichlid specialists that
TOP: H.-G. EVERS; BOTTOM: I. FULLER

we consulted, I consider this species to be the Bolivian Ram (Mikro-

geophagus altispinosa).
So the riddle is probably solved. It is not always new species that
one catches, but it is also interesting to be able to prove that this spe-
AMAZONAS

cies exists in Peru. The site is located in the Río Manuripe drainage,
a river in northern Bolivia near the border with Peru. This should be
another indication that the species determination is correct.

8
AQUATIC

Home waters of
the new goby, the
upper reaches
of the clean,
fast-flowing
Poitete River on
Kolobangara.

A new lipstick goby from

the Solomon Islands
article & images by Ole Arnold Schneider • In addition to the successful reproduction of
gobies that was reported in the last issue of AMAZONAS, we have taxonomic news from
this group—specifically from the climbing gobies, Sicydiinae. A new, previously unknown,
species has arrived from the Solomon Islands.

MOST AQUARISTS KNOW VERY LITTLE about the freshwater
fishes of the Solomon Islands and other islands of Ocea-
nia. Certainly the most famous are rainbowfishes from
New Guinea, the largest island of Oceania. However,
many people are surprised that there are also streams
and rivers containing interesting and colorful fishes on
these countless small islands. Although the inland and
freshwater streams seem pretty small, it is clear that they
hold new discoveries.
In 2016 we reported several times on new climbing
gobies. This time we present a new representative of the
genus Lentipes. The genus was last expanded in 2014,
when three species from Indonesia, some of which were
already in the hobby (Evers 2013, 2014), were added.
AMAZONAS
kaaea, which was described first, was originally known
only from New Caledonia and Vanuatu (Watson et al.
2002), but was later confirmed by Jenkins et al. (2008)
on Fiji and the Solomon Islands Makira and Ranongga.
At the same time, the authors described a second
Solomon Lentipes species, given name L. salomonensis,
which is present on Makira, Ranongga, and Rendova.
And L. multiradiatus, previously known only from New
Guinea, was recently found on the Solomon Island of
Choiseul (Keith et al. 2015b). All Lentipes representatives,
as is typical for their subfamily, populate small streams
with strong current, especially the upper reaches. Lentipes
is an important indicator of water quality (Keith et al.
2015a), found only where streams flow clean and clear.

Until recently the genus included 18 species, but now a The new species was also described from the upper
nineteenth has been added. Four species are present on area of the Poitete River on the island of Kolobangara.
the Solomon Islands, two of which are endemic. Lentipes Kolobangara lies in the western part of the Solomon

10
Islands, drained by about 80 streams and rivers. Since most of the specimens
were found here, the species received the name L. kolobangara, which means What’s
in your
“king of the water” in the local language and alludes to the fish’s graceful
appearance. In addition to the one found on Kolobangara, however, popula-
tions also occur on the islands of Choiseul, Makira, and Ranongga.
The males have a particularly attractive color, which is common for climb-
ing gobies. There is a striking cherry-colored area that extends above the anal
fin as far as the second dorsal fin. The upper lip and the bases of the pectorals
are also bright red. The red lips are seen in some members of the genus, lead-
pocket?
ing to the common name “lipstick gobies.” The second dorsal fin is trimmed
in white and decorated with a black spot. The anal fin is white and trimmed
in light blue. The primary coloration is predominantly gray and/or light
brownish in both sexes. The male’s body has three thin, vertical black stripes,
whereas in females the body has only a few yellowish areas.
For aquarists, color is not especially useful for identifying individual spe-
cies, because they differ mainly in the shape of the genital papillae. But at
least for the Solomon species, it provides an easy way to exclude certain spe-
cies. Apart from L. kaaea, no other Solomon Lentipes is similar to L. koloban-
gara in male coloration. Only L. rubrofasciatus from the distant Marquesas
is similar to L. kolobangara. A reliable distinction between L. kaaea and L.
kolobangara is possible only on close examination of the genital papilla. In L.
kaaea it is surrounded by lobules that are absent in L. kolobangara. In addition,
the genital papilla of male L. kolobangara can be extended.
Unfortunately, this species will not appear in the commercial trade soon,
because no freshwater aquarium fishes are being exported commercially from
the Solomon Islands. Since all climbing gobies have so far resisted human
attempts to breed them, no captive imports are to be expected either. Never-
theless, L. kolobangara is a nice new discovery and enriches the hobby, at least
ichthyologically.
If you are interested in Sicydiinae, take a look at Indo-Pacific Sicydiine
Gobies, SFI, 2015. (Link below.) Clara Lord, one of the authors, has kindly
provided photos for this article, and we offer her our sincere thanks.

REFERENCE Think of it as a must-have

http://sfi.mnhn.fr/sfi/6.livres/75-Sicydiine%20IndoPacific.html. field guide to nano-scale
aquarium fishes, plants, and
invertebrates—written and
A male L. kolobangara, one of a
fascinating group known as climbing photographed by experts and
gobies.
from the same team that brings
you AMAZONAS.

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 AQUATIC

Top: The Pearl River

Stingray was named
Potamotrygon jabuti.

Bottom: The Itaituba

or Tapajós River
Stingray, Potamotrygon
albimaculata (aka P14).

Novel stingray
Veggies descriptions
for cichlids Hans-Georg Evers • A whole series of Brazilian stingrays
H
in the genus Potamotrygon received names in 2016. In the
6 Strengthen the spring, the description of Potamotrygon wallacei from the Rio
immune system Negro, the smallest species known to date, was published.

6 Highly digestible CARVALHO (2016) DESCRIBED P. REX AS BEING CLOSELY related to P. henlei and occur-
ring syntopic in the river system of the Rio Tocantins. In this work, the author

6 Contain Spirulina algae

mentions a group of so-called black rays consisting of P. henlei and P. rex of the
Rio Tocantins, P. leopoldi of the Rio Xingu, and a fourth species from the Rio
Tapajós that was designated as P14 in aquaristic circles. Now, Carvalho (2016b)
6 Made in Germany has described P14 as P. albimaculata. In the same work, the well-known Pearl
Stingray is finally given a scientific name: Potamotrygon jabuti refers to the
name it is called by the natives and fishermen who live along the Rio Tapajós.
After so many years of precious little movement in the taxonomy of the Brazil-
ian river stingrays, we suddenly have a raft of new names to learn.

REFERENCES

Carvalho, M.R., R.S. Rosa, and M.L. Araujo. 2016. A new species of Neotropical freshwater stingray
(Chondrichthyes: Potamotrygonidae) from the Rio Negro, Amazonas, Brazil: the smallest species of
Potamotrygon. Zootaxa 4107 (4): 566–86.
Carvalho, M.R. 2016a. Potamotrygon rex, a new species of Neotropical freshwater stingray
(Chondrichthyes: Potamotrygonidae) from the middle and upper Rio Tocantins, Brazil, closely allied to
Potamotrygon henlei (Castelnau, 1855). Zootaxa 4150 (5): 537–65.
———. 2016b. Description of two extraordinary new species of freshwater stingrays of the genus
Potamotrygon endemic to the Rio Tapajós basin, Brazil (Chondrichthyes: Potamotrygonidae), with
notes on other Tapajós stingrays. Zootaxa
4167 (1): 1–63.
H.-G. EVERS

IF E
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Male Aphyosemion bitteri, displaying labyrinth

of red markings on its tail fin. Female at rear.

Aphyosemion
bitteri
AMAZONAS is now available Hans-Georg Evers • Aphyosemion bitteri, a new killifish from Gabon,
on your smart phone, Kindle, was described in honor of a respected killi expert, AMAZONAS
or tablet (Apple or Android). editorial board member Friedrich Bitter.
Wherever you go, stay
informed, stay inspired and THE SPECIES LIVES IN THE NORTH of the Massif du Chaillu in small rainforest
streams in the drainage of the Ikoy River. It can be distinguished from similar
stay in touch with your favorite representatives of the A. grelli species group by the labyrinth-like red pattern
magazine. New and back issues on the caudal fin.
at the touch of a finger. Aphyosemion bitteri is maintained and bred by a few specialists. Like many
species of fish that occur in the elevated regions of Gabon, this one likes cool
water temperatures, below 77°F (25°C). The description by Valdesalici &

Get the Eberl (2016) includes biotope photos and gives information about the habitat
of these small (1.2–1.6 inches/3-4 cm) and very colorful killifish. The editors

App now!
congratulate Friedrich Bitter for having such an extraordinary and pretty fish
bear his name!
AMAZONAS

REFERENCE
F. BITTER

Valdesalici, S. and W. Eberl. 2016. Aphyosemion bitteri (Cyprinodontiformes: Nothobranchiidae), a new

killifish species from the northern Massif du Chaillu, Gabon. Aqua 22 (2): 61–68.

Apple, the Apple logo, iPad and iPhone are trademarks of Apple, Inc., registered in
the U.S. and other countries. App Store is a service mark of Apple, Inc. Android and
Google Play are trademarks of Google Inc. Amazon, Kindle, Fire and all related
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A male
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new TUNZE® SmartController 7000
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designed Bavaria
HIS DESCRIPTION WAS BASED on aquarium specimens without
exact location data (the information from the exporter—
“Province Loreto, in the drainage of the Río Nanay”—is
wrong), but the location mentioned by Wewer is correct,
so a correction should be made in the scientific literature.
In any case, now that the species has a scientific name it
should be easier to establish it in the trade.
REFERENCES
Wewer, D. 2016. Auf Fischfangtour mit dem Motorrad 2. AMAZONAS 68, 12
(6): 54–57.
Zarske, A. 2016. Hyphessobrycon margitae spec. nov.—ein neuer Salmler
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AQUATIC
CITES for
Aquarium
Fishes
SPECIES LISTED IN APPENDIX I ARE completely excluded from
commercial trade because of acute endangerment; Ap-
pendix II species may be traded with special authorization
(CITES papers). The countries of origin permit export
in exceptional cases and only after a thorough examina-
tion (a scientific “safety test”). Appendix II species may
be maintained by private individuals and their offspring
may be sold, but any changes in the population must
be reported. This prevents uncontrolled trade and keeps
unqualified people from acquiring the listed animals and
plants. Lovers of frogs and orchids rejoice!
Finally, those species listed in Appendix III may be
exported from the country of origin only if an inspection
like that for Appendix II species has been carried out. This
puts an increased administrative burden on the exporter.
It should also prevent the species from being smuggled
abroad through third countries. Anyone who wants to
import such an animal must request export papers from
the country of origin. The stocks of species that have
already been exported and bred can be traded freely and
restrictions (CITES papers). The species in Appendix III
are listed at the request of the countries of origin, and
their inclusion on the list is intended to protect the stocks
in that country from excessive exploitation. Now, Brazil
and Colombia have published such species lists.
Although illegal to collect in
Brazil, Zebra Plecos are part of
a smuggling trade that CITES
hopes to control.
AMAZONAS
18
Hans-Georg Evers • As of January 3, 2017,
several species of fish are are now listed in
Annex III of the Convention on International
Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and
Flora (CITES). These species are designated to be
scrutinized and protected from over-collection
and smuggling, but not banned from sale and
possession.
Brazilian species:
Hypancistrus zebra, and all Potamotrygon stingrays.
Colombian species:
Potamotrygon constellata, P. magdalenae, P. motoro, P.
orbignyi, P. schroederi, P. scobina, P. yepezi, and Paratrygon
aiereba.
As you can see, all known species of river stingray in
Brazil and Colombia are on the list. In Brazil, catching
and trading Zebra Plecos (Hypancistrus zebra) has been
prohibited since 2005, but people continue to smuggle
them, as well as the beautiful black-and-white stingrays,
whose export from Brazil has been regulated by quotas for
years. The purpose of the new measure is to prevent this
illegal trade. The question is, will the smugglers succeed
in creating fake documents? For aquarists who are already
keeping these species, nothing will change; if you wish
to buy wild-caught fish, you should be aware of the new
regulation and ask for CITES papers accordingly.
ONLINE
https://cites.org/sites/default/files/notif/E-Notif-2016-056.pdf
http://www.reef2rainforest.com/2016/10/14/2016-cites-results-for-
aquarium-fish-and-inverts/
H.-G. EVERS
 Gollum’s Cave
AN AQUASCAPING PROJECT

The author’s realistic article & images by Johnny Jensen • Aquascaping does not always
riverbank cave adds a
sense of mystery to this have to be constructed using only natural materials. With a bit of
AMAZONAS

system. The dark cavern craftsmanship, you can make use of artificial materials to create a
is meant to shelter
spawning dwarf pleco realistic element that makes a nice centerpiece in the finished tank.
catfishes.

20
 C OV E R STORY

AFTER ALL MY YEARS OF DECORATING AQUARIUMS with natural former director of Tropica Plants, Claus Christensen. I
items, sometimes combining them with artificial roots already had some pretty good ideas, but, as usual, things
and rocks, I decided it was time to try something differ- didn’t go quite as I had planned.
AMAZONAS

ent. I also wanted to experiment with the new aquascape- My plan was to make a cave with a sort of overhang,
style planting, and for that I relied heavily on what I had with roots appearing to grow through it all, creating a
learned from planted-tank specialist Oliver Knott and the realistic environment. I had seen this kind of aquascape

21

in the Amazon jungle, and ever since then the idea of
recreating it had lurked in the back of my mind.
The first step was to find or build a structure to
imitate this cave, and I eventually ended up using plastic
tubs, which seemed to fit in my new 40-gallon (160-
L) tank and would be able to support the weight of the
material I wanted to put on top. I cut the tubs and glued
AMAZONAS
the pieces together using aquarium silicone. Straight
away, my friends started calling it “the bat cave.” Next I
decorated the outside of the cave using MakeMake Dan-
22
A group of Phoenix Tetras,
Hemigrammus filamentosus,
energizes the open swimming area.
ish hobby concrete, a cousin of Plaster of Paris. It was
the first time I had tried this material, and I have to say
it is fantastic, very easy to handle and sculpt with. You
start with a base layer containing fiberglass threads for
strength, and when it has dried you can continue sculpt-
ing the object with the decorative layer.
While the concrete was still wet, I stuck witch hazel
branches into the front to imitate exposed roots of a tree.
At first, I wanted to have whole roots embedded through
the whole thing, but it would have been extremely diffi-
 I chose Dwarf Hairgrass, Eleocharis
acicularis “Mini,” for the cover of the
cave, shown shortly after planting.
Hemianthus callitrichoides
“Cuba”—a variety of Dwarf Baby
Tears—in front of the cave.
cult to fit the contraption into the tank without pruning
the branches. In any case, with plants in place, the illu-
sion of real trees and root structure is quite good.
Lastly, I built a barrier to keep the aquarium sub-
strate from spilling down. I decorated this low wall with
rocks, pebbles, and sand of various sizes to make it look
natural in the places where the Java Moss did not cover
it completely. To complete the illusion, I glued some
sticks and roots underneath with silicone. There was one
thing, however, that absolutely did not look natural—
the exposed side of the cave. It looked like what it was:
amateurishly molded concrete! At this point my amused
friends started calling it “Gollum’s Cave.”
I racked my brain trying to figure out how to cover
the concrete with rocks and/or branches. But, as fortune
would have it, I had just accidentally knocked a new artifi-
cial rock onto the floor, where it shattered into 100 pieces,
so I simply glued some of the shards onto the side with
silicone, fitting them together like the pieces of a jigsaw
puzzle. Eventually the cave looked natural enough. Talk
AMAZONAS
about making lemonade if all you have is lemons!
This project took about a week to build, and then I
was finally ready to decorate the tank itself. With the
23
 I cut the tubs into parts
2 glued them together with
silicone.

I used two of these commonly

1 available plastic tubs to form the
walls and roof my riverbank cave.

The completed cave, viewed The entire cave top is covered

5 from above. The filter inlet and 6 with black aquarium substrate.
the rear part were filled with Note the low retaining wall of
black filter foam. stones cemented in place to
keep substrate from spilling out.

Moss can also be glued with silicone to a fine

9 screen, which is then attached to the artificial
roots. After a few weeks, the grid and the
silicone are no longer visible.
AMAZONAS

Using zip ties, I attached Java Fern to pieces

10 of sunken wood at the back of the tank.

24
 While the cement was still moist, I inserted branches,
4 stones, and gravel (as a barrier to the aquarium
substrate), giving the impression of a natural cave
with roots growing through.

I covered the faux cave with easy-to-process

3 decorative concrete.

I used elastic
8 thread to tie
moss to the roots
Very realistic artificial roots are draped over the
7 cave with some real witch hazel branches.
to get the plants
started.

Microsorum pteropus
11 “Narrow” at the back. After
four weeks you couldn’t see
the zip ties.
AMAZO
AMAZONAS

The finished aquarium was

12 allowed to cycle for four weeks
before adding the first fishes.

25

cave structure in place, allowing space for the plumb-
ing to the external filter (through the glass), I filled the
empty space behind the cave with filter foam so I would
not have to fill it all up with aquarium substrate—I used a
layer just thick enough for the plants to take root. I fitted
two big artificial roots on top of the cave, and then added
more witch hazel branches of all sizes. I already knew
that I wanted small pleco catfishes to live in the tank, so
I placed five small catfish breeding caves under the over-
hang, in the darkness and out of sight.
From there on, it was all about the plants. I chose
various types of Java Moss for the overhang and the big
roots, to which I attached the moss with ultra-thin elas-
tic thread, or squeezed them into place, or silicone-glued
them. On top of the cave I put Dwarf Hairgrass, Eleocha-
AMAZONAS
ris acicularis “Mini,” to make up a grassy area; around
the base of the cave I planted Hemianthus callitrichoides
“Cuba”; and in the background I used Java Fern, Micro-
26
Apistogramma sp.
“Wilhelmi” (aka
Apistogramma sp.
“Abacaxis”) glows
with beautiful colors.
The dark areas of the
riverbank cave are
populated by catfish
species, such as
Hypancistrus sp. L260.
sorum pteropus “Narrow,” tied to sinking bits of artificial
root with plastic ties.
I cycled the tank for about four weeks before putting
any fishes in, doing water changes almost every day and
adding CO2 and fertilizer. Slowly but surely, the plants
grew and covered the areas as I had envisioned; in fact, it
looked even better than I had hoped it would.
I don’t need to do much maintenance, other than
removing some algae from the glass; a couple of Cros-
socheilus reticulatus take care of other types of algae.
My other fishes are Hypancistrus zebra, Hypancistrus sp.
L260, Hypancistrus sp. L471, Hemigrammus filamentosus,
Hyphessobrycon amandae, Dicrossus foirni, Apistogramma
sp. “Abacaxis,” and Apistogramma megaptera.
My friends still call my masterpiece “Gollum’s Cave”
to try and vex me, but I know they’re impressed with the
result—so much so that they have started to build stuff
with MakeMake themselves.
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27
 C OV E R STORY
Aquarium Wizard: Interview with
Gerd Arndt, “Chief Gadgeteer”

Gerd Arndt
in his shop.

by Hans-Georg Evers • Have you ever heard of the Gerd Box?

The ”Gerd Box,” meant for isolating This, and many other practical gadgets for the most beautiful hob-
eggs and/or young fishes, can be hung
on the aquarium, inside or outside, and by in the world, go back to the ideas, developments, and inspired
AMAZONAS

comes with swappable screen frames wizardry of a true tinkerer. AMAZONAS had many questions for
J. PETERSEN

with different mesh sizes.

Gerd Arndt, the “chief gadgeteer” of the German hobby scene.

28

AMAZONAS: Gerd, we have known each other for half of
our lives, but tell our readers how you got into the aquar-
ium hobby. What did you start with and what were your
aquaristic priorities?
GA: When I was a student, my friend’s room, where we
did homework together, was my favorite place and it had
a 200-L (50-gallon) aquarium—at that time, the end
of the 1960s and beginning of the 1970s, it was a giant
pot! There was so much to see, and it never got boring.
After I had begged long enough, my parents agreed to
get an aquarium for me. I got my first tank when I was
about 12, and it was 80 cm (31 inches) long. My uncle
was a welder, and he agreed to build the frame.
H.-G. EVERS
After my mom and I had decided on the exact size,
we ordered the steel. It came in a piece 5 m (16 feet)
Above: Zebra Pleco
catfish in a slate cave.
The female waits on the
“balcony” before slipping
into the male’s cave.
Below: A classic, well-
used Gerd Box hangs over
the rim of a larger tank.
long, which I then had to cut. When the welded and
rather crooked frame was finally finished, I knew what
you could do with a metal saw. We took the frame to the
glass shop and, two weeks later, I was the proud owner of
an aquarium. I set it up, filled it with water—it was tight,
with no leaks. It was more trapezoidal than rectangular,
but it was mine. I bought a few Guppies with my pocket
money, and I was very proud, ready for my first breeding
attempts with livebearers.
Until the end of the 1970s, I was on a “killi trip.”
Now I had a few more tanks. I mainly bred Aphyosemion
species, beginning with the most famous species, Cape
Lopez (Aphyosemion australe) and Fundulopanchax gard-
AMAZONAS
neri. Later, when my breeding attempts were successful,
I added “difficult” species, such as Diapteron georgiae, D.
fulgens, D. cyanostictum, and Laimosemion xiphidius.
29
 IG BSSW (http://www.ig-bssw.org). I met even crazier
catfish people, including you and Ingo Seidel.

Yep, at that time in Hamburg there was really something

going on with L-plecos. We were all fixated on the impor-
tance of creating caves for our catfishes. I still remember
how, in the early 1990s, I gave you the sizes of my males on
the phone (the Internet was still quite exotic and for tech-
nology freaks) and you crafted caves that were tailor-made.
How did that actually happen?

That all started with Hypancistrus zebra. For my Ancis-

trus I used the usual coconut shells, or sometimes a
suitable hollow bone from the butcher, for spawning.
There were not many new L-catfish species that ac-
cepted these caves. I had to think of something for the
“Zebras,” so I used three different materials to build
caves. There was the Solnhofen fossilized limestone,
which could be split into plates about 1 cm (0.4 inch)
thick. Then there was red sandstone, which could also
be split but was somewhat thicker, and black slate,
which was sold in shingles 0.5 cm (0.2 inch) thick. I
glued different-sized pieces of these materials together
with aquarium silicone and offered the caves to my
Ancistrus, who promptly accepted them.
It occurred to me that the males preferred caves that
had such a narrow entrance that they could just barely
squeeze through. The entrance had to be so small that the
male could plug it with his body. Thus, the female would
be protected while depositing her eggs. The cave entrance
for an adult Hypancistrus zebra is 12 mm (0.5 inch) high
and 20 mm (0.8 inch) wide. When you see the cave en-
trance, you cannot believe a fish can fit through it!
Because Solnhofen slabs were difficult to work with,
the roofs of some caves were overhanging. The females
were drawn to these “balconies,” and I starting making
these caves for the Zebras. I had believed that the animals
would prefer the almost-white Solnhofen plates, but
Top: Arndt still builds In the 1980s, I moved and actually they preferred the darker slate caves. They also
his boxes with glass and had a whole basement avail- seemed to prefer caves with an overhanging roof. That
plastic mesh.
able—now there was room suited me well, as the slate was easier to work with. Now
Bottom: An internal Gerd for other species. I expanded I was making caves of all sizes out of slate. I found that
Box with coarse gauze my capacity to roughly 5,000 the males needed several cave sizes during their lifetime
bottom used for fry-
L (1,320 gallons) of water in to accommodate their growth. Some Ancistrus species be-
dropping livebearers or
as a rearing container for
about 90 aquariums. I bred gan to spawn at a length of 5 cm (2 inches), and by the
larger juveniles. To prevent everything that I liked or time they reached their adult size of 12 cm (4.7 inches)
the pregnant female from found interesting and started they had gone through four or five different cave sizes.
jumping out, the box can keeping livebearers again, as
be covered.
there was enough space. A patent for the pleco caves would have been in order at
At the end of the 1980s, that time. Today they are available in standard sizes in every
the pleco boom began. DATZ Magazine started assigning good aquarium shop in the world. But your name is actually
L-numbers in 1988, and beautiful new species were being much more connected to the famous Gerd Box [German:
imported constantly. And then came L46, today’s Hypan-
AMAZONAS

Gerdkasten]. Kindly tell us the story behind it!

cistrus zebra. Nothing could hold me back—I had to learn
J. PETERSEN

how to reproduce that fish. I joined a regional aquarium Aquarists always need space. Especially in a small
society that would eventually become what is today the system with only a few aquariums, the breeder quickly

30

reaches his or her limits. So I needed a way to ac-
commodate as many juveniles as possible in different
sizes. This is best accomplished using a box hanging
on a larger tank. In the early days, we used the typical
livebearer boxes with slots on the side. There was noth-
ing else available. Later the net-covered plastic frames
came on the market. They were sufficient for the bigger
juveniles of livebearers.
But when I bred other fishes, like tetras, barbs, go-
bies, Corys, whiptails, and so on, I quickly learned that
livebearer boxes and net cages were not suitable for these
fishes with small fry (1–1.5 mm). Not just the food, but
also the tiny juveniles got washed out of the livebearer
boxes. I lost whole broods from these net cages. The fish
larvae looked for cover in the corners. They squeezed
themselves between the net and the frame, got stuck,
and died. If I did not want to set up a
whole new tank for every hatch, I had
to think of something.
The first homemade boxes that
hung on the inside of a larger tank
had two gauze sides and a bottom
made of gauze. They were simply
hung into the current, which made
water changes less essential. Any
water changes were done quickly: you
lifted the box, let the water drain out,
and then rehung it—done.
I had some of these first boxes in
operation when my pleco catfishes
discovered that the boxes were a food
source. The fry in the boxes were fed
Artemia nauplii, and the plecos sucked
them out through the gauze, along
with the tiny fish!
The hanging boxes needed to be
J. PETERSEN
modified. I used glass all around, a
long, screened window as an overflow
This rearing box was developed for aquarists who have
limited space. It is hung on the outside of a larger
aquarium and connected to an airlifter to provide
water that eventually flows back into the aquarium.
on one side, and a filter with an airlifter that
moved the water into the box. The mesh window
is 5 cm (2 inches) above the bottom, so a water
change in the host tank leaves about 5 cm (2
inches) of water in the box, preventing eggs or
fry from drying out. At first, I built four sizes:
15, 20, 25, and 30 cm (6/8/10/12 inches) long.
Later, I added four more sizes, mainly extending
the base area. The large boxes are also suitable
for growing angelfishes or discus fry.
The original prototype is already a bit dated. How
does the latest model look like?
Nothing has changed in the basic design or the
eight standard sizes. The functionality remains unbeaten.
The larger boxes are now also offered with swappable
screen frames. These interchangeable frames have various
mesh sizes. This idea came from a marine aquarist who
breeds seahorses and anemonefishes. In the first days,
the animals are fed the finest plankton. For this purpose,
a 50-μm mesh is sufficient. The food size increases as
the fishes grow, and so does the mesh size of the screen
on the interchangeable frames. Other mesh sizes are
100, 200, 500, and 1000 μm. The 50-μm gauze must
be cleaned regularly to prevent clogging. The larger the
mesh, the less likely it is to become clogged.
You work mainly with glass. Is that your material of choice?
What you make of glass has already been copied by many
Spawning trap with removable
screen for large breeding
tanks. The eggs fall through
the gauze and can be
vacuumed up as
needed, while the trap
remains in the tank.
Even more refined is this
submersible spawning trap
with cover. The spawning fishes
(e.g. tetras or barbs) slip in
and out via the overhang. The
cover prevents eggs from being
carried away by currents before
they drop under the screen and
AMAZONAS
keeps mulm from ending up in
the trap.
31
 1
2 pictures of the “Haribo Kreisel”: a breeder had trans-
people, often using acrylic, which is not as long-lasting. In
addition to the Gerd Box, many other devices have come
out of your workshop, including incubators, baby escape
chutes for livebearers, overflow tanks, wedge tanks, and
special spawning tanks for egg-layers. It looks as if you were
not satisfied with conventional products and improved on
them. How do you get your ideas—for example, for a spe-
cial breeding aquarium? Do you just go into your workshop
and start tinkering?
Often, aquarists or breeders come to me with their ideas.
For example, the wedge incubator was the idea of a
breeder of Malawi cichlids who wanted to hatch the eggs
of mouthbrooders artificially. Phone calls, emails, and
drawings bounced back and forth until we were both of
the opinion that it would work. I built a prototype and
the breeder tested it. We modified the prototype three
times until it worked satisfactorily.
Many ideas, such as the wedge tank, come from the
ranks of the International Society for Barbs, Loaches,
and Catfishes (IG BSSW). A member saw it and made
me a sketch, and I built it. The tank worked right away.
The overflow tank, which I saw in an AMAZONAS article
about Blue Eyes, was presented by Herbert Böck. The baby
“slide” for platy breeding was presented in a breeding re-
port in AMAZONAS. An idea from a marine aquarist led
AMAZONAS
to the swappable frames on the Gerd Box, and so on.
A seahorse breeder wanted a larval kreisel. After we
discussed everything, I searched the Internet and found
32
1. A larval kreisel for raising sensitive pelagic larvae.
2. This larval kreisel was integrated into a hanging box to
ensure more stable water parameters in a large aquarium.
3. Light-sensitive larvae are lured into this darkened larval
trap through the lateral openings. A viewing window on the
long side allows the aquarist to observe his or her success.
formed an empty Haribo candy tub into a larval kreisel.
Now that I had images showing how the kreisel func-
tioned, I built three prototypes. One was operated with
air, one with a pump, and one with airlifters. We decided
on the air-driven kreisel, since the flow could be adjusted
better. The best result the breeder had had was 50 sea-
horses surviving from a hatch of 500; the first time she
used the new kreisel she got about 150 juvenile survivors.
I think this kreisel could also be used for raising gobies,
Amano Shrimp, or other pelagic larvae.
I found a picture of a breeding cave for Synodontis
lucipinnis on an English website. The breeder had stacked
two flowerpots head-to-head. On the bottom was the
perforated intake pipe of an airlifter, which carried the
eggs into a glass bowl on the cave roof. This was a very
good idea, but too many eggs remained in the cave, where
they were exposed to the parents’ appetite. I redesigned
the breeding cave using a 10-cm (4-inch) drainpipe. In
the middle is the cave where the fish spawn. The bottom
of this middle section consists of coarse screen, through
which the eggs fall into a funnel and are conveyed by
means of an airlifter up into the top part, which has a
fine gauze bottom. So no eggs are lost.
Based on the same principle, a screen is needed for
breeding egg-scatterers, as they can be greedy spawn rob-
bers. I bought mesh from the hardware store, cut it, and
clamped it between the glass sides in the tank. At first,
the breeder would come home from work and find that
the fish had, indeed, spawned. There would be a few eggs
J. PETERSEN
left, but the breeding pair had made it under the screen
to eat the spawn. This was not an isolated incident. After
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33

An incubator for eggs. The eggs float
in the wedge area and are supplied
with sufficient oxygen.
a few trials, the continuous breed-
ing aquarium was developed. There
are many breeders who have good
ideas, but they cannot put them into
practice. I like to help them realize
their ideas.
Because I am not the home-improvement type or a detail
technician myself, I’m glad that there are people like you.
From your first slate caves to today’s innovations, you have
come a long way. What motivates you now? I know that
money is not your driving force.
I never really thought about the money. As a student,
not having the money to run my hobby the way I wanted
to motivated me to build stuff myself. I remember when
an old friend who installed and maintained under-
ground oil tanks visited me. He was playing with a small
white tube that he found in his pocket. When I asked,
he told me that it was silicone, a sealant for connecting
pipes. He got my attention when he said the stuff was so
great that you could even use it to glue glass—he had al-
ready tried. Whenever he visited, he brought me several
tubes. Now I could build my own aquariums!
Well, the first tanks ran as
pure “research and development,”
but at some point I had it figured
out. Later I made him an L-shaped
300-L (80-gallon) tank with an
internal filter, which is still in
operation after about 40 years!
Perhaps the early silicone was bet-
ter than today’s; it definitely dried
harder.
So, what drives me? The
gadgeteering came from need—ini-
AMAZONAS
The spawning cave for Synodontis
described in the text.
34
tially lacking money, later lacking equipment that was
not available commercially. At some point, it became
my second hobby after aquaristic husbandry, and it has
remained so to this day. But it is also because I simply
cannot sit still. I must always
have something to do. After
I had a long hospital stay a
few years ago, my wife told
me, “It’s time for you to go
back to the workshop—you’re
getting annoying again!”
You are a craftsman by profes-
sion, but as far as aquaristics
are concerned, you deserve
an engineering diploma!
You have already reached
The incubator is also retirement age, but what else
available as an “egg battery.” can we expect to come out of
Gerd’s Shop?
At the moment, I am con-
structing a large hanging box (30 x 20 x 20 cm/12 x 8
x 8 inches) into which a larval kreisel will be placed,
so that the larvae have stable water values. I am also
building a larval trap for anemonefish larvae and a
larval trap for Amano Shrimp. As part of these projects,
I will finally quantify the volume of water moved by the
airlifters I build. There are many suppliers of airlifters on
the Internet, but if you look at the performances of the
different devices you realize that they are almost all the
same—as if, with very few exceptions, they had all copied
each other.
I have built airlifters with different-sized holes and
with 20, 40, and 60 holes. I now test them in water
depths of 10 to 70 cm (4–28 inches). I also want to
know how high the various holes can carry the water
(head height). For example, the smallest airlifter, which
is also used in the boxes, delivers a whopping 170 L
(45 gallons) per hour with an internal diameter of just
10 mm (0.4 inch) at an injector depth of 70 cm (28
inches). In previous tests with a 40-mm (1.5-inch)
airlifter with an injector depth of 50 cm (20 inches),
1,200 L (317 gallons) per hour were pushed up 50 cm
(20 inches). Perhaps I can get to the point where I can
push water up to a 3-, 4-, or even 5-meter (10–16-foot)
head height with airlifters. I have already done this once;
at first there was a strong flow, but after a short time the
water almost stopped and only air was being pushed. I
think I have figured out the mistake, though, and I hope
my guess turns out to be right!
I have heard people say that we aquarists have a “strange
passion.” Your adventures into inventive wizardry seem to
J. PETERSEN
confirm this. Dear Gerd, thank you very much and I wish
you success—and fun—with your next projects!
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35
 C OV E R STORY

Make your own

CO 2 DIFFUSER:
suitable even for non-smokers

Longfin Cherry Barbs populated an

early phase of the author’s 65-gallon
planted aquarium, on display at
Aquarium Zen in Seattle, Washington.
AMAZONAS

36
 The DIY diffuser
produces an
adjustable stream
of small CO2
bubbles.

A nano aquarium with functioning

CO2 fertilization that contributes
to lush plant growth.

article and images by Petra Fitz • CO2 fertilization in a

nano tank? Why not? The author explains how to build
your own mini-diffuser.

CO2 FERTILIZATION IS USEFUL, EVEN IN A NANO AQUARIUM if it is lushly

planted. I originally installed the Dennerle Mini-Flipper CO2 sys-
tem in my nano tank, but the bubbles stayed in the diffuser for an
extremely short time and almost immediately rose into the collect-
AMAZONAS

ing cup, and the diffuser did not seem very efficient.
I tried using a ceramic ring diffuser, but this produced tremen-
dous resistance, which I noticed when trying to blow through it.

37
 After 10 months in operation, my
mini-diffuser still works very well.

It was difficult to get just the right amount of CO2.

When I opened the valve on the CO2 bottle, noth-
ing happened—until suddenly a large quantity of fine
CO2 bubbles flowed through the diffuser. If I reduced
the feed, no more bubbles could be seen. It was all or
nothing; this method was virtually non-adjustable.
On several occasions this resulted in critically high
CO2 values, followed by very low CO2 values. Over the
course of time the diffuser became coated with sludge,
which further decreased its permeability.
In my search for the best way to add small
amounts of CO2, I found the following option on the
Internet: Take a one-way syringe, cut it in half, and
plug the open end with a cigarette filter. This produc-
es a bubble counter and CO2 diffuser in one. Cigarette
filters are made from chemically modified cellulose,
which is processed in such a way that the filter retains
particles smaller than 0.2 μm, so
the pore width is very small. The
For my first cigarette filter should ensure very
attempt I fine CO2 bubbles.
used only one
This looked promising, and
filter, but this
did not work
I wanted to try it. As a non-
satisfactorily. smoker, I was reluctant to buy
a pack of cigarettes or bum one
from a smoker, but I discovered I
could buy 120 “roll-it-yourself”
filters for €1.1 (just over $1
US)—cheap enough! I purchased
1-ml syringes from a pharmacy,
and these filters fit snugly inside
AMAZONAS
The components for
the mini-diffuser are
reasonable and easy to
obtain.
syringe with a thin silicone hose. I used a thermometer
suction cup to mount the reactor in the aquarium. Now
I just needed to connect the diffuser via a CO2 hose to
the control and check valve on the CO2 bottle.
In my first trial, the CO2 somehow bypassed the ciga-
rette filter, resulting in relatively large bubbles, so I put
another filter in the syringe. That did the trick.
Most of the bubbles appear in one place, but they are
nice and small and they rise relatively slowly. With the
commercial ceramic diffuser, the bubbles were larger. I
arranged the filter outlet so that the ascending bubbles
swirl around and the CO2 has time to dissolve in the
water. The number of bubbles can be counted in the
lower part of the syringe. So I have a bubble counter and
diffuser in one, and spent very little money on it. What
more could one want?
My mini-diffuser has been in operation for 10
months. During that time the protruding 3–4 mm of the

them. I also had a glass tulip left filter has turned brown, but the diffuser still functions
over from an old CO2 system, perfectly. It produces almost no back pressure, so the
so I connected it to the packed amount of CO2 can be adjusted very precisely.

38
AMAZONAS

39
 REPORTAGE

PART 2

BIOTOPE AQUARIUMS OF THE

Rio Negro
article & images by Michael J. Tuccinardi • Steeped in history
and biodiversity, Brazil’s Río Negro is a complex ecosystem—a
number of unique microhabitats are found among the countless
forest streams (igarapés) and blackwater shallows that feed into its
1,390-mile (2,230-km) length (see “Biotopes of the Rio Negro,”
AMAZONAS January/February 2017, page 58). Each of these
habitats boasts not only unique conditions and characteristics,
but also an incredibly diverse assemblage of fish species. As the
largest blackwater river in the world and the second-largest
tributary of the Amazon, the Rio Negro is home to over 800
species of freshwater fish, a disproportionate number of which are
suitable for and regularly kept in home aquariums.

Gnarled roots, tea-colored water,

and a small school of brightly colored
Rummynose Tetras combine to recreate
AMAZONAS

a scene from the Rio Negro in one of the

author’s aquariums.

40
THE TANNIN-RICH WATERS of the Negro are
hotbeds of diversity for cichlid, chara-
cin, and catfish species (among others).
My own travels to this fascinating river
system have inspired a shift in my ap-
proach to keeping aquarium fishes from
this region at home—a shift toward rep-
licating their natural habitats as closely
as possible.
Biotope aquariums are something
of a labor of love, an attempt not to
adapt your fishes to the aquarium they
inhabit, but rather to design and set
up your aquarium based on the fishes
and their own native waters. Obviously, even the
best biotope aquariums have inherent limitations—
there are some natural forces that we simply cannot
replicate in the confines of a glass box—but, as both
technology and our understanding of freshwater fish
habitat and life history improve, accurate representa-
tions of wild habitat are easier than ever to create in
a home aquarium. Building the biotope aquarium
is also an iterative process, requiring experimenta-
tion and willingness to try new things to see what
works—and, more important, what doesn’t. Over the
last few years, I’ve had the opportunity to set up and
work with several different aquariums representing
various microhabitats found throughout the middle
and lower Negro, and in so doing have been able to
develop a workable, rewarding approach to keeping
fishes from this amazing region.
In this article I’ll walk through the process of
setting up Rio Negro biotope aquariums based on
specific microhabitats that are common along the
igarapés and tributaries of the river system in Brazil.
Each example focuses on replicating the typical habi-
tat type and grouping of fish species one would find
within, utilizing wild-collected specimens from the
Negro and its tributaries when possible.
A typical scene from the Negro. This
aquatic habitat, characterized by dark
water and massive amounts of cover in the
form of submerged tree roots, is home to
dozens of common aquarium species.
Flooded forest cichlid habitat
The quiet blackwater swamps on the margins of
the Rio Negro are truly cichlid-dominated habitat.
Within the deeper igarapés and tributaries, large
cichlids like the famed Tucunaré (Peacock Bass) and
massive Crenicichla spp. pike cichlids glide among the
submerged logs, hunting smaller fishes and defend-
ing territories against rivals. In these waters, entire
families of cichlids have adapted and thrived, diverg-
ing into new species and evolving to take advantage
of nearly every available ecological niche. From the
colorful dwarfs of the genus Apistogramma to the
heavy-bodied Oscars guarding swarms of tiny off-
spring, the waters of the Rio Negro are an epicenter
of cichlid diversity.
Many of the Rio Negro cichlid endemics have
become staples in the hobby, and even among
the rarities there are plenty of excellent aquarium
subjects. One of my larger biotope aquariums was
designed with some of the medium-to-large cichlids
of the Negro in mind and is intended to replicate a
fairly common habitat type often encountered there.
This habitat type is often seen when one ventures out
beyond the extreme shallows in an igarapé or, during
the times of year when waters begin rising due to the
AMAZONAS
41
 annual flood, in the lower stretches of the flooded forests
themselves. In these deeper reaches, visibility can be
somewhat poor and the dim lighting beneath the canopy
is compounded by the tea-brown water. Larger cichlids
often can be spotted from a distance due to their red-
orange eyes or the characteristic ocella (eyespot) near the
base of the tail. Larger characins, like Hemiodus, Anosto-
mus, and the unmistakable Banded Leporinus (Leporinus
fasciatus), are also typically encountered among the
cichlids in this habitat type.
Aquascaping
Unlike the busy shallows, the deeper areas of the flooded
forest inhabited by large fishes tend to be rather sparse in
terms of structure. To recreate this habitat in the aquari-
um, it can be useful to select just one or two large pieces
of driftwood to serve as focal points, taking care not to
let them dominate the overall layout. Negative space can
be used to great effect in a layout like this to give the
appearance of depth and replicate the reduced visibility
one would encounter in the wild. Dim or spot lighting,
combined with the tinted, tannin-rich water, can add to
this effect and add visual interest to the entire display.
In the wild, large cichlids are surprisingly shy and
tend to congregate around large structures, especially
overhanging branches. Big, branching pieces of manza-
nita driftwood serve well in the aquarium, as they are
quite reminiscent of the low-hanging or fallen branches
one would find submerged just below the water’s surface,
where small groups of fishes would typically be encoun-
tered. For the relatively simple aquascape in this large
aquarium, I used two medium-sized pieces of Spider
Wood to evoke root structures resting on the substrate
and a single large manzanita branch extending down
from the surface. The wood also serves a practical func-
tion—it provides cover for smaller fishes and a visual
barrier that cuts down on intraspecific aggression. For
substrate, I used my go-to light sand (Sunset Gold by
CaribSea), which in both color and grain size looks very
much like the material found in the streambeds of the
middle Negro igarapés. I added a light litter of Indian
Almond and Magnolia leaves, both to produce the char-
acteristic tint of the Rio Negro as they release tannins
and for their aesthetic value—although in deep-water
habitats, leaf litter is often relegated to the margins and
the typical substrate is exposed sand.

Inhabitants
Any number of the cichlids that inhabit the Rio Negro
would likely be at home in an aquarium such as the one
described here (size permitting), but my selection of spe-

Cichlid inhabitants
at home in a
large biotope
aquarium: the
Dwarf Pike Cichlid
(Crenicichla regani,
top) and the big,
showy Rio Negro
Chocolate Cichlid
(Hypselecara
coryphaenoides,
right). Most
medium to large
cichlids are found
in groups close to
AMAZONAS

fallen branches and

submerged logs.

42
Blending old and new, the author’s Rio Demini shallow
water biotope utilizes a restored Metaframe aquarium
from the mid-1960s. Leaf litter and lots of branching
driftwood add a natural tint to the water.
cies included some personal favorites as well as species I
frequently encountered while exploring the blackwater
flooded forests of this river system. The focal point of
this aquarium is almost certainly the pair of subadult Rio
Negro Chocolate Cichlids (Hypselecara coryphaenoides).
This is a beautiful and somewhat uncommon aquarium
fish that is frequently encountered in the middle and
lower Negro, where the common Chocolate Cichlid (H.
temporalis) does not occur. These two boisterous fish are
the aquarium bullies and consume the lion’s share of the
food at feeding time, but they are not overtly aggressive
toward other fishes in the tank.
Chocolate Cichlids appear to have excellent vision,
and I have often observed aquarium specimens position-
ing themselves close to the water’s surface, head up at
almost a 45-degree angle, and “staring” upward. I was
fortunate enough to see this behavior displayed by wild
H. coryphaenoides during one of my visits to the Negro,
and there was a simple explanation for it: The fish were
beneath an overhanging branch, waiting for flying insects
to land on the water’s surface (or even just above it). They
made short work of the insects within their range, even
jumping to catch them on the wing. This is a fascinating
adaptation for a cichlid and one that is very interesting to
observe in the aquarium, where they stalk houseflies and
the like attentively, even those that are well outside the
aquarium glass.
The next species is also a bit of a rarity in the hobby,
but fairly common along the margins and tributaries
of the Rio Negro—the True Parrot Cichlid (Hoplarchus
psittacum). I was quite excited to obtain a juvenile speci-
men of this large-growing and unmistakable cichlid, and
this tank-bred fish seems to be quite content in the faux
flooded forest. These fish, named for the vibrant iridescent
greens of adults, are gentle giants, and I have witnessed
very little aggression or territoriality in my single speci-
men (although it still has much more growing to do).
Also inhabiting this aquarium are two dwarf pike
cichlids, Crenicichla regani, which add a splash of color
to the subtle earth tones of the larger cichlids. The Rio
Negro is home to several small pike cichlids, including
the endemic C. notophthalmus and probably some as yet
undescribed dwarfs. They are found from extreme shal-
lows to moderately deep habitats alongside larger cichlid
species. Most are quite bellicose toward conspecifics, and
in the case of the two in this aquarium, I think the abun-
dant visual barriers and cover are responsible for their
continued coexistence.
Rounding off the tank’s inhabitants are a small
group of juvenile Uaru, or Triangle Cichlids (Uaru am-
phiacanthoides), commonly seen throughout the Negro.
These fish grow to be quite large as adults and ultimately
require a large aquarium, but they are relatively slow-
growing. The juvenile form of this fish is a voracious
grazer that will readily eat fruit (which comprises a sig-
AMAZONAS
nificant portion of their diet in nature), vegetables, and
even filamentous algae that periodically appear on drift-
wood. The beautiful One-Spotted Eartheater (Satanoperca
43

An adult Checkerboard Cichlid—a
common leaf litter–dweller in the
shallow waters of the Negro -—in
one of the author’s aquariums.
lilith), endemic to the Rio Negro, would also be at home
in this tank, but the species is quite rare in the trade and
I was unable to source any.
Rio Demini shallow igarapé
At the edge of the flooded forest, in the shallow wa-
ters winding quietly through partially submerged trees,
root systems, and fallen branches, schools of colorful
characins can be found by the thousands. Here we find
aquarium classics like the Rummynose Tetra (Hemigram-
mus sp.), the Bleeding Heart (Hyphessobrycon socolofi),
the Marbled Hatchet (Carnegiella strigata), and, of
course, the Rio Negro’s most renowned aquarium fish—
the Cardinal Tetra (Paracheirodon axelrodi). But, unlike
the aquariums most of these fishes will wind up in—
gravel substrate, clear water, neatly arranged décor—their
natural habitat is a busy, dynamic, and somewhat messy
place. During low water, armies of hungry tetras rove
through the shallows, waiting for fruit or other organic
AMAZONAS
matter to fall from the trees and provide a bit of scarce
food. The entire ecosystem in these shallow swamps is
built on the trees—their root systems and fallen branches
44
In a well-designed biotope, fishes
tend to exhibit the same behaviors
that they would in the wild. Here,
a group of Eques Pencilfish
(Nannostomus eques) school in
their characteristic “head up”
position.
provide cover, fallen leaves (and the biofilm they ac-
cumulate) are grazed on and used for breeding, and fruits
and nuts from the many food-bearing species fall into
the water, only to be eagerly devoured by any number of
opportunistic fishes. It is not difficult to imagine that
deforestation along the river’s edge would impact not
only terrestrial life—like the sloths and parrots perched
watchfully among the branches—but also the dozens of
fish species that are equally reliant on these trees for food
and shelter.
With this aquarium, I wanted to combine a bit of
new and a bit of old—to put together a biologically ac-
curate biotope that reflects the important role aquarium
fish species from the Rio Negro have played in the hobby
and their long history. To that end, I used an antique
Metaframe tank—circa 1966—which I resealed and
restored to useable condition. This tank represented the
state of the art in the 1960s, complete with slate bottom,
sleek stainless steel frame, and tacky black tar sealing
the thick glass panels and making the whole unwieldy
box watertight. As an unabashed enthusiast for antique
aquarium-related items, I may be a bit biased in saying
this, but in its refinished state the aquarium looks every
bit as sleek (if not quite so modern) as a high-end rim-
less tank.
Aquascaping
The habitat I’m replicating in this aquarium is domi-
nated by gnarled root systems and fallen branches, so I
relied heavily on branching driftwood to provide cover
and structure. The intent was to create not a carefully
arranged hardscape, but rather a somewhat random
 The author’s 15-gallon Cardinal Tetra
biotope aquarium closely replicates the
extreme shallows these fish inhabit in the
wild, including the dense carpet of leaf
litter and other botanicals.

ONLINE BONUS

Visit Reef2Rainforest.com to see the author’s

step-by-step creation of this 15-gallon Rio
Negro biotope.
www.reef2rainforest.com/rio-negro-biotope
assemblage of roots and branches
like one would encounter in the
wild. The result looks a bit messy and
busy—both adjectives I would use to
describe the shallow igarapé habitat in
Rio Negro tributaries. In this habitat
leaf litter is particularly prevalent, so I
used a blend of different leaves to keep
the substrate more or less covered.
The breakdown of these leaves from
decomposition and constant grazing
by the fishes in the aquarium creates
a significant amount of particulate
organic matter floating around in the
water column. Aesthetically, this is a
bit difficult to get used to, but once A scene from the wild or an
again, it is a good representation of aquarium? A biotope tank is
intended to blur that distinction.
the actual habitat where these fishes
are found. The shallow igarapés of the
AMAZONAS

Rio Negro are awash in this par-

ticulate, which often serves as a food
source for detritivores.

45
 An underwater photo of a typical Cardinal Tetra
habitat. This microhabitat, dominated by leaf litter,
fallen branches, and sparse plant life, provided
inspiration for my “extreme shallows biotope”
aquarium.

Inhabitants
As mentioned earlier, tetras reign supreme
in this shallow-water habitat. During the
low-water season they are often found in
mixed-species aggregations that cruise along
the riverbanks. For this tank, I chose a group
of around a dozen wild Rummynose Tetras,
all collected from the Rio Negro. The Rum-
mynose has been a staple in the aquarium
hobby for decades, and deservedly so—active,
fast-moving schoolers, they resemble minia-
ture torpedoes in high-contrast streaks of red, white, and
black in the aquarium. The wild fishes display exceptional
color, with the characteristic red streak extending far past
the “nose” of the fish.
Also inhabiting this tank is a somewhat rare relative
of a common aquarium fish—the Flameback Bleeding
Heart Tetra (Hyphessobrycon pyrrhonotus). This is another
Rio Negro endemic, largely collected from the Rio De-
mini not far from the town of Barcelos. Juvenile fish can
be difficult to distinguish from the popular and widely
available common Bleeding Heart Tetra (H. socolofi), but
adult H. pyrrhonotus display a more vibrant pink body
color with a streak of deep pink running along the back.
These fish have markedly better coloration in heavily
tannin-stained water, and I can usually observe improved
color and display behavior among males within a day or
so of adding fresh almond leaves to the aquarium.
Completing the mixed-shoal effect I was aiming for
in this tank is a small group of wild Green Neons (Para-
cheirodon simulans) and Unifasciatus Pencilfish (Nannos-
tomus unifasciatus). The Green Neon is found through-
AMAZONAS
and in the lower reaches of Rio Negro tributaries (like
the lower Demini, just a short distance from Barcelos),
whereas Cardinals tend to congregate further afield.
Green Neons also appear to exhibit a marked tolerance
(and perhaps a preference) for higher temperatures, and
are quite comfortable at 90°F (32°C) and above.
Like Green Neons, many pencilfish species are well
adapted to the high temperatures and low dissolved
oxygen typical of shallow-water swamps. The Unifasciatus
pencils generally stay close together in the aquarium and
spend much of their time near the water’s surface. The
addition to the aquarium of fresh dried leaves—which
float for about a day before sinking to the bottom—seems
to induce spawning behavior in the fish.
There is also a pair of adult Butterfly Plecos (Dekey-
seria brachyuran, L-168), another inhabitant of the Rio
Demini, in the lower level of the aquarium. The plecos
are voracious grazers on almond leaves and the biofilm
that accumulates on them, even when offered gel food
in abundance—which leads me to suspect that leaves and
detritus make up a significant portion of this species’

out most of the same home range as its close relative, the diet in the wild. They are thorough algae grazers as well,
Cardinal Tetra, but rarely are they encountered together. keeping the glass and driftwood largely free of diatoms
Green Neons are generally found in extreme shallows and brown algae.

46

A shallow-water habitat on the
middle Negro. Cardinal Tetras
(along with many other species of
characin) can be found in large
numbers here.
Extreme shallow igapo—a Cardinal Tetra
biotope
The most recent Rio Negro biotope I set up was prompted
by my desire to try a new approach to keeping blackwater
aquariums. It was inspired in no small part by the avail-
ability of a huge variety of aquatic botanicals that, until
recently, had not been readily accessible to most hobby-
ists. Although I have kept a number of tanks designed in
some way to replicate the shallow-water habitat of the
Rio Negro’s most iconic species, the Cardinal Tetra, I had
never been truly happy with the results, given the limited
aquascaping materials at my disposal. So with this self-
imposed challenge in mind, I made liberal use of materi-
als from Tannin Aquatics (an online retailer specializing
in botanicals for blackwater aquariums) to see if I could
create a truly authentic biotope as similar as possible to
the tea-colored shallows of the middle Negro. With this
aquarium, I also wanted to integrate some elements of
aquascaping and focus on aesthetics without sacrificing
biologically appropriate aquascaping and stocking.
Aquascaping
The tank itself is an excellent 15-gallon (57-L) “all in
one” aquarium by Fluval (part of their recently released
“Flex” line) with a curved glass front and
a false back that hides the filtration and
heater. I wanted to recreate the richness
in organic matter that characterizes this
habitat “from the ground up,” so to speak,
so I started with a shallow base layer of
thoroughly rinsed organic potting soil un-
derneath a fine sand substrate. To the sand
itself I added a blend of other botanical
materials, including fine bits of dried leaves,
coconut husk chips, and a handful of seed
pods. Above this I placed several dense
layers of leaf litter—a mixture of dwarf
Magnolia, small Indian Almond, and other
leaves. This thick coating of leaves covers
the entire lower level of the aquarium and
is an extremely close representation of typi-
cal Cardinal Tetra habitat I’ve visited, where
an inches-thick carpet of fallen leaves pro-
vides habitat and grazing area for a number
of fishes.
Although plant life is very sparse in
most of the Rio Negro, a bit of aquatic
vegetation would not be totally out of place
in this biotope, and I used a small bunch of
Green Foxtail (aka Green Myrio, Myriophyl-
lum pinnatum, which is occasionally found
in shallows throughout the region) to add a
splash of green in an otherwise earth-toned
layout. A small manzanita branch stands
in for the dense tangle of fallen twigs and
small branches so prevalent in the shallows,
but aside from these components the aquascape is domi-
nated by botanicals—from the large palm fronds draped
across the background to the various seed pods used as
visual accents. Much of the aquascape also has function-
al benefits, giving the fishes grazing surfaces, protection
above and below, and ample visual barriers and territory
markers. As is often the case, mimicking the enormously
complex habitat that the igarapé-dwelling denizens of the
Rio Negro inhabit tends to encourage the same complex
behavior they exhibit in the wild.
Inhabitants
The selection and number of fish species for this rela-
tively small tank was somewhat limited, but it was not
difficult to find a good balance of habitat-appropriate
species. The centerpiece of the tank is—of course—a small
group of Cardinal Tetras collected from the Rio Negro.
They dominate the middle level of the tank, congre-
gating around the driftwood in a loose school, just as
they would in the wild. Close to the substrate, a pair
of Checkerboard Cichlids (Dicrossus filamentosus) dart
AMAZONAS
around, alternately chasing each other and arranging bits
of leaf litter into neat piles around their preferred terri-
tories. These dwarf cichlids are extremely common along
47

These wild-collected angels from the middle
Negro will thrive in an aquarium that
accurately represents their wild habitat.
Triportheus angulatus, a species commonly seen
near the water’s surface, makes an excellent and
biotope-appropriate dither for a cichlid aquarium.
the middle Negro, but remain relatively uncommon and,
sadly, underappreciated in the hobby. In my opinion,
there are few freshwater fishes that can rival a mature
male Checkerboard in full display.
A single Pyrrhulina sp. hovers near the water’s sur-
face, adding some activity to the upper level of the tank.
This rarely seen tetra, which tends to inhabit stagnant,
shallow pools, arrived as a contaminant in a shipment of
Splash Tetras (Copella arnoldi), a close relative that would
also be at home in this habitat. Rounding out the layout
is a small group of Eques or Diptail Pencilfish (Nannosto-
mus eques), which hang nearly motionless in tight forma-
tion around the manzanita branch, occasionally picking
AMAZONAS
at patches of biofilm with their beaklike mouths. This
species of pencilfish, more than most, is regularly seen
in the extreme shallows and seems to be able to tolerate
48
high temperatures and very low levels
of dissolved oxygen. This group of fish
fills out the tank quite nicely, making
for a full, but not busy look. Other
species that would easily work in such
a setup are the hummingbird or darter
characins of the genus Characidium.
A particularly stunning species, the
Green Darter Tetra (Ammocryptoch-
arax elegans), inhabits the middle and
lower Rio Negro and has been making
its way into the hobby lately. Other
dwarf cichlids, like Apistogramma
gephyra, would also be at home in this
microhabitat, as would the Marbled
Hatchet (Carnegiella strigata), which
is often found close to shore in black-
water shallows.
A window to the wild:
reflections on the art of
the biotope
The diversity of both fish species and
habitat types found along the Rio
Negro makes it an aquarist’s dream—
and replicating these habitats (albeit
imperfectly) has been an immensely
rewarding process. This incredible river
system offers something for aquarists
of every caliber. From the Regal Discus
hovering among fallen branches, to the
enormously diverse Corydoras cat-
fishes found in its black waters, to the
even more numerous array of dwarf
cichlids, this blackwater river and the
surrounding flooded forest is a treasure
trove of freshwater biodiversity with
few parallels—especially with regard to
the aquarium hobby.
For those who put the time and
effort into creating aquariums inspired by the Rio Negro
and its tributaries, these biotopes and their inhabitants
have the ability to transcend glass walls and transport
the viewer, if only momentarily, from his or her home
to the heart of the Amazon, where these same fishes
swim wild in the timeless cycles of birth and death, flood
and drought that birthed such an incredible profusion
of species from its tannin-stained waters. To witness
aquarium-fish behavior that so closely matches that
of their wild counterparts as they interact with their
environment, display to one another, and select and
defend territories is perhaps the pinnacle of what a
home aquarium can be—a true window to the wild. In
creating these aquariums I was taken right back to my
earliest days in the hobby, when I eagerly flipped through
the pages of well-worn books to find the exotic-sounding
names of the places where my fishes
originated. It is with much the same
sense of wonder that I find myself
gazing into these miniature habi-
tats, amazed to see the nuances and
interactions between species that
have evolved to fill various ecologi-
cal niches in a somewhat extreme
environment. I think almost any
hobbyist can relate to the moments
of awe and pride I feel when these
microcosms of my own making take
on lives of their own.
Unlike many of the world’s
freshwater habitats, the igarapés and
flooded forests extending along the
banks of the Negro remain—for the
time being—largely free from major
human threat. In many places, the
forests and waters of this remark-
able river system are protected from
harm by the same men and women
who collect the fishes that end up
populating our home aquariums.
This remarkable relationship between
the aquarium fish trade and habitat
preservation has been particularly
well documented in the Rio Negro
system, and continues to be the

Tint the World

focus of Project Piaba (see “Cardinal
Sins,” AMAZONAS 4 (2): 52–60 or
visit www.projectpiaba.org for more
information), but the future of this
fishery is increasingly unclear.
Thoughtfully curated botanicals
It is my hope that I have im-
parted both a touch of inspiration and other natural materials to
and plenty of practical informa-
tion for fellow hobbyists with this
help you create memorable
in-depth look at Rio Negro biotopes, blackwater aquatic displays.
and I encourage anyone interested in
creating one of these biotopes to seek
out wild-collected Rio Negro fishes
to populate it. Wild fishes display
wild behaviors better than their
tank-raised counterparts in many
cases, and purchasing them contrib-
utes to the survival of an environ-
mentally beneficial aquarium fishery
and supports sustainable livelihoods
along the Brazilian Rio Negro and its
tributaries.

Michael J. Tuccinardi, a senior editor

AMAZONAS

of this magazine, is active in Project www.tanninaquatics.com

www tanninaquatics
tanniinaquatititics com
Piaba. He lives in Boulder, Colorado,
with his wife and fellow traveler, Susan.

49
PART 2 • IMPLEMENTATION

creating
nat ure
article & images by Steve Waldron • Now that we have committed ourselves to the
Nature Aquarium path, studied the works of master aquascapers, invested in quality
aquascaping supplies, and started learning how to grow aquatic plants and feed our
creative spirit with natural inspiration, the time has arrived to set up an aquarium.

THE FIRST STAGE IN NATURE AQUARIUM DESIGN IS ABOUT CONTEXT—where in the room will the
aquascape dwell? We don’t want to place an aquarium too close to a window, where the
variable natural sunlight could throw our carefully controlled lighting scheme out of bal-
ance, and we want to avoid areas with heavy foot traffic that could startle our fishes. The
aquarium should be placed on a level stand that can hold the weight of the water, substrate,
and hardscape. If you have a rimless aquarium it should be placed on a dense foam mat to
protect its fragile glass bottom and corners.

Glossostigma elatinoides has been a signature foreground

plant since the 1980s, when it was rare and highly sought
after. Popularized by Takashi Amano, it is now widely
available from nursery stock and tissue culture
propagation (as seen here).
AMAZONAS

50
 AQ UATI C PLANTS
A step-by-step implementation guide

The author’s demonstration Nature Aquarium, created for this article, a week after planting. This aquascape is a 60 x 30 x
45-cm (approx. 24 x 12 x 18-inch) high-clarity rimless aquarium with pre-soaked driftwood and Aqua Soil that in a few short
AMAZONAS

weeks will be filled with a riot of plant biodiversity and beauty. The plants used in this layout include Glossostigma elatinoides,
Blyxa japonica, Syngonathus sp. "Giant," Cyperus helferi, Hemianthus micranthemoides, Rotala sp. Green, Rotala sp. H'ra,
Myriophyllum mattogrossense, Ludwigia x. lacustris, Potamogeton gayi, Mayaca fluviatilis, Bucephalandra spp., and Willow Moss.

51
 1
There is also the aesthetic significance of context—how will this
Nature Aquarium beautify your home? A well-executed planted
aquarium is a living art piece and should be the centerpiece of the
room. Going slowly and spending time with an empty aquarium,
reflecting on its potential impact in a room, is an important exercise.
In my opinion, one of the true masters of context is Adam Paszczela,
a virtuoso aquascaper from Poland. Adam has created a beautiful
aquascaping studio with rustic beams, wood floors, natural light,
and just a lot of elegant style that shows off his magnificent Nature
Aquariums to their best advantage. I want to live in his studio! (See
Online, below.)

Laying down the substrate

Once the aquarium has been set up in its final position, the first
2 installation step is adding the substrate. If your goal is to grow a
dense garden of aquarium plants with wall-to-wall coverage, a nutri-
ent-rich, soil-based substrate will make your job much easier. I prefer
to use ADA’s Amazonia Aqua Soil, and have had great repeated suc-
cess with it, though I am sure other alternatives are fine too. I tend
not to use any soil additives, as I usually break down an aquascape
after a year or so and like to start out with fresh, fertile soil.
For the aquascape shown in this article’s photos, I used one
2.4-gallon (9-L) bag of soil for the 12 x 24-inch (30 x 60-cm)
footprint. Generally, you will need at least 2 inches (5 cm) of soil for
stem plants and other plants with robust root systems, and at least
0.75 inch (1.9 cm) for carpeting plants. You can shape your soil
3 layer any way you like—the sky is the limit. Some aquascapers create
steep, high-banked substrates with precipitous slopes and inclines;
some prefer zones of thick plantings over soil, broken up by patches
of bright cosmetic sand. For this demonstration I chose a classic,
gentle slope of shallow soil in the front, angling up to a higher
bank at the back; this offers a nice perspective of the aquascape
when viewed from the front and provides a base for my carpet of
low-growing Glossostigma. If you are new to aquascaping I recom-
mend keeping it simple, with one substrate type and a basic substrate
layout, as you will likely change up your plant arrangements many
times before arriving at your final destination.

Hardscape choices
One of the most common questions I field at my shop is: “Why are
these sticks and rocks so expensive? Can I just find something out in
4 the woods or on the beach and put it in my aquarium?” Not all nat-
ural materials are suited for aquarium use—resinous wood, like the
conifers that are so prominent in the forests around my home, can
release potent secondary compounds and natural chemicals that are
toxic to aquarium life. Some stones release pH-altering minerals into
the water. Anything found on a beach will release salts. In general,
we want to choose hardscape material (i.e., stone and wood) that
is inert and will not change our
1. An empty aquarium is a vessel with endless creative potential. water chemistry. I like to soak my
2. The author’s sandbox: a useful tool for pre-visualizing a hardscape layout before it is applied wood in a trash can that I have
to an aquascape. designated for this purpose to
3. The final version of the wood hardscape is installed over a soil substrate and shimmed into
leach out tannins and keep the
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place with stones; the tank is nearly ready for planting.

4. Gently filling the aquarium using the shower setting on a garden hose nozzle disperses the wood waterlogged and ready for
energy of the incoming water, keeping the hardscape from shifting and the substrate line intact. use. The stone and wood sold in
aquarium shops has proven to be

52
Going slowly and spending
time with an empty aquarium,
reflecting on its potential
impact in a room, is an
important exercise.
suitable and safe for aquarium use. However, if you have
the inclination, some knowledge of botany or geology,
and an experimental mindset, there is no reason why
you can’t find some natural materials for your aquascap-
ing projects in your own neck of the woods. I have been
wanting to try the root structures of local riparian trees,
like willow or alder, and collect basalt, lava rock, and
slate when out on hikes.
When it comes to choosing hardscape materials for
their aesthetic value, you have two choices. You can select
materials that have strong visual presence and character
of their own—a fine piece of driftwood or stone can look
like a natural sculpture, and you might want to highlight
such a piece in your aquascape. The horn wood pieces
I chose for this article’s demonstration aquascape have
such a strong presence that it is kind of hard not to make
the layout interesting! Or you can choose humbler, less
interesting rock and wood and test your ability to bring
out the best in these simple materials, perhaps covering
them in beautiful arrangements of ferns and mosses that
A hardscape layout
should be able to
stand on its own with
interesting visual
presence and natural
grace.
obscure the weaker points of the hardscape.
Make sure to take your time figuring out your hard-
scape arrangement, because it will become the backbone
of your aquascape, the prominent aesthetic structure
that will define the plantings and the overall visual
impact of your creation. The thoughtful and artistic
arrangement of charismatic stone, wood, and plants is
really what distinguishes a Nature Aquarium from the
average planted aquarium.
Here are a couple of hardscape tips: I like to play
around with stone and wood layouts in a “sandbox” ded-
icated to this purpose. I built a 48 x 18-inch (122 x 46-
cm) wooden box filled with playground sand and use it
to visualize a hardscape layout. It’s a lot of fun and I find
it a meditative, relaxing process. Some aquascapers use
a sandbox as a sort of daily exercise and ritual to perfect
their style. I take lots of photos of a layout that appeals to
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me, and even mark or label the faces of stones and pieces
of wood so I can recreate more complicated layouts in
the actual aquarium. Sleep on a hardscape layout before
53
 Glossostigma broken up into small pieces in preparation
for planting. A good pair of planting forceps makes
installation of the propagules much easier and faster.
you commit to it, and you might find yourself switching
things up a few days later. Time and patience can only
improve one’s results.
One thing to think about when creating a hard-
scape is the concept of “creating tension.” I think the
most appealing hardscapes are those that look slightly
impossible—like they are somehow defying gravity or on
the verge of collapse. A flat hardscape is a boring hard-
scape. You don’t want to overdo it, but bringing some
tension into your hardscape arrangement will really give
it impact. I use small stones to shim up pieces of wood
or stone, raising them up off the substrate to accentuate
their strength, beauty, and grace.
My aquascaping process
For the layout in this article’s photos, I had a few general
ideas in mind prior to beginning the aquascaping pro-
cess. I had some beautiful, rather dramatic wood pieces
that I wanted to use to emphasize the vertical orientation
of the aquarium and its unique dimensions; I wanted my
plant selection to include a lot of diverse colors, textures,
and forms to reflect the blossoming trees and flowers
I was seeing during my spring walks in Seattle’s parks
and neighborhoods; I wanted to use some classic Nature
Aquarium plants that I associate with Takashi Amano’s
early layouts from the 1990s; and I wanted the whole
thing to look as if the driftwood was being engulfed
by lush plants, the dead wood being overtaken by the
exuberance of life. As with most things, having focused
intentions before starting a project will aid in its success
and keep it from going off the rails.
After spending a few days considering my hardscape
arrangement, removing and adding pieces of wood and
shimming them in place with stones to bring in a little
tension, I set about planting. Aquascapes are often bro-
ken down into foreground, middle ground, and back-
ground when considering planting schemes. This is an
effective and methodical approach to designing a layout.
For my foreground carpeting plant, I chose Glossostigma
elatinoides, a staple of Nature Aquariums since Ama-
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no first started using the plant in the late 1980s. The
middle layer would consist of Blyxa japonica, Hemianthus
micranthemoides, Bucephalandra spp., and Syngonanthus
54
This bunch of Bucephalandra was considered prior to committing it
to the aquascape. In the end, it was omitted, as it overwhelmed the
sense of scale provided by the other fine and delicate plant selections.
sp. “Giant,” a plant that is new to me and that I wanted
to experiment with. For the background I decided on a
screen of Potamogeton gayi, Mayaca fluviatilis, Ludwi-
gia x lacustris, Myriophyllum mattogrossense, Rotala sp.
Green, and Rotala sp. H’ra. These plants were selected
for their complementary and contrasting leaf structures
and colors. The sedge Cyperus helferi would provide bold
vertical brushstrokes of bright green throughout the
aquarium and pay homage to Amano’s early Nature
Aquariums. The Glossostigma would come from tissue
culture, my preferred source of plant material these
days—tissue culture plants are algae- and pest-free and
will grow uniformly from tiny starts, giving the aquas-
cape a more cohesive look. However, most of the plants
in this aquascape were grown out in farm tanks, so they
were already adapted to my water conditions and ready
to thrive once planted.
The mechanics of placing the plant material are fairly
straightforward. I drain down the aquarium to the point
where the water barely covers the substrate. Planting in a
loose, wet substrate makes for easy gardening and limits
damage to the plant cuttings, and it doesn’t make a mess
as it would if the aquarium were full of water. I tend to
start the planting process with the foreground plants. I
prepared the tissue culture Glossostigma in advance by re-
moving it from the cup, rinsing gel from the roots of the
plant mass, and breaking the nodes up into small chunks.
A good pair of planting forceps is essential in making
this process as smooth as possible. I like to grab the plant
with the forceps, enter the soil level at sort of an oblique
angle, pull up on the plant a bit to allow the soil to fill in
around the entry point, and then release it. It might take
some practice to perfect your own technique.
I spread the foreground starts out in an even distri-
bution pattern. For this layout, I also mounted little bits
of Bucephalandra and epiphytic moss, attaching them
with the aid of the gel form of cyanoacrylate glue. After
the epiphytes were mounted, I finished off the aquascape
with the background stem plants and Cyperus. I like
to keep a spray bottle filled with water on hand during
the planting process, misting the delicate aquatic plants
from time to time to keep them hydrated until the
aquarium is filled.
“Epiphytic” plants like aquatic ferns, Anubias, and mosses can Planting a background screen of stem plants is made
be easily mounted to stone or wood hardscape material with the easier with a thick substrate layer of wet, loose soil. Do
gel form of cyanoacrylate glue. this before the tank is filled.

A plastic tray filled with carefully

layered, cleaned, and prepared
aquarium plants is the aquascaping
equivalent of the painter’s palette.
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55
 Immediately after planting, the aquarium is
gently filled with lukewarm water. A haze from fine
substrate particles fills the water column. Canister
filtration and daily 50 percent water changes for
the first week are essential for regaining water
clarity and keeping algae blooms at bay.
Lighting considerations
Once the plants were installed, I gently filled the aquar-
ium with water, using the shower setting on my garden
hose nozzle to avoid disturbing the aquascape. I then
installed the light. For this aquarium I chose a Twin-
star 600ES, a rather elegant LED unit with a beautiful
color rendition. I hoped the Twinstar would pop the
colors of the bright Ludwigia and Rotala in the back-
ground hedge, and the unit itself just looks very sleek.
When choosing lights for a planted aquarium, we
want something in the 6000 to 8000 Kelvin range for
a color temperature that is pleasing to the eye. Aim for
an intensity of at least 50 PAR units at the substrate if
your intention is to grow a carpet of foreground plants.
If you are serious about aquascaping, a PAR meter is an
essential tool that will take the guesswork out of a lot of
your planting decisions. In general, we consider 10–20
PAR to be low light, 20–50 PAR to be medium light, and
50 PAR and above to be high light. With the Twinstar
600ES installed on my 18” tall aquarium, I was getting
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75 PAR at the substrate, which I know from past experi-
ence should be more than adequate for growing a dense
carpet of Glossostigma in the presence of injected CO2.
56
Injected CO2 allows the plants to grow more efficiently,
even under moderate light intensity. The light unit was
hooked up to a light timer set for an "on" period of
eight hours.
In the next episode of “Creating Nature” I will cover
carbon dioxide injection, filtration, fertilization, main-
tenance, trimming plants, cycling the aquarium, and
animal selection. Let’s hope the water in my tank clears
and the plants in my Nature Aquarium begin to root,
grow, and come to life!
Steve Waldron is an AMAZONAS senior contributor and the
co-founder of the retail aquascaping shop Aquarium Zen in Seat-
tle, Washington. He is the editor of the English-language edition
of Origin of Creation, the official Takashi Amano
biography (Aqua Design Amano, 2016).
ONLINE
ADA Poland—check out Adam Paszczela’s work on Facebook and at
http://www.aquadam.com.pl.
Waldron, S. Creating Nature: Part I—Inspiration. AMAZONAS 6 (3): 44–50,
http://www.reef2rainforest.com/2017/04/20/creating-nature-part-1-
%E2%80%A2-inspiration.
AMAZONAS

57
 HUSBANDRY & B R E E D IN G

The Banded Bushfish

an unusual bubble nester from Central Africa

article & images by Stanislav Kislyuk • Although they are not nearly as common as their
relatives from Asia, there are some exciting African labyrinthfishes. One of the true classics,
the Banded Bushfish, is a feast for the eyes—especially a variant from southern Cameroon.

WITH THE FINAL DISAPPEARANCE OF THE LAND BRIDGE between A classic

Africa and Asia 25 million years ago, the labyrinthfish-
es (suborder Anabantoidei) separated into two groups.
While the Asian group developed a remarkable variety
of species, with over 140 known including the Bettas
and Gouramis, there are only 31 African species.
Microctenopoma (dwarf bushfishes) is one of just
three genera that occur in Africa; the other two are
Ctenopoma and Sandelia. An essential characteristic of the
“dwarf” bushfishes is that they care for their offspring;
Ctenopoma representatives do not carry out any brood
care. The ancient Cape bushfishes of the genus Sandelia
occur exclusively in South Africa and strongly differ from
the other two genera in both behavior and morphology.
AMAZONAS
The Banded Bushfish (Microctenopoma fasciolatum) was
kept in an aquarium for the first time in 1912. The spe-
cies is highly variable in color and has developed into sev-
eral different-looking varieties. Some are predominantly
blue, others an inconspicuous brown. The specimens that
have occasionally been imported from southern Camer-
oon in recent years are among the most beautiful repre-
sentatives of their species. The males have conspicuously
large pectoral fins, and their long caudal, dorsal, and anal
fins have fine filaments.
To maintain this species, which grows to a maximum
size of about 3 inches (8 cm), we recommend an aquari-
um at least 30 inches (80 cm) long—in the 30–40-gallon

A male
Microctenopoma
fasciolatum.

58
(114–150-L) range. The tank should be richly planted
and have plenty of sheltering spots. Floating plants will
dampen the light, making the bushfish less shy, and
provide both protection and food for the juveniles in
their first weeks.
Microctenopoma fasciolatum shows very little
intraspecific aggression. I keep my five animals with
other African fishes: a group of Green’s Moon Tetras
(Bathyaethiops greeni) and Blue Diamond Characins
(Alestopetersius smykalai). You can also keep them with
cichlids that are not too aggressive, such as Kribs (Pel-
vicachromis pulcheri) or the dwarf Congochromis sabinae.
The intraspecific aggression of the variant from Camer-
oon is much more pronounced than it is in the brown
Female Banded Bushfish are all brown.
forms, but serious injuries are still rare. However, the
blue animals always keep a certain distance from each
other, even when they are not spawning, whereas the
southern populations tend to form packs.
Care and reproduction
That said, I do recommend keeping several specimens
in a fairly large aquarium, because ample space shows
the males to their best advantage. Their displays are very
impressive: Opponents meet repeatedly at the borders
of their territories with fully spread fins. Gently shaking
with excitement, they try to impress each other with flar-
ing finnage. In the right light, they appear to spray sparks
of blue color into the water. The broad brown bands and
Males from southern
Cameroon show their
true splendor when in
spawning mood.
A male under his bubble nest; the nest
is larger or smaller, depending on the
availability of floating plants.
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59
 Shortly after hatching, the larvae still carry
large transparent yolk sacs. The upper half
of the tiny larva is already darkly marbled.

Freshly hatched larvae in the

aquarium. There is hardly any-
thing left of the bubble nest.

glowing red eyes are in sharp contrast to the intense body

color. Females can be recognized easily because they have
shorter fins and their body coloration is not as dazzling.
Their readiness to spawn is signaled by a bright, broad
horizontal stripe.
As for diet, these fish will accept any dry, frozen, or
live food. Water values are not crucial either: the water After three days, almost all of
should not be too hard and the pH should range from 6.0 the yolk sac has been consumed
and the larvae must start eating.
to 7.5. This bushfish species prefers temperatures between
First foods include infusoria and
68 and 75.2°F (20–24°C), so their aquarium should be vinegar eels.
set up in a shady place, at least in the summer months.

Nest options
If the temperature is in the optimum range, the fish often
spawn willingly in the community tank. The male usually
builds a foam nest…but not always. Interestingly, this
species’ reproductive behavior depends on the presence
and density of floating plant cover. If the vegetation is
not particularly thick or is absent, the male builds a large
foam nest, with bubbles that can get as big as 0.4–0.8
inch (1–2 cm) in diameter. When dense floating plants
are available, he builds a minimal nest and the female
releases the eggs directly into the vegetation.
A few days before spawning, the male begins to de-
fend a territory. During spawning the male wraps around
the female but does not turn her upward, as many other
labyrinthfishes do. The eggs have oil droplets, so they
float, and the male recovers from spawning rigidity just
in time to pick up any sinking eggs and carry them to the
nest. After a few hours, there are several hundred eggs in
the cache. Immediately after spawning, the male drives
the female out of the area.
The small, helpless larvae begin to hatch 24 to 36
hours later, and at the same time the foam bubbles dis-
solve. The male watches over his nest from some dis-
tance, usually hanging motionless 4 to 6 inches (10–15
AMAZONAS
intruders away aggressively. The larvae remain under the
males’ care for five or six days and then disperse among
the vegetation. The male’s protective instinct immediately
switches off at this point.
For managed rearing, the offspring are skimmed off
with a plastic beaker two or three days after hatching and
kept in shallow plastic containers. They are fed infusoria
and vinegar eels for the first two weeks, until they are
large enough to cope with Artemia nauplia. They grow
very quickly and have to be regularly sorted by size, as
they have a strong cannibalistic urge. Initially transpar-
ent, they slowly begin to color up when they are about
0.6 inch (1.5 cm) long. Alternatively, you can just leave
the young fish in the parents’ tank—with dense plant
cover the adults rarely chase the fry, and it is interesting
to observe the differently sized bushfish searching for
food and having minor spats.

cm) below the surface and hidden among the plants.

However, he reacts immediately to any disturbance Larva about
within a radius of 8 to 12 inches (20–30 cm) and drives two months old.

60
July 13th - July 16th
Sheraton Hotel • 21111 Haggerty Road • Novi, MI 48375
(248) 349-4000

FIRST CLASS SPEAKERS FUN THINGS TO DO

Juan Miguel Artigas Azas First Class Tours
Pam Chin Belle lsle Aquarium and
Jeff Michels Scripts Conservatory

Chris Carpenter Henry Ford Museum

Ted Judy Babes Auction

Larry Johnson ACA Members-Only Raffle

Dale Ernst Dry Goods Auction
Dominic Cergnul Sunday Livestock Auction
AMAZONAS

ACA Convention For more information: ACAConvention2017.com

61
 REPORTAGE

Corydoras
from Suriname

Corydoras punctatus was the first Cory to be

described. M.E. Bloch described it in 1794
as Cataphractus punctatus.

by Hans-Georg Evers • Lovers of Corydoras catfishes have a new

reason to be happy. Suriname, a small country in South America,
is a hotspot for these fishes, but for many years very few were
exported from the former Dutch colony. This all changed in 2016.

SURINAME IS EASY TO REACH—there are direct flights between Amsterdam and Paramaribo (PBM) and several
airline options from North America. However, only the coastal area is developed, and aquarium enthusi-
asts must deal with very poor roads to get to the Corys’ habitats. Distant destinations in the backcountry
can be reached only with persistence. Hardly anyone wants to make the effort. After all, there is more
and easier money to be made on the coast—in trades other than aquarium fishing, a tedious and risky
business. There have been several attempts to establish aquarium fish collecting and exporting in Suri-
name, but these efforts have failed.
Only a few Surinamese species of the genus Corydoras have found their way into our aquariums in
the last 25 years. Most of these imports were due to the initiative of traveling aquarists. I was able to
bring Corydoras baderi back in 2004, and I have bred the species regularly since then. Ingo Seidel and
others caught and introduced several species before that. Unfortunately, since then only the beautiful C.
boesemani has been maintained in the hobby and regularly bred by Cory fans. Werner Seuss traveled to
Suriname in the 1990s and brought back C. punctatus and C. sipaliwini, among others, but these, too,
disappeared over time.
Since early 2016, we started seeing online images of beautiful Corys from Suriname being sold in
East Asia at exorbitant prices, but westerners could only sit and stare longingly at these pictures. Recent-
ly, Karsten Schönherr and his fellow travelers undertook targeted collection expeditions and succeeded in
bringing home various Corys, including some particularly nice species, including C. punctatus, C. coppe-
namensis, and C. surinamensis. Schönherr recently reported (2016) on the Corys of the Coppename River.
AMAZONAS

He has given me some of his treasures, and I have already managed to breed a couple of them. It also seems
H.-G. EVERS

that something approaching a regular export business has been established in Paramaribo, and now
many of the species shown here are reaching Holland, so you may soon be able to get access to them!

62
 The thickened ends of the first
pectoral ray in dominant males are
characteristic of Corydoras geoffroy.

Lacépède established the genus Corydoras in

1803 by describing Corydoras geoffroy.

Diversity
The Corys of Suriname are
quite well studied, most
notably by the famous Dutch
ichthyologist Han Nijssen
(1970). On the occasion
of the construction of the Corydoras cf.
Afobaka Dam, he and other aeneus from
Suriname.
ichthyologists were commis-
sioned to investigate the fish
fauna of the affected waters
and others. This resulted in
the best and most comprehen-
sive publication on the Corys
of any country at that time.
Nijssen introduced 17
species and described 7 species
and subspecies. From later
descriptions (C. filamentosus,
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C. sipaliwini) and current

collections, we know that
F. WANG

there are still more species in

63
 For a long time, Corydoras filamentosus was a phantom
among Corys. More recently, animals from Suriname have
been exported several times.
A female Corydoras filamentosus.
Surinamese waters. These undescribed Corydoras are now
appearing more frequently in export shipments, and I
present them briefly here.
It is easy to explain the high species diversity in a
very old genus that is widespread in South America in a
relatively small country like Suriname. All the rivers of
Suriname drain into the Caribbean, and none are con-
nected to the waters of the Amazon. The ancient rock
formations of the Guyana Shield have been drained for
millions of years by rivers that are not connected to each
other in the coastal region. The lowland region is sepa-
AMAZONAS
rated from the upper reaches by strongly sloping rock lay-
ers, resulting in high waterfalls that are insurmountable
for these fishes. Many different types of Corys evolved in
64
the many side branches of these isolated rivers, such as
Corantijn, Coppename, Saramacca, and Marowijne.
We can only speculate about the ancestors of these
Corys. Recent genetic studies by Alexandrou et al. (2011)
on Corys from all over South America have shown that
there are several clearly separate genera. The authors refer
to these as “lineages.” At the moment, several scientists
are working on this topic.
Species flood
After a long dry spell, aquarists suddenly have the op-
portunity to quench their thirst. A nice species similar
to Corydoras aeneus that has a short golden stripe at the
F. WANG
top of the head is appearing in all the recent imports and

seems to be widespread in Suriname. I also know this
fish, Corydoras filamentosus, from the Corantijn basin,
but only from preserved specimens. For many years, the
type location was only accessible by helicopter. Apparent-
ly, either it is now easier to get to or the species has been
found in a more accessible location. For whatever reason,
specimens have begun to appear in imports in East Asia
and Canada. However, the species is not cheap—collec-
tion and shipping are very costly.
Imports of Geoffroy’s Corydoras, C. geoffroy, a species
originally described from Suriname’s Marchall Creek and
also known from French Guiana, are likely to be similarly
expensive. Corydoras geoffroy is the type of the genus, that
F. WANG
is, the first species described as Corydoras, and there-
CW114 from the Kabalebo River.
Corydoras sipaliwini made a brief appearance
in the hobby a few years ago.
fore particularly interesting for Cory fans. The long first
pectoral fin rays, with the pillow-like thickenings at the
ends, are a special feature of dominant males of this spe-
cies, which grow to about 3 inches (8 cm).
Corydoras wotroi has long been a synonym of C. brevi-
rostris from Venezuela. The different shape of the body (C.
brevirostris is much more high-backed) and the long dis-
tance to the type locality of C. brevirostris make it very like-
ly that C. wotroi is a valid species. A revision of the entire
C. melanistius group is currently underway (L.F.C. Tencatt,
pers. comm.), and we can expect some taxonomic changes
AMAZONAS
soon. It is very interesting for us aquarists that Karsten
Schönherr was able to bring back some live animals that
correspond in appearance to the specimens depicted by
65
 Nijssen (1970). He kindly gave me some of these, and they
are already making moves toward reproduction.
Corydoras bicolor has already appeared in the hobby.
Specimens caught in northern Brazil near the border with
Suriname, as well as specimens taken directly from the
Sipaliwini River in Suriname, have already been kept. To
my knowledge, nobody has managed to breed these fish.
Similar to C. sipaliwini is CW114, a small species
from the C. bondi group, which was initially called C.
sipaliwini but lives in the Kabalebo River in the Corantijn
Basin. CW114 is probably still undescribed. Schönherr
(pers. comm.) also found another species of this group
in the Kabalebo that looks a little like C. coppenamensis.
This species, too, is obviously undescribed and has not yet
AMAZONAS
received a CW number.
Corydoras guianensis was also an aquarium phantom
for a long time. Now, imports of this species and some
66
very similar forms are occasionally introduced into the
hobby. The very similar C. sanchesi is now also in the
hobby. Another new import of this group of modestly
colored Corys from Suriname that I call Corydoras cf.
guianensis has large, dark eyes. This group includes a
similar small Cory whose body is covered with fine dots.
Seidel and his colleagues caught the species, which re-
ceived the code number CW15, in the Tapanahony River.
The saddle-snouter in this group of species is C. hetero-
morphus, which entered the hobby a few years ago and
which I was able to reproduce.
A rather robust species, another saddle-snouted Cory,
is C. saramaccensis. A pointy-headed species was imported
along with C. saramaccensis, but it has not yet received
a CW number. Corydoras oxyrhynchus, a saddle-snouter
described by Nijssen, has also appeared in recent imports
F. WANG
from Suriname. This species is reminiscent of similar
 Top, far left: This fish
corresponds to the
description of Corydoras
wotroi, which is still a
synonym of Corydoras
brevirostris from Venezuela
but is probably a valid
species.
Bottom, far left: Corydoras
bicolor from Suriname.
Top, left: This fish could be
Corydoras guianensis.

Middle, left: This species,

which I call Corydoras cf.
guianensis, is similar to C.
guianensis.

Bottom: This new species

is syntopic with CW114 in
the Kabalebo River.

AMAZONAS
F. WANG

67
 Corydoras sanchesi is rather modestly adorned.
Corydoras oxyrhynchus is a very attractive
saddle-snouter from Suriname.
Corydoras heteromorphus, a saddle-
snouted species for the specialist.
species from neighboring French Guiana (C. solox and
similar species).
Suriname is always good for a surprise. There could
even be an abundance of new species from this former
Dutch Caribbean colony that has many intact indigenous
AMAZONAS
tribes working to protect huge tracts of wilderness. Seeing
a new stream of aquarium fish exports should be exciting
to all aquarists, not just Cory fans.
68
Fans of saddle-snouters will be enthusiastic
about Corydoras saramaccensis.
CW15 from the Tapanahony River, the round-snouted Cory similar
to Corydoras heteromorphus, is now collected in large numbers.
Among the Corydoras saramaccensis were
several specimens of this pointy-headed species,
which has not yet received a code number.
REFERENCES
Alexandrou, M.A., et al. 2011. Competition and phylogeny determine
community structure in Müllerian co-mimics. Nature 469: 84–88.
Nijssen, H. 1970. Revision of the Surinam catfishes of the genus Corydoras
Lacépède, 1803 (Pisces, Siluriformes, Callichthyidae). Beaufortia 18 (230):
1–75.
Schönherr, K. 2016. Die Corydoras des Coppename River. Teil 1: Die aus
F. WANG
dem Fluss beschriebenen Arten. BSSW-Report 28 (2): 30–41.
AMAZONAS

69
 These juveniles (about 2 inches/5 cm long)
greedily eat very small foods.

Juveniles at the age of

three months.

of the tail fin. They still lived together as a swarm and were
always hungry. In addition to various varieties of frozen
foods, I also gave them live pond food and occasionally of-
fered half-grown Guppies, Platys, and Swordtails. I also fed
them high-protein pellets, to which they had grown accus-
tomed from a young age and still liked to eat. Rearing the
fry is not difficult if you feed them well and perform regular
water changes, even if there are large, robust species in their
tank.
Crenicichla saxatilis is a fascinating fish to keep, but it
needs a spacious aquarium and dedicated husbandry.

ONLINE

Fishbase: http://www.fishbase.org/summary/Crenicichla-saxatilis.html

A juvenile Crenicichla saxatilis

at 4 inches (10 cm), shortly
before assuming adult
coloration.
AMAZONAS

72
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73
 HUSBANDRY & B R E E D IN G

Breeding Pterophyllum sp.

“Santa Isabel”

Female Pterophyllum sp. “Santa

Isabel” have a flatter, more concave
forehead than males. This is an adult.

article & images by Simon Forkel • There are always

new angelfish wild forms coming into aquarium cir-
cles, but Pterophyllum sp.“Santa Isabel” is particularly
spectacular and has been successfully bred, so hobby-
ists may one day be able to see it for themselves.

I HAVE BEEN PROPAGATING Pterophyllum scalare, Pterophyllum spp.

wild forms, and P. altum, including different Altum varieties
from the Rio Atabapo, Inirida, and Orinoco, for nine years. I
have also bred the beautiful Red Shoulder Angelfish from the
Manacapurú several times. A few months ago, I managed to
breed P. scalare “Guyana” from the Essequibo Basin. These angels
are characterized by red dots on the head and back that develop
into red spots as they age.
AMAZONAS

Last year, I expanded my breeding system from about 1,800

to 3,200 gallons (7,000–12,000 L) and brought other fishes
into my breeding program, including the Flag Cichlid (Meso-

74
 nauta insignis), the Crying Whiptail (Loricaria sp. “Rio
Atabapo”), and the Royal Farlowella (Sturisomatich-
thys aureum), so that I could offer my customers ideal
tankmates for their angelfishes. My connections with
wholesalers enable me to access new Pterophyllum wild
forms. I kept seeing the name “Santa-Isabel-Scalare,” and
it made me curious. Unfortunately, I rarely found these
animals on stock lists, and when I did they were listed at
A stately wild male very high prices.
Pterophyllum sp. A good customer, however, told me that he already
“Santa Isabel.” owned some of these extraordinary “Scalares.” He was
able to buy five of them from a dealer. Since he wanted to
acquire several varieties of P. altum for his show tank, he
offered the scalars to me in exchange for
some P. altum. I did not have to think
long before agreeing—these fish fasci-
nated me. They had already reached a
size of 10–12 inches (25–30 cm) and
were very healthy and evenly grown, be-
cause the previous owner had reared them
very carefully. These animals came from
a wild importation and at the time had a
height of about 5.5 to 6.3 inches (14–16
cm). They are now two and a half years old
and have very nice red dots on their heads
and backs on a blue ground and beautiful
long fins. Their swimming behavior is very
elegant, similar to that of P. altum, and
they are every bit as beautiful.
Of course, I wanted to breed these
extraordinary examples of a large Ptero-
phyllum species. After a short time, a pair formed from my
group of five. I moved them into a separate tank that measured
60 x 20 x 24 inches (150 x 50 x 60 cm). The substrate consisted of
0.8–1.2 inches (2–3 cm) of gravel and there was one plastic plant
for decoration. I placed three stacked spawning cones in the tank to
offer the fish a tall spawning place.
I was aware that these wild fish would need acidic water in order
to reproduce. My tap water values are pH 7.5, 4°dKH, and conductance

“Santa Isabel” from

the upper Rio Negro at
Santa Isabel, Brazil, has
multiple red dots on the
back and red areas on
the fins. The red color
is very variable. The
female in this photo has
many small red dots on
a blue background.
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75
 Top: The stripe pattern develops
at the age of 28 days.

Middle: Day 31—all of the little

Santa Isabel angelfish, now striped,
swim around in a loose group.

260 μS/cm at 82.4°F (28°C), so I had to very

carefully adjust the pH to 6 and the conductance
to 120 μS/cm. After I made these adjustments,
the courtship behavior of the angels became
more pronounced, so I knew I was on the right
track. With three to four daily feedings of frozen
Artemia, white mosquito larvae, and krill, as well
as occasional red mosquito larvae and live water
fleas, the female became gravid, and after a few
weeks her ovipositor gradually emerged.
At this point I started changing about 30
percent of the water every other day and lowered
the pH value to 5.3; two weeks later the pair
spawned. I removed the spawning cone with the
eggs about half an hour after the end of the one-
hour spawning event and moved it to a 16-gallon
(60-L) tank. The water came from the breeding
tank, so it had the same values. The substrate
consisted of a 0.8-inch (2-cm) layer of white
quartz sand, which has also proved its worth in
the breeding of P. altum. At 84.2°F (29°C), the

Choose a large rearing

tank for the fry, even when
they are small, so that they
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will grow evenly.

76
first of the larvae hatched after 45 hours, and they devel- x 24 (160 x 60 x 60 cm). These aquariums have built-in
oped well because I had lowered the pH value below 5. biofilters equipped with foam mats and filter wool. The
The next day, 90 percent of the larvae had hatched filters are operated with airlifters. The bottom consists of
and were hanging on the cone. A few fell to the bottom, fine gravel, and decoration, as before, was nothing but
but they lay on fine sand, where I believe there is less plastic plants, so cleaning the tanks was easy.
risk of bacterial attack than if they had landed on bare I changed about 50 percent of the water twice a week
glass. Six days after spawning, I began to change 1.3 gal- and fed the young fish five times a day to ensure rapid
lons (5 L) of the water twice daily. Just a day later, the growth. The angels reached a size of 3 inches (8 cm) in
young larvae swam up and formed a swarm of several 12 weeks—a sellable size!
hundred individuals. All my offspring are adapted to pure tap water before
From then on, I fed them freshly hatched Arte- being offered for sale. Keep these “Santa Isabel” Angelfish
mia nauplii five times a day and continued to change as one does P. altum, in a swarm of six to eight animals,
about 10 percent of the water three times a day, always to ensure natural behavior. Good tankmates for a species-
vacuuming up leftover food. After 10 days I moved the appropriate South America aquarium would be shoals
larvae into a larger tank (95 gallons/360 L, 40 x 24 x 24 of tetras, such as Rummynoses, or a group of Corydoras
inches/100 x 60 x 60 cm). Two foam filters supplied suf- sterbai and other catfishes.
ficient oxygen for the approximately
450 fry. The bottom was black
gravel, and for decoration I used a
single plastic plant. I continued to
feed Artemia nauplii every day and
also fed frozen Cyclops. Twenty days
after they became free-swimming,
the small “Santa Isabels” willingly
took frozen Artemia; a few days lat-
er, they even accepted thawed white
mosquito larvae. They grew rapidly
and their fins developed nicely.
The rapid growth of these angel
fry made moving them absolutely
necessary—the tank simply became
too small. I put around 150 young
fish into a tank measuring 47 x 24 x
24 (120 x 60 x 60 cm) and another
200 in a tank measuring 63 x 24

Right: Spawning Pterophyllum sp.

“Santa Isabel” using an inverted ceramic
plant cone.

Inset: The larvae hatch after about

45 hours. AMAZONAS

77
 HUSBANDRY & B R E E D IN G

Male (top, 6") and female (bottom, 7"),

approximately 1.5 years old. By 2 years of
age, the male is the same size as the female
and has comparable fin extensions.

Breeding a glorious eartheater:

Geophagus mirabilis “Aripuana”
article & images by John Lambert • I still consider myself a new aquarist, but I’ve had some
encouraging success straight out of the gate. In the two and a half years that I’ve been a
hobbyist, I have successfully bred German Rams, classic angelfish (Pterophyllum scalare), mollies,
and various plecos. I also discovered that I have a weakness for the wonderful South American
eartheaters, and have managed to breed Geophagus altifrons and Geophagus sp. “Tapajós.” Then,
less than six months into my newfound hobby, I acquired a few Geophagus mirabilis “Aripuana”
fry. I presumed this species would be similar to my Altifrons and Tapajos, but my experiences
had not prepared me for the beauty, challenges, and surprises of the Mirabilis.

I BECAME AWARE OF G. MIRABILIS “ARIPUANA” when directives, but by all accounts this sounded like a
I read hobby news articles about the species’ remarkably handsome species with a likable, mild-
description in December 2014. Searching the In- mannered disposition.
AMAZONAS

ternet, I discovered little information, few pictures, Despite the relative dearth of information,
and no fish for sale. What little information I did when captive-bred juvenile specimens became
find seemed to conflict and lacked any husbandry available in May 2015 I purchased six from the

78
 The male (front) and female interacting during
a break in spawning. Note the faint but visible
horizontal body stripe, a coloration that peaks when
the fish are actively spawning.
Wet Spot in Portland, Oregon, via Aquabid.com. Upon
arrival, the F2 Mirabilis were just 1 inch (2.5 cm) in
total length; I placed them in a 55-gallon (208-L) tank
to grow out with a few other fishes of similar size. Based
on the data I’ve since accumulated on the growth rate of
Mirabilis fry, I estimate these initial fish were about six
weeks old.
When the Mirabilis reached about 3 inches (8 cm)
they began to show blue, green, red, brown, and yellow
colors. Their tails reflect a reddish tint and they have a
yellow/brown base body color. Their coloration changes
when light reflects off of them from different angles or
when their mood changes. Depending on the lighting,
their levels of stress or excitement, and their environ-
ment, their colors can be quite vivid. Pictures that do
them full justice are difficult to capture, and the camera’s
eye is often overwhelmed by the intensity of the colors. I
now realize why they are named as they are—mirabilis in
Latin means “marvelous” or “wondrous.”
At one point or another I have kept G. mirabilis of dif-
ferent ages with many other species: similarly-sized Ger-
man Rams, mollies, tetras, barbs, plecos, angelfishes, He-
ros spp., and rainbowfishes. I’ve also housed G. mirabilis
with other related species: G. sp. “Tapajos,” G. altifrons,
and the Threadfin Acara, Acarichthys heckelii. When the
Mirabilis are not spawning they are peaceful, and may be
somewhat intimidated by more aggressive species, such as
G. altifrons. Mirabilis mix well with the other species that
populate their area at the bottom of the tank. Behavior-
ally, I’ve found that Mirabilis are not weak, sensitive, or
passive—but also not strong, tough, or aggressive. They are
sociable with their keeper and their tankmates, and they
move around the tank constantly, rarely hiding. Mirabilis
seem to enjoy moderate water movement and décor when
they do want to hide; they do not seem to like caves. They
move a lot of sand around.
Under my care the fish live in clean, hard water (TDS
480, GH 340ppm, KH 100ppm, Calcium 60ppm, 0 chlo-
rine, 0 copper, 0 nitrites, 0 ammonia, and under 40ppm
nitrates) with a pH of 8.3 and temperature around 80°F
(26.6°C). They are moderately sensitive to water param-
eter changes.
For daily feeds, Mirabilis seem to prefer sticks and
bits over flakes. My adults and juveniles have been fed a
varied mix of flakes, bits/sticks, freeze-dried and frozen
foods, and fresh or frozen vegetables that are not leafy.
They accept any food that sinks to the bottom of the tank
and eat eagerly twice a day.
After about six months in my care, my initial group
started to pair and began courtship displays consisting
of wiggles, circling, scraping, and other typical Geopha-
gus courtship behaviors. Once courtship began, these
peaceful fish gradually became a bit more aggressive,
but not overly so. The pairs demanded their own space
and kept all other fishes away from their territory. There
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has not been any biting, nipping, or extreme aggres-
sion toward others, but they do push or T-bone others
away from their claimed area. While a smaller aquarium
79
 The pair actively spawning; the male
makes a fertilization pass over the
slate while the female prepares to
deposit more eggs.

The female picking up viable eggs approximately

36 hours after the spawn has finished. Note that
one half of the slate is now absent; it has been
removed for artificial incubation and hatching.
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80
footprint might work for a pair, I advise keeping them in
a tank measuring at least 48 x 18 inches (122 x 45 cm),
with decorations roughly dividing their area and a good
number of hiding places. Mirabilis do not appear to form
harems or groups and seem to prefer remaining in pairs
after courtship.
These fish are sensitive to their environment and will
not spawn unless they are comfortable. Dither fishes
are a must. Once I determined their preferred environ-
ment, two pairs had spawned by the time they were nine
months old.
Maturation and sexing
As fry and juveniles, it appears that females grow faster
and develop more quickly than males. Differences in the
sexes are extremely difficult to determine up until the age
of about 12 months; the larger size of females is a telltale
sign of sexual differentiation. Once the fish are about 12
months old and large enough, sex is best determined by
venting. My experience with my initial six Mirabilis sug-
gests that up until the age of 18 months the females may
be larger, more dominant, and the aggressors in pairs.
After that the males seem to undergo a growth spurt and
grow to the same or larger size than the females. Adult
males appear to develop a slightly different forehead
shape, and after about 18 months show a slight red/
brown tint.
Today, at nearly two years of age, in one breeding pair
the female is larger and more dominant and in the other
pair the male has grown larger and takes the dominant
role. The two remaining fish from the original purchase
were thought to have been a male and a female, but
when they were about two years old, venting showed that
they were actually both males. The fish that I thought
was the third female never developed the male character-
istics described above.
Spawning triggers
I have documented and collected data on 48 spawns from
my two pairs of Mirabilis during a period of just over 16
months. All but one observed spawn occurred between
dusk and dawn. I have found that spawning can be
encouraged by performing water changes and/or lower-
Water Chemistry Data Table
Nitrates
pH
(ppm)
General care 8.4 <40
Promote spawning 8.3 <10
Wigglers cared for by
8.3 <10
parent(s)
Artificially hatched eggs
7.2 <5
and wigglers
ing the temperature, moving rocks or driftwood, and/or
giving the pair a tank of their own.
In my opinion, critical factors that ensure successful
spawning include providing enough territory for the sub-
dominant mate to retreat and hide, limiting tankmates to
other non-threatening fishes, and furnishing clean water.
I have had best results when the pair had no conspecific
competition in the aquarium and dither fishes were
in place. My most prolific pair was not my first pair to
spawn, but they now spawn every two to three weeks if
they are comfortable and are not busy tending to wigglers
or fry from a prior clutch.
I have moved the original six Mirabilis many times,
testing their compatibility with different species and
willingness to spawn with different partners and trying
alternate tank decorations, setups, and water movement
options. I have found that a female will allow multiple
males to fertilize a spawn and will also pair with differ-
ent male partners placed into her tank. Multiple females
in a tank with one male compete with each other for the
male’s attention and become very aggressive toward each
other. Pairs are recommended after nine months of age.
To promote additional spawning after nine months
of age, I have kept just two pairs of Mirabilis in the same
4-foot (1.2-m) tank with dithers. Dithers are necessary
to help lessen competition and cut down on aggres-
siveness toward mates and other fishes. When a pair is
kept alone in a tank, the dominant mate becomes overly
aggressive toward its mate and other fishes, and he can
easily damage, injure, or kill them. Sharp objects, rough
rocks, or anything else that might injure a fleeing fish
should be removed.
Courtship behaviors
The spawning cycle usually begins about 10 days before
the eggs are laid. The male starts to display more nervous
behavior. He moves more than the usual amount of sand,
making piles and creating small pits around the intended
spawning site. He flashes and becomes increasingly asser-
tive until the female starts to show some interest.
Over the next few days the male and female take
turns being the aggressor for minutes, hours, or even a
day or two at a time. The aggressor chases its mate, flash-
TDS KH GH Temperature Dissolved
(ppm) (ppm) (ppm) (F) oxygen
480 350 150 80 6
480 350 150 78 6
480 350 150 81 6
AMAZONAS
150 100 50 82 8
81
 Many times during spawning,
the female pushes the male
away from the site so she can
tend to it and make egg-laying
passes; eventually she allows
him to come back to do his fer-
Roughly 48 hours after the spawn, only tilization runs. While she tends
remnants remain, mostly fungused the site, the male comes and
eggs and slow developers.
goes, exhibiting much nervous
energy while performing his
fertilization duties. Female and
male genital papillae appear for
the mating, then shrink quickly
when spawning is finished. The
spawning process is complete
when the female pushes the
male away from the site and
does not allow him to return.

New pair failures

As with most mouthbrooders,
there is a learning curve for new
pairs. The spawned eggs may
not be fertile, the parental care
of the eggs may be inadequate,
predators may eat the eggs, or
the water parameters in the
tank may not promote healthy
conditions for egg development.
Ten days post spawn, the fry have
been free-swimming for three days. Once a pair has produced
They are only allowed brief excursions viable eggs, they must learn to
during the day; you can see a few of gather the eggs and promote
the approximately 80 she was holding, the growth of their wigglers—
while another 138 were free-swimming
and then to care for, protect,
as a result of artificial incubation.
and feed their brood as they
coax tiny wigglers into healthy
fry. To assist in this develop-
ing its fins and flaring its gills. Periodically, and for short ment, changes in and around the tank should be kept to
periods, the aggressor calms and the fish meet, circle a minimum. Water changes should be smaller but more
each other, shake their bodies, and clean their selected frequent. Feeding fry food is pointless because the parents
spawning site. As the eggs hydrate within the female’s will eat it, so there is more waste and more frequent water
body, a “baby bump” can be seen forming just in front of changes are needed. Instead, feed food that is healthy for
and above her anal fin. the babies and sized for the parents so they can pass it
You can tell that the pair is ready to mate when the along to their fry. As the fish become free-swimmers, fry
female’s horizontal spots turn into a single long bar and food may be delivered with a turkey baster. If possible, you
the coloration of both fish begins to darken. The female can try delivering it in a contained area for them to eat.
aggressively defends the mating site, keeping other fishes If you choose to gather the eggs after the parents have
away but allowing the male to remain for longer periods. completed their spawn, as I did, the eggs need very spe-
Once any other resident fishes comply and stay away from cific water parameters and the correct tank environment
the nesting area, the female’s aggression subsides. A pair in order to successfully develop into wigglers.
will return to the same flat slate each time they spawn.
Spawning starts with their selected site cleaned. The Mouthbrooding
pair spends about 15 minutes making practice runs, After spawning, the dominant mate takes over tending
AMAZONAS

going through the motions of egg-laying and fertiliza- the eggs: making passes, fanning, protecting, and placing
J. REYNOLDS

tion. Once actual spawning commences, it lasts two to some sand around the eggs—not burying, but strewing
six hours and usually results in approximately 200 eggs. some grains near and on top of the eggs. The eggs begin

82
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The fry, now two weeks post spawn,
have been free-swimming for a week.
At two weeks of age, the fry are
roughly 0.25 inch long.
The same fry, now at
three weeks of age.
to show small signs of development (eyes) after about
12 hours. Once she notices this, usually 24 hours after
spawn, the female pushes the male away from the nest
AMAZONAS
and keeps him and the other tankmates away. She then
begins to slowly take the developing eggs into her mouth,
which usually takes 36 to 60 hours. Only the female has
84
been observed gathering eggs. The non-viable
eggs are attacked by fungus, turn white, and
develop fuzzy streamers. After about 72 hours
the site is abandoned.
By day 6, the wigglers are being cared for by
one or both parents. It appears that the male
will try to take them from the female as they
develop, sneaking in to grab a few when he gets
a chance, but the female takes them back when
she notices that he has done so. By about day 7
the female holds most of the fry. She lets them
out and sucks them back in, gradually letting
them out for increasingly longer periods as they
get older, training them as other mouthbrood-
ers do. While they remain in the tank with their
parents, the parents feed the fry, sucking in food
and spitting it out in pieces small enough for
the fry to eat.
Juveniles should be left in the tank for about
five to six weeks, until they can gather their own
food and before the female gets too aggressive
with them and/or other tankmates. By about
the fourth week she leaves them out most of
the day and holds them only during the night.
By the age of about five to six weeks the fry stay
out all the time, even when threatened, and sift
through the sand looking for food.
Artificial hatching
Many times I have removed eggs from their
parents to artificially hatch them. At first, I
had mostly failures. If I observed the parents or
predators eating the eggs, or noticed that the
parents were neglecting the eggs, I removed the
slate upon which they had spawned and put it
in another empty tank in a breeding net. As I
learned more about the Mirabilis and started
providing the right spawning environment, and
the parents learned to care for the eggs, I left the
eggs and wigglers in the tank for them to raise.
During 16 times when I removed the eggs,
I posted these results: twice the eggs were not
viable and showed no development; six times
the eggs started developing, but did not hatch,
and/or most of the wigglers died quickly after
hatching; eight times the eggs developed into
viable wigglers.
I experimented with many different water
parameters in the hatching tank. My best
hatch rate was with moderate total dissolved
solids (TDS~150), moderate pH (low/mid 7s), very low
nitrates (not 0, but about 5ppm), 82°F (27.8°C), ½–¾
dose of methylene blue, addition of a mineral enhancer,
such as Seachem Replenish, and moderately vigorous
J. REYNOLDS
water movement over the slate until some movement
was seen in most of the viable eggs (12–30 hours). I
Development

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from the slate, and help control the
growth of fungi. Under these condi-
tions, on average, 80 percent of the
eggs have hatched and fry survived
to the free-swimming stage.
I highly recommend that you do
not attempt to remove eggs/wigglers
from the slate on which the eggs
were placed. The eggshells are very
fragile, very sticky (much more than
G. sp. Tapajós eggs), and “decapsu-
late” easily. I find it is best to let the
water and the wigglers’ own move-
ment separate them from the slate
and other non-viable eggs.
Non-viable eggs get puffy and
white and mold quickly, usually start-
ing within 24 hours. During the next
48 hours the non-viable eggs develop
white streamers, gather into blobs,
and stick to everything. Healthy eggs
and wigglers tend to get trapped in
moldy egg “streamers,” where they
suffocate and/or become infected.
Most of the losses happen at this
initial stage, so the first four days are
critical to the success of the group.
AMAZONAS

Almost immediately, I begin removing

eggs that have a whitish tint or do not
look like they are developing. If an egg

85

is easily dislodged from the spawning rock by a stream of wa-
ter from a turkey baster within the first 24 hours, it usually
will not develop and falls off the slate within 48 hours.
I have tried various methods of creating water move-
ment and helping the separation of the attached wigglers
from their egg casings on the slate. I clear the non-viable
eggs from the breeding net multiple times a day. I have
considered using an egg tumbler, but do not believe
that it would be successful—the egg shells are extremely
fragile, decapsulate or break easily, and are just too sticky.
The wigglers take about two days to reach 1/8 inch (3
mm) and are very active. About seven days after spawn-
ing they swim free and begin to eat.
I have been feeding fry decapsulated shrimp brine
eggs and Golden Pearls (50–100 microns), and as they
get bigger they work up through fry food (#00–3), then
get mixed pellets and flake as they grow older. About five
or six weeks from spawn, the fry get a small amount of
flakes and Ken’s Growth Meal with each feeding, three to
four times per day.
Raising fry
If the fry are removed from the spawning/broodstock
tank, they are placed in a tank holding water from their
parents’ tank. I keep the water parameters close to those
in the parental tank, but do small, more frequent water
changes. If the free-swimmers have been artificially
AMAZONAS
hatched, they are kept in water with parameters similar
to those described above. Slowly, I allow the pH, TDS, and
nitrates to increase and do more frequent water changes
86
A female, roughly a week before
spawning; note that the horizontal
body stripe is about halfway visible,
and her coloration is intensifying.
to acclimate the fry to the typical parameters of all of my
tanks. In either case, clean, flowing, aerated tank water,
good food, and many feedings per day help promote their
growth. When the Mirabilis reach a length of about 3
inches (8 cm) they began to develop their colors.
Conclusion
Mirabilis have not been difficult for me to keep once I
figured out their needs, but it has been time-consuming.
Most of what I have learned about keeping aquariums,
these endearing eartheaters have taught me. When I first
got the Mirabilis, I had three tanks and had to purchase
more to keep them. Today I am up to seven tanks, each
over 55 gallons (208 L), five of which are devoted to
Mirabilis. It took a fair amount of testing, changes, and
hard work to keep them healthy and get them to produce
viable fry. The most significant thing I learned is that
they require a specific environment in order to remain
healthy and spawn. Today, my original six fish are alive
and healthy and have produced over 400 offspring in the
nearly two years I have had them.
The lack of documentation regarding this species has
been a hindrance to their growth as a hobby favorite and
the availability of moderately priced specimens. However,
once these fish, truly the most beautiful of all Geophagus,
become more widely understood, they will be easily kept
healthy and will produce abundant fry.
I hope that some of you AMAZONAS readers will
learn from my experience and be lucky enough to obtain
and breed some Mirabilis of your own.
 VISIT OFTEN!
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IN
TE
RNA
TIONA
LE L-WEL
S-T
AG
E
Hanover (Germany), Oct. 27th - 29th 2017
th
5 INTERNATIONAL
PANTA RHEI
20 17
Aquaristik im Rhythmus der Natur
IN

L-NUMBER-DAYS
E
Y
T

R A
NA D
TIO ER
NAL L-NUMB
Convention Packages
A) Convention Package “Complete”:

Veranstalter: Internationale Gemeinschaft Barben Schmerlen Salmler Welse e.V. (IG BSSW), www.ig-bssw.org
www.l-number-days.eu

Friday: Dinner Buffet (22.50 €)

Saturday: Lunch Buffet (22.50 €)
Coffeebreak with Cake (7.50 €)
Gala Dinner Buffet (30.00 €)
Sunday: Lunch Buffet (22.50 €)
Misc.: Participation Fee (all Days) (45.00 €)
Convention T-Shirt (15.00 €)
Convention Magazine (12.00 €)

Unique schedule of talks with Purchased individually: 177.00 €

Packageprice: 150.- €

lots of well-known speakers: B) Convention Package “juveniles”1):

Same like Convention Package “Complete”
Purchased individually: 177.00 €
Packageprice: 95.- €
Hans-Georg Evers C) Convention Package “BSSW-Member”2):
Heriberto Gimênez Junior Friday: Dinner Buffet
Saturday: Lunch Buffet
(22.50 €)
(22.50 €)
Haakon Haagensen Coffeebreak with Cake
Gala Dinner Buffet
(7.50 €)
(30.00 €)
Sunday: Lunch Buffet (22.50 €)
Stefan K. Hetz Misc.: Participation Fee (all Days) (45.00 €)
Convention T-Shirt (15.00 €)
Daniel Konn-Vetterlein Purchased individually: 165.00 €
Packageprice: 125.- €
Mark Henry Sabaj Pérez
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1)
just bookable for children and teenager up to 18 years old (reference

Ingo Seidel
date: 27.10.1999)
2)
membership in organizing IG BSSW e.V. is required
(annual subscription: 30.00 Euro) – www.ig-bssw.org

Leandro Sousa Venue and Accomodation: Single room: 60,- €,

Double room: 85,- €,
Andreas Tanke incl. Breakfast

and many more ...

Hannoversche Str. 40, 30916 Isernhagen / Hanover
All talks are given in English and German Tel. +49 5 11 / 9 01 80, www.hotel-hennies.de 87
 AQ UA R I U M

CALENDAR
compiled by Janine Banks and Ray Lucas

JUNE 19–20 Deep South Fancy Guppy Association

IFGA Guppy Show
24–7/2 Malta Aquarist Society Annual Show Murfreesboro, TN
Attard, Malta
ifga.org
Facebook
25–27 Marine Aquarium Conference
JULY of North America
New Orleans, LA
8–9 Pioneer Valley Water Garden and macnaconference.org/2017
Koi Club 24th Annual Pond Tour
26 Tropical Fish Club of Erie County
Western MA and Northern CT
Swap Meet
pioneervalleypondclub.com
West Seneca, NY
13–16 American Cichlid Association tropical-fish-club-of-erie-county.com
Convention
Novi, MI SEPTEMBER
acaconvention2017.com
2 Sacramento Aquarium Society
15–16 New England Fancy Guppy Association
Fall Mega Auction
IFGA Show and Auction
Sacramento, CA
Lancaster, MA
sacramentoaquariumsociety.info
newenglandguppies.org
8–10 ZNA Potomac Koi Club Show
22 Champaign Area Fish Exchange
Vienna, VA
Auction
znapotomac.org
Urbana, IL
champaignfish.com 9 Sarnia Aquarium Society Fall Auction
Sarnia, Ontario
22 Eastern Iowa Aquarium Association
sarniaaquariumsociety.com
Summer Seminars
Toddville, IA 10 Greater Pittsburgh Aquarium Society,
finflap.com Inc. Fall Auction
Monroeville, PA
23 Southeast Louisiana Aquarium Society
gpasi.org
Show and Auction
Metairie, LA 17 Northeast Ohio Fish Club Fall Auction
selas.us Valley View, OH
neo-fish.com
AUGUST 22–24 Cataclysm Catfish Convention 2017
Madison, WI
6 Missouri Aquarium Society
catfish.cataclysm.com
Summer Auction
Bridgeton, MO 22–24 Keystone Clash
missouriaquariumsociety.com Lancaster, PA
Facebook
12 Heart of America Aquarium Society
Swap Meet
Gladstone, MO
kcfishclub.org
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For a more complete listing of upcoming events, visit www.reef2rainforest.com/events.

To submit your event, contact: Janine Banks, janine.banks@reef2rainforest.com.

88
AMAZONAS

89
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415-771-3206
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1970 E County Line Rd, Unit A
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1254 Loudon Rd
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www.neptunestropical.com Nampa, ID House of Tropicals 518-783-3474
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208-972-9366 7389F Baltimore Annapolis Blvd
Glen Burnie, MD Manhattan Aquariums
410-761-1113 522 West 37th St
www.houseoftropicals.net
New York, NY
212-594-2272
www.manhattanaquariums.com

90
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91
 SP EC IE S SNAPSHOTS
➊ LIMBOCHROMIS ROBERTSI ➋ BARBUS WALKERI ➌ XIPHOPHORUS VARIATUS ➍ EPI-
PL AT YS CHAPERI SCHREIBERI ➎ EUGNATHOGOBIUS SIAMENSIS ➏ PAO CAMBODGIENSIS
Limbochromis robertsi
1 The fishes that do come from that country are
|Fish imports from Ghana are extremely rare.
usually large cichlids or characins, so the West African
dwarf cichlid Limbochromis robertsi is one of the rarest
species in the hobby. Not only that, it also seems to
have become very uncommon in nature. The species
occurs only in a few streams in two regions in the cen-
tral area of this African state. These streams lie in hilly
regions and most are very short.
Limbochromis robertsi is a chromidotilapiine cichlid,
related to species like the "Krib," Pelvicachromis pul-
cher. Males get to 4 inches (10 cm) long; females are
approximately 2.8 inches (7 cm) long and have much
shorter fin rays in the unpaired fins and ventrals. The
sexes also differ in color: Males have rows of red and
blue dots in the unpaired fins, and females have clear
AMAZONAS
fins with a shiny pinkish-silver color in the dorsal fin
and in the upper part of the caudal fin. During spawn-
ing, the abdominal region also turns pink. The most
striking characteristic of males is the bifurcated tail fin.
92
A male "Robertsi"—Limbochromis robertsi, a very
rare cousin of the "Krib," Pelvicachromis pulcher.
This cichlid is challenging to keep and breed. The
water must be soft or medium hard at most, with a
pH value around the neutral point and a lot of oxygen,
because the fish live in fast-flowing clear brooks. It
is not advisable to feed them a protein-rich diet that
is low in fiber. I recommend feeding food with a high
proportion of green flakes and feeding sparingly. The
water temperature should be between 77 and 89.6°F
(25–27°C) with slight fluctuation during the year. This
species is basically a pair-bonding cave breeder, but
larvophile mouthbrooding has also been observed. It is
not yet known why this variation exists.
A conservation program is urgently needed to
protect these attractive cichlids, because their natural
habitats are being destroyed by agriculture and illegal
gold mining. According to observations over the last
20 years, populations in the surveyed streams have
decreased by roughly 90 percent. We hope that the
recently imported specimens will successfully multiply
and spread the species, as it is crucial to permanently
A. LAMBOJ
establish a breeding population in captivity.
—Anton Lamboj
 Walker's Barb,
Barbus walkeri
Barbus walkeri
2| This medium-sized barb (4 inches/10 cm long)
is found exclusively in central Ghana, where
it inhabits the upper reaches of small and medium-
sized rivers. The basic color is bronze brown. The body
pattern consists of four black spots, although the first
one, just behind the gill cover, is sometimes absent.
The species is far from spectacular in color, but its
lively and peaceful behavior recommends it for the
aquarium.
In terms of both nutrition and water values, B.
walkeri is undemanding—they accept every kind of
flake food and do well in either soft or hard water, and
the pH value can be weakly acidic or slightly alkaline.
However, soft water with a neutral pH should be used
for breeding. I recommend introducing a dense clump
of Java Moss into the tank and transferring the fry,
which appear regularly, to their own rearing tank until
they are about 0.8 inch (2 cm) long.
TOP: A. LAMBOJ; BOTTOM: J. KÜHNE
A pair of wild-type Variatus platys.
Like most barbs, B. walkeri should be kept in a
shoal with five or more individuals. The tank should be
at least 40 inches (100 cm) long, due to the size and
swimming capacity of these fish. They use the entire
aquarium. A slight flow, produced by a small power
filter or stronger air-driven filter, is advantageous. An
abundant oxygen supply is also recommended. The
water temperature should be between 77 and 80.6°F
(25–27°C); in winter it may even be a bit cooler.
The species can be socialized with other species of
the same size, but then, of course, you cannot expect
fry. Since we rarely have access to this species, it is
certainly a nice addition for lovers of this fish group.
Hopefully it can be established in the hobby.
—Anton Lamboj
Wild-type Xiphophorus variatus
3| The Variatus Platy is a classic "bread-and-
butter" fish in the pet trade. However, because
AMAZONAS
93
 the males do not fully color up until the second year of
life—and even then it’s often only the dominant speci-
men in a group—beautiful animals like the one shown
in the accompanying photo are rarely seen.
Hans Barth gave me the breeding stock for this wild
form a few years ago when I visited his water plant nurs-
ery (known today as Oliver Krause Wasserpflanzen). He
told me this form had been reared in shallow planted
tanks. Since then, I have been enamored of these fish
with their rich yellow and red colors, sometimes accen-
tuated by bluish scales. In order to maintain Variatus
Platys properly you must provide a lot of swimming A male Schreiber's Panchax,
space, just as you do for Swordtails with long tails, and Epiplatys chaperi ssp. schreiberi.
keep them in a large group. Only then will these active,
agile fish show off their beautiful colors and display
their full range of behaviors, as they do in the wild.
—Jens Kühne
they have gotten bigger. Males are quite contentious
Epiplatys chaperi ssp. schreiberi among themselves and often chase the females.
The water should be soft to medium hard, with

4 sexfasciatus group—the so-called pike killis. Its

|This subspecies belongs to the Epiplatys

occurrence is limited to parts of Ghana, where the fish

are widely distributed and are found in both small and
large streams. The male’s maximum size is about 2.75
inches (7 cm); females are somewhat smaller and
have a slightly less conspicuous coloration, as well as
less strikingly developed unpaired fins.
These fish prefer the upper level of the tank, but
in case of danger or disturbance they usually escape
into lower zones, especially if there are plants or roots
in which to hide. They readily accept flake foods. For
productive breeding, however, I recommend regularly
offering live Drosophila fruit flies or mosquito larvae.
Like the other species of the genus, E. c. schreiberi is
a continuous breeder, and likes to lay its eggs in fine
plants or roots; in the aquarium, they will use a spawn-
ing mop. The parental animals are cannibalistic, so
small fry should be transferred to a different tank until
neutral pH and a temperature of about 77°F (25°C).
Filtering and water movement help. Socializing this
species with medium-sized barbs and tetras or dwarf
cichlids is quite possible. Like all Ghanaian fish spe-
cies, Schreiber's Panchax is very rarely imported.
—Anton Lamboj
Eugnathogobius siamensis
5| In 2009 Pseudogobiopsis siamensis was placed
in the genus Eugnathogobius as part of a revi-
sion by Larson. These true gobies are not especially
colorful, but their grumpy faces may entice aquarists
to keep them—even ugly creatures have fans and the
right to exist.
Eugnathogobius siamensis is widespread on
Sundaland’s coastline and is often found alongside
many other species in the transitional zone between
fresh and brackish water. It can be kept in a freshwater

Eugnathogobius siamensis
TOP: JENS KÜHNE; BOTTOM: J. KÜHNE
AMAZONAS

94

aquarium; occasional salting should have a positive
effect on the fish’s condition. The only challenges are
feeding (they only accept live food) and propagation,
about which nothing has been published yet—proba-
bly because no one has ever tried. The larvae are very
small and pelagic and need salt water. The specimen
in the photo comes from a blackwater swamp located
near the coast of Sabah. The population around Sa-
bah appears to be more colorful than the ones from
southern Thailand.
—Jens Kühne
REFERENCE
Larson, H.K. 2009. Review of the gobiid fish genera Eugnathogobius
and Pseudogobiopsis (Gobioidei: Gobiidae: Gobionellinae), with
descriptions of three new species. Raffl Bull Zool 57 (1): 127–81.
Pao cambodgiensis
6 entifically recognized species of Southeast Asian
|The genus Pao, which currently comprises 13 sci-
freshwater puffers, has become increasingly popular
with aquarists in recent years. Some of these unusual
pufferfishes have already been successfully bred in the
aquarium. I am pleased to present another species of
Pao cambodgiensis, the Cambodian Puffer—note
prominent eyespot on its flank.
S. BALDUS
this genus that is not very well known in
the hobby.
As the name suggests, Pao cambod-
giensis comes from southern Cambodia—
more specifically, the area around the
city of Phnom Penh, which lies directly at
the mouth of the Mekong River. Another
locality is the Dong Nai, which flows
through southern Vietnam. The species is
a typical representative of its genus, with
a size of about 6 inches (15 cm). The
very elongated snout of the fish, which is
reminiscent of P. suvattii from Thailand, is
striking. The fish’s basic coloration varies
according to its mood, ranging from irides-
cent green to beige or gray. Except for the
white belly, a dark wormline pattern, inter-
rupted by spots, covers the entire fish. On the side,
there is a bright orange eyespot that can becomes
especially prominent when the fish is excited. With few
exceptions, the eyespot is genus-specific.
Due to the fish’s strong mandible and elongated
shape, one might suspect that it is a typical ambush
predator, but this cannot be confirmed. The animals
actively catch small fishes and shrimps. Neverthe-
less, you can see from their rather slow and leisurely
swimming habit that these fish prefer a slowly flowing
body of water. After a while, the species will easily
adapt to a diet of frozen food in the form of shrimp
and mussel meat.
Intraspecific aggression is only weakly developed,
and if you don’t mind a few small bite marks, which
can be regarded as normal for puffers, you can keep
several specimens in a larger tank.
This is certainly a species that is of interest to all
kinds of puffer enthusiasts. Its extraordinary pattern
is very impressive. We are anxious to see whether
this puffer will become permanently established as a
captive-bred fish, or whether we have to keep hoping
for bycatches from the areas of origin.
—Marco Meyer
AMAZONAS
95
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 A DV E RTI S E R S

101 Best Freshwater Nano Species Book . . . . . . . . . . .11 Maxspect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19

INDEX
www.amazon.com www.maxspect.com
5D Tropical . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .49 New Life Spectrum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33
www.5dtropical.com www.nlsfishfood.com
AMAZONAS Magazine Apps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14 Ocean Nutrition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .83
www.Reef2Rainforest.com/apps www.oceannutrition.com
AMAZONAS Magazine Back Issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .97 OmegaSea . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15
www.Reef2Rainforest.com www.omegasea.net
AMAZONAS Magazine Retail Sources . . . . . . . . . . .90, 91 Pleco Feeder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .85
www.Reef2Rainforest.com/source-directory www.theplecofeeder.com
AMAZONAS Magazine Subscriptions . . . . . . . . . . . . . .85 Poly-Bio-Marine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27
www.AMAZONASmagazine.com www.poly-bio-marine.com
AMAZONAS Magazine Website . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .87 Riparium Supply . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .96
www.reef2rainforest.com www.RipariumSupply.com
American Cichlid Association Convention 2017 . . . . . .61 San Francisco Bay Brand . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .73
www.ACAConvention2017.com www.sfbb.com
Apet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .91 Segrest Farms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .57
www.apetinc.com www.segrestfarms.com
Aquatic Experience . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .35 Sera . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12
www.aquaticexperience.org www.sera-usa.com
Aquarium Zen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .96 Swiss Tropicals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .89
www.AquariumZen.net www.SwissTropicals.com
Aquatropic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2 TAAM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .39
www.aquatropic.com www.commodityaxis.com
Boyd Enterprises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5 Tannin Aquatics. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .49
www.chemipure.com www.tanninaquatics.com
CaribSea . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . inside back cover Tunze . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16
www.caribsea.com www.tunze.com
Cataclysm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .95 Two Little Fishies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17, 33
www.cataclysm-catfish.com www.twolittlefishies.com
Dr. Tim’s Aquatics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19 The Wet Spot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17
www.drtimsaquatics.com www.wetspottropicalfish.com
Fluval Sea . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9 ZooMed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13, back cover
www.fluvalaquatics.com www.zoomed.com
Hikari . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .69
www.hikariusa.com
For an AMAZONAS Media Kit please contact:
L-Number-Days . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .87
www.l-number-days.eu Mike Tuccinardi, Advertising Sales Director •
Michael.Tuccinardi@reef2rainforest.com

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 U N D E RWAT E R EYE by Morrell Devlin

MIDAS CICHLID
Amphilophus citrinellus
Amphilophus citrinellus, also known as the Midas
Cichlid, might be one of the best “wet pets” for people
who like the big, aggressive Central American members
of the family Cichlidae. While the most popular color is
the beautiful “Midas” gold, they come in many different
shades, from white to pink—there is even a barred
variety. You will need a big tank and frequent water
changes to keep them healthy and active.
AMAZONAS

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