Amazonas 05&06 2014

FRESHWATER AQUARIUMS & TROPICAL DISCOVERY

The Joys of Breeding ❙ Rare Hypancistrus Plecos ❙ The Ultimate Riparium ❙ Malawi Cichlids

MAY/JUNE 2014

EDITORIAL

Dear Reader,

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How I have been looking forward to this, our Milestone 50th Issue! I wanted it to be a very special issue, full of great reports for all the enthusiastic aquarists who are interested in the reproduction of their favorite species and want to learn more and find the inspiration to try new tricks.

Since the summer of 2006, I can’t recall going through a day without at least thinking about AMAZONAS. During this time, I have had many enjoyable and wonderful experiences with the aquarium world and the people involved. I could not list them all even if I wanted to—there are not enough pages in this magazine to celebrate each one. Maybe in the 100th issue—who knows?

I would like to personally thank those of you who have been with us since the first German issue, as well as our newer and no less loyal English-language readers. Communications and feedback from readers with constructive suggestions have continuously challenged and encouraged my colleagues and me. They confirm our belief that one can establish a new aquarium magazine even during “unfavorable” times. AMAZONAS readers are always among the first to know about new breeding successes and other spectacular events in the aquarium hobby. That only works because we, the creators and contributors, are crazy aquariots (aquarist idiots) like you and pursue the most beautiful hobby in the world with enthusiasm.

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Some say our global society is fast becoming a “mediocracy”—a world dominated by both media and averageness—and it is almost surprising that there are still people left who occupy themselves with something supposedly as quaint as aquaristics. I say, blessed is the man who still has a hobby! Passion for something is a gift and cannot be taught. I am not the least troubled by finding fascination in things that some people belittle. I will probably still fiddle with my fishes as an old geezer and continue to enjoy aquatic microcosms behind glass long after my passive peers have become mentally paralyzed by their glowing electronic screens.

During a period of several recent months, I had a rare break from traveling the world and was able to work more closely with my fishes. This led to some new surprises and successes, which we present as part of this breeding compendium, together with contributions from other authors. There are many different approaches to multiplying our fishes, and perhaps one of these reports will spur you on you to make your own “babies”! If we succeed in inspiring you, we have reached our goal.

One last comment: I would like to thank all the authors, friends, collaborators, advertisers, and especially our publishing team for making AMAZONAS what it is today. Without you, there would have been no magazine, folks!

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AQUATIC

Adolescent specimen (3.5 inches/9 cm) of Panaqolus albivermis, known as the Flash Pleco.

The “striped socks” have a name

by Hans-Georg Evers • Early in the 1990s, when the Hamburg aquarist Bernd Schmitt brought

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REFERENCE

Lujan, N.K., S. Steele, and M. Velasquez. 2013. A new distinctively banded species of Panaqolus (Siluriformes: Loricariidae) from the western Amazon Basin in Peru. Zootaxa 3691 (1): 192–8.

H.-G. EVERS

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home some pretty pleco catfishes from a fishing trip to the Río Alejandro in Peru, we spontaneously called the animals “striped socks.” In English, they were dubbed Flash Plecos. Juveniles sport bold orange-yellow and sometimes white vertical bands. With increasing age and size, these stripes fade, blur, and almost completely disappear in some adults. A short time later, the first specimens appeared commercially, and in 1996 they received the temporary designation L204. Since then, this species has been found regularly on the stock lists of Peruvian exporters and has been successfully bred in the aquarium. Due to its dentition and other body features, the species was believed by some aquarists to belong to the once-controversial genus Panaqolus. Now the “striped socks” have been scientifically described as Panaqolus albivermis Lujan, Steele, & Velasquez, 2013. The name is a reference to the white “wormlines” on the dark body. The type locality is the Río Alejandro, a tributary of the upper Río Ucayali in Peru. Finally, this popular fish has received a scientific name. At the same time, you can assume that the genus Panaqolus is accepted now and no longer a synonym of Panaque.

New rainbowfish described

by Hans-Georg Evers • When they described the Kumawa Rainbowfish, Melanotaenia sneideri, from the Indonesian part of New Guinea, Allen & Hadiaty (2013) were christening one of the most attractive rainbowfishes yet found in this remote corner of the earth.

Fully colored males have a blue head and scales edged with deep red, a bright orange to red caudal fin, an orange-trimmed second dorsal fin, and dark brown pectoral, first dorsal, and anal fins. The description contains the image shown here of a fully colored male.

Unfortunately, the fish was photographed in the shipping bag, but the photo is still good enough to make every “bowfan” anxious to run to the store and buy one, if these fish were commercially available. Sadly, that is not going to happen anytime soon.

The species was named after one of its discoverers, Dr. Richard Sneider. It lives in a small area in the Kumawa Mountains in a remote and difficult to access karst area at an altitude of 3,445 feet (1,050 m) on the southern Bomberai Peninsula, part of the Vogelkop Peninsula in western Papua. The researchers got there by helicopter and unfortunately did not bring any live fish back. We will have to wait to get any until this area is opened up for development. This could happen faster than most nature lovers might like, as the pace of environmental degradation is currently very high in New Guinea. Many habitats of rainbowfishes, especially the remote lakes, are defenseless and very susceptible to anthropogenic influence. Introduced Tilapia and snakeheads have already cleaned out the original fish fauna elsewhere. Nevertheless, M. sneideri is certainly a very attractive fish.

The underlying type material of the description measures a maximum standard length of about 3.2 inches (8 cm), but they can grow a few centimeters larger and would be a feast for the eyes in any large aquarium. It is amazing what has yet to be discovered in the remote corners of our planet!

REFERENCE

Allen, G.A. and R.K. Hadiaty. 2013. Melanotaenia sneideri, a New Species of Rainbowfish (Melanotaeniidae), from Western Papua Province, Indonesia. Aqua 19 (3): 137–46.

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AQUAPRESS R. SNEIDER

Male Melanotaenia sneideri, the Kumawa Rainbowfish

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by Hans-Georg Evers • These days, when people get away with pouring banana juice in their beer and ice cream in their wine, shrimp enthusiasts are not missing out on creating new flavors. In the last issue, we reported on “Tibees” and various “Pinto” shrimps, hybrids of different species of the genus Caridina. Now hybrids have even been developed from the mutationally rich Neocaridina davidi, and here are a pair of new introductions.

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Taiwanese breeders have crossed a wild form of Neocaridina davidi from the mountains of central Taiwan with a blue wild form from China (Paracaridina sp.?). Their offspring was then crossed with intensely colored N. davidi “Red Cherry.” The rich dark brown shrimp that resulted is now sold under the name “Chocolate.”

The “Chocolate” was the starting point for further crossbreeding with “Red Cherry.” A blood-red shrimp resulted and was dubbed the “Bloody Mary.” These shrimp also have red legs. It is unclear how one should distinguish them from the well-known “Sakura,” which is a purebred form of N. davidi.

Below: “Chocolate” shrimp, grade AAA.

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Fully colored “Bloody Mary.” Note the red legs!

Above: Backcrossing the “Chocolate” shrimp with Neocaridina davidi produced these “Bloody Mary” shrimp.

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AQUATIC FISHROOMS:

Shane Linder’s catfish world Whiptail Catfish, Hemiloricaria eigenmanni, in a family fishroom tank dedicated to his daughter’s favorite fishes.

Below: Shane collecting in Colombia.

article and images by Rachel O’Leary • Despite an impending snowstorm,

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hundreds of us had been enticed to gather at a late-winter event in Gaithersburg, Maryland, near Washington, DC, that was unabashedly billed as Aquamania 2: The Big Fish Deal. The attractions included a chance to meet and hear worldrenowned speakers Anton Lamboj, Pam Chin, and Rusty Wessel, attend a muchanticipated rare fish auction, and shop at the Sunday Marketplace—all staged at an accommodating Hilton Hotel by the Capital Cichlid Association (CCA).

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I was there for the weekend and especially for an opportunity to spend some time with the other star speaker, catfish legend Shane Linder, who had agreed to give AMAZONAS readers a look inside his fishroom. Shane is widely known and respected for his catfish presentations and articles in various aquarium publications in North America and Europe, and most notably in the Internet community as the Shane of Shane’s World on Planet Catfish, where he has posted a wealth of “catfishology” articles. (He is also credited with inaugurating the inclusion of catfishes in the CCA’s annual cichlid event.)

By instinct a naturalist, Shane is a Foreign Service officer and his job has allowed him to travel and live abroad and, in his spare hours, immerse himself in the collection of fishes and the study of their ecology. He is a participant in the National Science Foundation’s All Catfish Species Inventory project, a global consortium of taxonomists and systematists attempting to facilitate the discovery, description, and dissemination of knowledge of all Siluriformes (catfishes). Shane has lived and collected fishes extensively in Venezuela, Colombia, Mexico, South Africa, and Uganda, and has made additional

collecting trips to Ecuador, Peru, and Brazil. Despite his worldly reputation and credentials, Shane is impressively open and approachable at aquarium events, obviously passionate about nature, science, and fishes.

Shane is a graduate of Western Washington University, where he majored in Political Science and Latin American Studies, and attended the Academia de Español in Quito, Ecuador. He has 17 tanks at home, ranging in size from 10 to 125 gallons (38–473 L), all dominated by various species of Chaetostoma, known as bristlemouths.

He has bred over 30 species of catfish, mainly Loricariids and Corydoras. Shane spent years working with Leiocassis and Mystus species, which he considers the most frustrating projects of his career. He says, “I built all kinds of crazy rainmaking contraptions and tried everything from RO water to homemade peat extracts to throwing snowballs in their tanks. I got close and even witnessed spawning embraces, but never got any eggs.” Shane currently mixes captured rainwater with his source water for water changes, which he performs every Sunday, when

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the fishes are not fed.

He feeds dried pelleted foods most days, with weekly frozen supplementation.

“Underrated” Chaetostoma Shane has always been interested in the genus Chaetostoma (KATE oh STOW A section of Shane Linder’s Vienna, Virginia fishroom that mah), all Central harbors a number of challenging-to-breed species. and South American suckermouth armored catfishes— their caves and will renovate underneath the rock crevpartly because he has personally collected them in three ices, clearing the sand from the bottom of the tank in different countries, but also because he considers them to order to lay and then guard their eggs on the bare glass. be underrated fishes that present a notable breeding chalClean water is an absolute necessity, and Shane does a 50 lenge. Breeding reports are sparse, and success is largely percent water change every four days. With these methattributed to luck or incidental occurrences. ods he has been able to breed several different species, Shane is currently working with Chaetostoma dorsale and during my visit the tanks in his fishroom were full of and C. formosae (the Blonde Bulldog or Rubbernose various sizes of fry.

Pleco), both from Colombia. He attributes his breed“My first ‘real’ tank was a 55-gallon (208-L) that I ing successes to providing an accurate biotope, which bought during my freshman year at college with some consists of smooth river rocks in many sizes placed over a extra GI Bill money,” says Shane. “It was set up with wasand and pebble substrate. The fishes are very picky about

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ter and land portions, mainly to house frogs and newts, but I had a few small fishes as well. Herpetology had been an interest of mine since childhood. Over time I became more interested in the fishes than the herps, and the tank became a Southeast Asian biotope. If you ask my mother, you will get a completely different story. She had aquariums in the restaurant she owned when I was four or five years old. She believes my love of catfishes stems from the fact that they stay on the bottom of the tank and thus were the only fishes I could see when I was that small.”

Shane says his contact with the scientific community really started when he met Dr. Ng Heok Hee. “Heok Hee and I made contact in the early ’90s when we were both undergraduates,” he explains. “We shared the same passion for Asian catfishes, and over the years Heok Hee gave me the knowledge and materials I needed to delve deeply enough into the scientific side of catfishes to become respected as an amateur ichthyologist. Over the years I have been honored to further the science by reviewing scientific publications and contributing to others’ published works when I can.”

Shane is widely known by hobbyists as the Shane of Shane’s World on PlanetCatfish.com. Shane’s partnership with Julian (Jools) Dignall began as a way for Shane to have an outlet for his research on catfishes and the resulting articles. Shane’s World houses well over 150 articles by various catfish experts, making it the largest such resource known. Shane and Jools met through the same university database and were “the perfect storm— and still are, especially after a few pints.” Shane credits Jools with “understanding that this Internet thing was going to be the wave of the future and change how we researched and obtained aquarium-related information.”

However, Jools needed fresh content to make it happen.

That early content was mainly articles (which would become Shane’s World) and contributions to the database

that went on to become “the mighty Cat-eLog.” Shane and Jools have remained close friends and have gone on fish-collecting adventures together in Venezuela, Colombia, Brazil, Peru, South Africa, and Uganda.

One of the staple resources of PlanetCatfish.com, and probably the most notorious aspect of the catfish hobby, are the L-numbers. L-numbering is a semi-scientific method of classifying fishes of the family Loricariidae that allows people to identify various catfishes, often before they have been formally described. While L-numbers have been valuable to the separation and understanding of many species, sometimes multiple L-numbers have been given to different populations of the same fish, or a single L-number has been assigned to multiple species, frequently leading to confusion.

Given the opportunity, I had to ask Shane about his opinion of the controversial L-numbers.

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Breeding biotope tanks, many with Chaetostoma spp. catfishes.

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Shane’s 125-gallon West African system.

Shane and his daughter Sofia at Murchison Falls on the Nile River, Uganda.

“Living animals, not stamps”

“I have a love/hate relationship with the L-numbers fad. It is really analogous to the way the popularity of Rift Lake cichlids impacted the cichlid hobby. In a short time cichlids from just two lakes in eastern Africa became ‘African cichlids.’ In the same way ‘L-number’ has become analogous to catfishes. I have clubs ask me to speak on catfishes or magazines ask me to write on catfishes and then say, ‘This will be an L-number thing, right?’ It also attracted a lot of the ‘Pokémon crowd’— people that are most interested in how many L-numbers they can obtain and how much money each fish is worth. These are living animals, not stamps. Still, I am hopeful that some of these people will realize that there are many fascinating catfishes to maintain besides a handful of black and white plecos from the middle Xingu and upper Orinoco.”

As one of Shane’s admitted fans, I especially look forward to his tales of collecting outings. He has colorful anecdotes, cautionary tales of illness, and insights from many of the places he has gone, as well as fascinating information on the ecology of the habitats and the husbandry of the fishes he has found.

Shane lived in South America for four years, Central America for two, and Africa for five; his daughter was born in Mexico. Having been back in the United States for just 3 years after 12 abroad, I am sure he is already contemplating his next adventure.

“I don’t think many aquarists realize how much work goes into a collecting trip,” says Shane. “I may spend weeks hunting down old scientific papers to map out where I can find a certain species. Then I study the maps, which are not always easy to obtain, to figure out locations in the drainage that will not have been impacted by pollution and can still be reached by vehicle or boat. Then I need to pack the right collecting kit for the environment and fishes. Will I need seines, a cast net,

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Juvenile Clown Plecos, Panaqolus maccus, bred by Shane, who is the host of Shane’s World, an immensely popular department of PlanetCatfish.com.

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fish traps, push nets, or dip nets? Have I packed enough water, fuel, and food? What about cameras, photo tanks, water conditioners, and testing equipment? How many fishes do I plan to transport back and how long do I need to keep them alive during transport?

“After a vast amount of research, the real fun begins.

Collecting in the tropics means dealing with hard physical labor in high temperatures and high humidity. On a longer, multi-day foray you have to deal with all these things while battling some combination of dehydration,

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sunburn, and stomach issues.”

Shane’s first collecting trip in Venezuela was an unmitigated disaster. He recalls that he “grabbed some dip nets, plastic fish bags, and with my wife for company, headed two hours south into the llanos with no idea where I was going. I eventually came across a drying stream and was already mentally counting the Corydoras I would catch before I stepped out of the air-conditioned car. Within minutes I had sunk in the mud up to my thighs and was completely stuck. My wife yelled down

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Chaetostoma sp. cat, hanging upside down. This genus of loricariid is Shane’s current object of study and breeding attempts. Right: One of many tribal masks in the fishroom.

from the road that I was going to sink in over my head if I did not get out of the mud. For reasons I cannot explain, I stopped struggling, looked up at her, and replied, ‘I am aware of the precarious nature of my situation.’ I have no idea why those words came to my mind, but we still laugh about it. I ended up driving back home that day covered in mud and missing one shoe that I had to sacrifice to the mud gods to secure my release.

Worst of all is that I came home with no fishes!”

Shane offers this advice to anyone planning a collecting adventure: “The best guide you can find is a 12-yearold boy from the area. By that age they know how to

collect everything that hops, slithers, or swims within five miles of their home.”

Visiting with Shane was like being immersed in his past travel experiences. His home is decorated with beautiful furniture and art from his time overseas, and the fishroom is no exception. He has a collection of paddles from different African tribes he has encountered; hand-painted maps, photography, stamps, masks, and hand-fabricated cast nets pepper the walls. His astounding library of fish books covers every aspect of fishkeeping, and he has folder upon folder of scientific papers on different species, filed by genus.

Shane is a true naturalist who prefers to visit and collect fishes in the wild, absorb the beauty of their habitat, and then try to duplicate it in his personal tanks.

Shane has personally collected all the species he currently keeps from their natural habitats. His attention to the specific details of each biotope is evident in the caches of interesting things in the cubbies of his fishroom. He has various types of sand, rocks, and wood collected on his trips abroad, as well as substrates to duplicate the natural environment perfectly, resulting in spawns of fishes that otherwise prove exceptionally difficult. His use of plants, variously sized and shaped rocks, and lighting that can easily be manipulated provides an inspiring peek into what it must be like to experience these fishes in their native habitats.

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REFERENCES

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Planet Catfish (http://www.planetcatfish.com) All Catfish Species Inventory (ACSI) http://silurus. acnatsci.org Capital Cichlid Association (http://www.capitalcichlids. org)

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STORY

article and images by Hans-Georg Evers • For true tropical fish enthusiasts, just the word “breeding” is enough to quicken the pulse and arouse the senses. Of course, all of us enjoy observing our charges and take pride in providing them with the best care possible, but many venture a step further and try to encourage their fishes to reproduce. Whether this is easy or a real husbandry challenge, the reward lies in the joy of witnessing small miracles in our aquariums.

Courtship display of Ivantsoff Blue-Eye, Pseudomugil ivantsoffi.

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Attractive tetra species like this Kitty Tetra, Hyphessobrycon heliacus, are propagated in masses by professionals. There is no reason hobbyist breeders can’t try their hands at reproducing fishes like these.

ANY AQUARIST CAN START with a few animals and end up with many. In many cases, this doesn’t require a huge effort and great diligence. In the following articles on the reproduction of some rather unusual species of fish, I have tried to show that even the “average Joe” can manage to reproduce new or rare species of fish.

Even though I deliberately avoid using the term “breeding,” most aquarists tend to say that they have “bred” this or that species. (In German, the term züchten refers to targeted line breeding; in English, there is no term that distinguishes breeding from simple reproduction or propagation). But most of us only multiply or reproduce fishes; we approach it as a hobby and our goal is to do something interestng and satisfying. We do not worry much about the rules of genetics.

However, selective breeding requires a completely different level of effort. Establishing new color forms, “fixing” attractive mutant strains, or improving features in a wild form over many generations are the objectives of targeted breeding. Personally, I consider myself a propagator rather than a “breeder,” and I have maintained some species for 20 years or more.

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Different approaches

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Many experienced breeders (we will call them that here for simplicity, lumping the various types of propagators together) often say that they want to “set up” a given species. This classical concept stems from the old days, when tetras, barbs, and similar fishes were primed for breeding in a specially prepared aquarium. This is still done today by professional farmers, because certain fishes have mass appeal and are the bread-and-butter stock in trade. Most newcomers start breeding with other fish groups, like the far more popular catfishes or cichlids, although they rarely have to be “set up.” They often reproduce naturally in a community tank and require few special conditions. The random emergence of fry in a living room aquarium often sparks the interest of an aquarist, who then wants to tackle breeding fishes more intentionally. I could fill whole books on the subject of how to produce a few or even a lot of juveniles of a given species of fish. Perhaps I will do this at some point, when I am retired and have much more time (if

To observe the breeding of ďŹ shes in the aquarium is a great experience. Cichlids, such as this red discus, make it easy because they provide their own brood care.

Small, attractive danios, like this Devario sondhii, are only sporadically imported, and professionals rarely produce them. Species like these are typically propagated by hobbyists.

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View of the “multiplication mile” for the author’s dwarf fishes. From right to left: spawning tank with screen/grate, wedge tank, and overflow tank (each measuring 20 x 10 inches/50 x 25 cm), along with two conventional aquariums for rearing small fry that are later moved into larger growout tanks.

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Below: In this overflow tank, the water is moved with an airlifter from in front of a foam filter into the main compartment, which is separated by a glass pane. The water overflows into the separate fry compartment through the grate at left. From there it passes through a fine mesh, to keep the tiny fish contained, and flows behind the main compartment along a narrow passageway that leads behind the foam wall. Then it is pulled through the foam filter to begin the cycle anew. This is a bit complicated to build, but fulfills its purpose very well. Once a species has been successfully spawned and juveniles raised, the next challenge can be addressed.

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books are still being made!). I have propagated more than 400 species of fish in my aquarist career, and I have even bred some in the strict sense of the word. One thing I have learned: there are no recipes!

There are, however, tips, tricks, and the experiences of other aquarists, who share them in this magazine and elsewhere. Anyone who would like to try breeding a particular species should first research the demands of that fish, shrimp, or plant. Look for advice from others on water parameters, food requirements, and so forth. This is not difficult to do, and can mean the difference between success and frustration. If you are already an aquarist with a bit of room to expand, you will simply need to add or free up an aquarium.

In almost any house or apartment you can find enough space for one or more small breeding or rearing aquariums. In the following articles, we will discuss the various purpose-built tanks in which some species can be maintained over the long term and plenty of fry can be produced.

The overflow grate or comb has 2-mm (approximately 1/8-inch) slits through which young fish can escape from the breeding tank into the separate compartment.

Permanent setups

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In the past few years, tinkerers and craftsmen have created several tank models designed for continuous breeding. These can be roughly divided into three categories: screen or grate tanks; wedge tanks; and overflow tanks.

Many small egg-laying species provide no brood care. They are typically housed in aquariums in which the eggs (and later the emerging young fish) end up in a smaller, separate compartment, where they can be vacuumed up or fed with tiny first foods. In the first article, Stefan Inselmann describes the classic spawning grate or screen aquarium and how to work with it. This type of setup plays an important role in the propagation of tetras, barbs, and danios, because these parents eat their eggs. In the next report, I describe how I have multiplied the pretty Danio jaintianensis in this setup for the first time.

Some species do not eat their eggs and young fish, which is why it is particularly easy to obtain fry from them. The article on Danionella translucida describes that subcategory.

The second kind of special aquarium for continuous breeding is the wedge tank. Here the newly hatched fry are sucked through a slot into a separate compartment and can be fed and fished out later without disturbing the adult animals too much. This method is useful for many shy species that are likely

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to panic over a bare spawning grate instead of thinking about sex. Pencilfishes, many shy danios and killifishes, and even some labyrinth fishes, whose females like to prey on the free-swimming fry, can be spawned relatively easily in this setup. I have bred the Central African tetra Hemigrammocharax uniocellatus in an aquarium like this.

Finally, there is the overflow tank. You should choose this option if you want to breed fishes whose fry seek the surface, like blue eyes, rainbowfishes, and livebearers. The juveniles are flushed by the water flow through an overflow grate into a separate compartment and thereby saved from the preying parents. It is surprising how many young fishes this method can yield.

Bear in mind that all of these special aquariums require that the fry be regularly removed from the fairly narrow separate compartments to make room for subsequent fry. In many species, older juveniles will not hesitate to consume their smaller siblings.

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Ingenuity In any discussion about special aquariums and innovative ways of rearing offspring, I have to mention the renowned aquarist and breeder Gerd Arndt, whom I am honored to count among

my friends. He has designed some wonderful gadgets for the aquarium hobby. In the early 1990s we experimented a lot together, and out of our work emerged the much-copied “Gerd box,” a hanging refugium box with an airlifter to raise fry in a confined space. Technically well versed and an aquarist through and through, Gerd has always enjoyed tinkering.

He built all of the aquariums shown here—and many more. His website is the contact point for any aquarist who has an idea and wants Gerd to execute it. I would like to dedicate these lines to him in appreciation for all his support. I have been able to crack many hard nuts thanks to Gerd, who figured out how to convert my sometimes obscure ideas into working glass constructions. My two left hands could have never done it!

REFERENCES

Gerd Arndt www.aquarienbastelei.de

Catfishes, such as the popular Ancistrus bristlenoses, usually reproduce without help from their keepers, even in heavily occupied community tanks.

Often it is a random breeding event that sparks an aquarist’s desire to attempt the targeted breeding of some egg-layers.

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STORY Barbus hulstaerti, the African Butterfly Barb, will spawn almost continuously with little human interference.

Breeding fishes: just follow a recipe?

by Stefan Inselmann • One of my first aquarium books was filled with “recipes” for breeding

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Over the past decades, I have moved away from this almost creationist approach—“Purchase, add, stir well three times, and by pushing a button you have bred fish X!” Today I try to offer my fishes permanent environmental conditions that meet their species-specific needs, and if they multiply, even better. I no longer practice targeted breeding. Now I keep and propagate mainly western and central African fishes: cichlids are my “lead species,” but I also have a particular weakness for all the beautiful little killis, barbs, and tetras that swim in the same waters.

I am often on the road for work-related trips, so I am thankful that the partner I call “the best wife of all” takes care of the fishes we keep in about 40 aquariums. Of course, fishes often spawn during my absence. I do not want to overload my wife with the care of newly hatched fish larvae and the even more complex handling of the borderline disgusting food cultures.

Especially for my barbs and tetras, which may spawn daily, I was looking for a solution to multiply them without too much active involvement. What I needed was an aquarium that offered excellent housing conditions for

the parents and ensured that their eggs and larvae were protected. In addition, the larvae had to have access to the necessary food for at least the first few days of life.

A great design (in theory) After pondering that idea for a while, I had a friend who is an acrylic fabricator build the tank shown. Its dimensions are 20 x 12 x 12 inches (50 x 30 x 30 cm) and it has a gross capacity of 12 gallons (45 L). The aquarium is divided into two principal sections: a larger compartment for the parents and a smaller chamber for their offspring.

In the parents’ chamber, two sloping bottom plates formed a wedge with a gap of 2 mm (about 1/8 inch) at the bottom. This would allow the adults to move freely and their eggs to fall through the gap, where they would be beyond the reach of greedy spawn-robbers.

The bottom area and the young-fish chamber located on the other side of the aquarium are separated from the spawning chamber by a removable Poret foam cassette. An airlift is mounted after the foam filter in a subsequent clear-water chamber. The water circulates

H.-G. EVERS

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different species of aquarium fish. I have read it again and again and tried many of the recipes, sometimes successfully and sometimes not. As with cooking, even failures can teach us something, even if what we’ve learned doesn’t dawn on us until years later.

from the juveniles’ chamber to their parents’ area, then down through the bottom slit, back to the eggs and young fish. This type of filtration would ensure excellent water conditions and safety for the fry. Moreover, this type of foam filter is soon colonized by aufwuchs (algal mats) and can supply juveniles with microorganisms of all types.

This was a great theory, but in practice, it did not work! None of the nanofish species I experimented with, including Barbus hulstaerti, Neolebias ansorgii, and other species, really felt at home in this original aquarium, and as a result they did not spawn. All of the fishes swam Left: View from the end toward the airlift and foam filter. The wedge bottom did not work well and was later replaced by a flat, perforated grate.

Right: Viewed from above, the design becomes clear. This setup is not hard to construct using acrylic sheets.

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S. INSELMANN

Above: Side view of a newly built tank for continuous breeding. The water is pulled from the rear side through the filter sheet by the frontmounted airlift. Behind the Poret foam filter, all kinds of microorganisms accumulate and serve as first food for the just-hatched juveniles.

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Above: As you can see, the young fish gather in the chamber behind the filter sheet as intended.

For particularly productive species such as Barbus hulstaerti, I recommend making this space larger to accommodate the higher number of juveniles.

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Right: The tank with the perforated plate that was introduced later.

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crowded together nervously in a confined space just above the sloping bottom plates.

Okay, I thought, maybe it is all too stark and too bright (even though the aquarium stood on a dark

surface). I sprayed the sloping plates, and later the rear and side walls, with black acrylic paint, but there was no significant difference in the fishes’ behavior. They just did not like to swim between the sloping bottom plates near

the bottom to spawn above the Java Moss. What was going on—all this effort and no success?

In the basement I found a scrap piece of perforated PVC sheet. I cut it to size and replaced the slanted acrylic bottom plates with a flat, only slightly slanted bottom. The adult fishes now had a much larger volume available over a relatively flat bottom. Thus modified, the aquarium was put to use again.

I placed a handful of Java Moss over the perforated bottom plate and some small Ceratopteris ferns for shading and to take in dissolved wastes. Depending on availability, I used pure rainwater or reverse osmosis water and added some alder cones to the chamber of the airlift.

This method yielded soft water with a slightly acidic pH of between 5.5 and 6.5. About every two weeks or so, about 20 percent of the aquarium water was changed to avoid a dangerous drop in alkalinity due to nitrification.

The first species I was able to breed and raise in significant numbers under these conditions was the African Butterfly Barb, Barbus hulstaerti. For three years now, I have constantly kept a group of 10–15 adults in this aquarium. Except in the summer, when the temperature in my fish basement rises above 75°F (24°C), I am always finding fry in the aquarium. The ideal propagation temperature for this species is 66–72°F (19–22°C). All I have to do is to take care of food and water.

Occasionally, I have to move the larger fry so that

Above: Barbus jae is a pretty nanofish that likes its privacy. The pictured breeding tank design is optimal for this species as long as it is sufficiently planted.

One more!

I ordered a second aquarium of this design, this time with a flat, perforated bottom. Over the past two years, I have been able to breed other African tetras and barbs in this tank: Neolebias ansorgii, N. unifasciatus, and N. axelrodi reproduced under identical conditions, albeit at temperatures of around 66–77°F (22–25°C).

A few months ago, I finally was able to purchase broodstock of the Jae Barb, Barbus jae, in the Netherlands; this species had been on my wish list for a long time. This beautiful little barb has spawned easily, but so far has produced only modest numbers of offspring.

However, the whole point for me is not to produce fish in large quantities; that would mean returning to “breeding fishes according to a recipe”!

What would I do differently if I were designing such a breeding tank today? I would enlarge the juvenile chamber, since the number of offspring is sometimes greater than expected, especially with Barbus hulstaerti.

In addition, I would like to build an identical but longer aquarium in order to reproduce other African tetras that require more swimming space.

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A permanent solution

they do not eat the smaller babies. Over the past winter I was able to raise more than 100 young fish—enough to secure my stock and have animals to share with friendly fish geeks.

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Male Hemigrammocharax uniocellatus in the typical swimming position.

Nanofish husbandry:

Hemigrammocharax uniocellatus article and images by Hans-Georg Evers • A few months ago, I was excited to learn about

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the import of a small darter tetra from the Congo. I received four of them, along with all sorts of other species from the Congo, from the importer Aquaristik-Service Reuter. My four specimens acclimatized well and have even produced offspring. Below I would like to report on the first successful breeding of this nanofish.

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Initially, I did not want to keep these rare little fish—I wanted to hand them over to a tetra specialist who might eventually breed them. After I had photographed them, I had a sudden inspiration and put them in a 56 x 24 inch (140 x 60 cm) aquarium, where they spent the next few months with some Cory catfish and blue-eyes. They were fed with all kinds of live food, but also consumed flakes and granules without hesitation. During this time, these small darter tetras proved not to be very substrateoriented and certainly not very flow-loving. It was clear that I had two pairs, each occupying and defending a small territory against their conspecifics. One pair stayed under a wood root and the other near a Cryptocoryne bush. The partners swam close together in the open water with their heads slightly tilted upward. This swimming behavior is very similar to that of their larger cousins in the genus Distichodus. However, unlike these more common herbivorous giants, my dwarfs only squabbled among themselves and left other tankmates alone.

African dwarfs The genus Hemigrammocharax currently comprises 10 species that are distributed over large parts of western and central Africa. One species was described from southern Africa. Quite similar is the genus Nannocharax, which differs from Hemigrammocharax mainly in that it has a complete lateral line, which is interrupted in Hemigrammocharax. All species are small. H. uniocellatus was described from the Congo Basin. Originally assigned

by Pellegrin (1926) to the genus Microdistichodus, now a synonym for Hemigrammocharax, the name hints at the appearance. The species reaches about 1.6 inches (4 cm) and the females are a bit bigger. They look like a miniature version of a Distichodus species.

Mindful of the fact that the species probably comes from a rainforest stream, which means very soft, acidic water, I chose pure osmosis water, slightly acidified by alder cones, for my breeding plans. Yes, these dwarfs had enchanted me, and I wanted to try breeding them myself!

Well-fed females quickly fill with eggs and are distinguishable from the slender males because of their slightly thicker and lighter colored abdomens.

Breeding preparations

might fight too much in such a small space. However, this concern was unfounded; the tetras are still in excellent health after a few months. A Terminalia leaf was placed in the fry compartment to provide the emerging young fish with a hiding place.

Short waiting time I fed the four Hemigrammocharax with small black mosquito larvae and water fleas, but only in small portions.

The downside of the wedge tank is that live food quickly ends up in the fry compartment, where it cannot be consumed. I only saw the adults when they shot out from under cover and hunted for mosquito larvae. Every now and then, I saw the males when they flashed each other; otherwise, it was quiet. But after about three weeks, I noticed several juveniles in the fry compartment when I was changing the water. Thin and elongated, with a longitudinal black stripe and dark horizontal bands on a golden background, the juveniles stuck close to the ground. In the wild, their color wonderfully camouflages them in the twilight of the rainforest. Their big eyes examined every little particle that floated by to see whether it was edible.

The tiny fry swallowed surprisingly large chunks and had no problems managing newly hatched Artemia nauplii.

They reminded me of the fry of the South American pencilfishes Nannostomus eques and N. unifasciatus. These tetras are also residents of rainforest streams and have

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For the breeding attempt, I chose my so-called wedge tank. Based on my experiences with Nannocharax parvus, which I bred in large numbers with a continuous approach many years ago, I wanted to breed this species in its own small tank. Most African dwarf tetras and barbs are residents of microhabitats with very few space requirements, and can be easily maintained and propagated even in small aquariums. Rainforest streams are often very shallow and contain a thick layer of leaf litter and very little water. This is a prime example of the adaptation of small fishes to their habitat. For shy species, the wedge tank is ideal because the newly hatched larvae are herded out by the gentle water flow through the thin slot of the wedge. In the fry compartment, they can grow up unperturbed. Moreover, the adults are not disturbed by egg collecting or water changes, because the weekly change of about 30 percent pure osmosis water is performed in the fry compartment.

The water temperature was 73–77°F (23–25°C) and the electrical conductivity about 150 μS/cm. The alder cones acidified the water only slightly and the pH was about 6.5. The main compartment of 8 x 8 inches (20 x 20 cm) was equipped with an acrylic wool mop and two large almond leaves (Terminalia catappa). This has the disadvantage that you cannot control the breeding animals, and I was a little concerned that the two pairs

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The wedge tank: on the right is the main compartment with mop and leaves for the adults, on the left the foam filter compartment and safe refugium for fry.

adapted similarly in the course of evolution.

Now I changed the diet of my Hemigrammocharax uniocellatus. Every day they received newly hatched Artemia nauplii, which were placed in the main compartment. The adult animals were satisfied and there was still enough food going through the slot to feed the fry. In addition, the young apparently searched the filter foam for food, because most fry stood there. During the summer, I collected live pond food about three times a week. All my young fish were fed with sifted water-flea babies and infusoria, to which they responded with rapid growth. At the age of about four weeks, the small Hemigrammocharax were already about 1 cm long. Meanwhile, differently sized juveniles from several spawns were in the fry compartment. Now it was time to move the fry to make room for more spawns. I observed that the young fish showed a pretty orange caudal spot at this stage. Unfortunately, this coloration is lost with increasing size.

I collected 35 young fish of different sizes

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Juveniles a few days after they become free-swimming (front) and about four days old (back). The large eyes watch the environment closely.

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and put them in a larger breeding tank with the same water. Over time, I mixed the soft water with tap water, so that at the age of about six weeks, the young fish were accustomed to my medium-hard tap water. The method does not produce tons of juvenile fish, but it is sufficient to supply the handful of aquarists interested in West African tetras with offspring.

Hemigrammocharax uniocellatus is certainly not a marvel of colors. However, when I watch the adult animals poised together in pairs, attentively watching their environment, keeping themselves in position by constantly sculling with their pectoral fins, my aquarist heart rejoices. I cannot imagine anything more exciting than exploring the reproductive biology of such fish!

REFERENCES

Pellegrin, J. 1926. Description de Characinidés nouveaux récoltés au Congo Belge par le Dr. Schouteden. Rev Zool Afric 13 (3–4): 157–64.

Captive-bred juvenile African dwarf darter tetras at the age of about two weeks.

Above: Top view of the wedge tank. The airlift moves clean water from behind the foam filter into the main compartment, from which it eventually flows through the 1-mm-wide slot between the wedge panes back into the fry compartment. Juveniles (and, unfortunately, sometimes food) are drawn into the fry compartment, where they are safe from the adults. In addition, the fry will find a dense lawn of microorganisms on the filter foam. The author now recommends making this space larger to accommodate more juveniles.

Juveniles at four weeks already measure about 1 cm and must be moved to a separate breeding tank to make room for subsequent spawns. At this size, they display a pretty orange caudal spot.

For comparison, an approximately three-week-old Nannostomus eques juvenile.

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Breeding for lazy people: Two males in a dispute as described in the text.

Danionella translucida in a continuous setup article and images Hans-Georg Evers • After three tries, it finally worked. Sometimes breeding aquarium fishes is ridiculously easy—you just have to leave them alone!

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The tiny glass danios of the genus Danionella, whose four currently described species are among the smallest known vertebrates, inhabit the waters of Myanmar and India. Adult males only reach about 0.6 inch (1.5 cm) and the females about 0.8 inch (2 cm) in total length, even when well fed. Their transparent bodies make it even more difficult to spot these fishes in a well-planted aquarium. Guests often ask me why I keep white mosquito larvae or glassworms in an aquarium!

When you closely examine these tiny creatures, they look fantastic. It is almost unbelievable that such a small body contains everything the animal needs to survive. Pygmy fishes can only function because design features like reduced fin-ray count permit dwarfism.

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Right: My Danionella tank looks terrible! But the fish do not seem to care—they breed without any help from me.

These animals can even survive in large, flowing rivers near the edges of the banks (Britz, 2013). Apparently they are so tiny and transparent that most other fishes don’t see them as potential prey.

My first encounter with Danionella translucida, the type species of the genus, happened many years ago.

In the early 1990s, when Burmese fishes were not yet common, Kai Erik Witte spent months collecting in that area. After one of his trips he brought me some measly little fishes that he had caught in the south of Myanmar,

praising them as something very special.

“If you are very quiet, you can hear them growl,” he told me when I released them into a mini aquarium (now called a nano tank). I admit that I put my ear against the tank a few times, but all I could hear was the growling of my big air pump and the bubbling of the many aquariums in my former fishroom. Hearing the growl of glass danios apparently requires absolute silence.

Of course, I wanted to breed them, so I isolated a pair in a tank with a spawning grate. When that did not work, I put the whole group over a spawning grate, but nothing happened. Fate took its course, and these celibate non-growlers eventually lost the favor and attention of their keeper and became history.

After a fight, the loser may look somewhat ruffled. This animal has just eaten some Artemia nauplii, which is not difficult to recognize.

A visit with consequences However, this wasn’t the end of the story, which began again in 2005 during my visit to the Bolton Museum’s freshwater aquarium in northern England. On a behind-the-scenes tour, I discovered some Danionella translucida in an aquarium teeming with tiny fishes. I could hardly believe it, but my friend Pete Liptrot and his colleague Paul Dixon had managed to breed these fish at Bolton. Until then, I had not heard of any successful spawnings in captivity of these glass danios from Myanmar, which are now regularly exported. “They breed all by themselves,” Pete told me. “All you need to do is feed them. Do you want to take some home?” Of course I did—so I brought about a dozen of them back to Germany.

about, but showed no signs of multiplying. Six months passed and we were about to move, so I donated the Danionella to a friend. So again, I came up with nothing!

Attack!

One last attempt

Now I wanted to prove that I, too, could breed these tiny fish. I would feel ridiculous if I couldn’t! I set up an 8-gallon (30-L) tank with a sandy bottom, some Java Moss, and a foam filter. I kept the flow of the airlift weak and the newcomers immediately accepted freshly hatched Artemia nauplii as their main food. I supplemented this with sifted live Daphnia and Cyclops, and they will also take finely crumbled flake food as it slowly floats down to the bottom.

However, most of it lands on the sand, rots quickly, and degrades the water quality, so I avoid feeding flakes.

Pete had told me that this species spawns on the bottom, so I skipped the small Corys and pleco catfishes that I usually count on to keep my aquariums clean of leftover food. To breed Danionella, you need a species tank.

For several weeks, I checked for offspring every day, but nothing happened. The animals were alert and swam

Several more years passed, and during another visit to Bolton I saw that the small glass danios were still there.

As if to mock me, there were now two aquariums, one of which was packed with these dwarfs. Pete just smiled when he saw me staring into the tank and picked up his net, saying, “This time you can do it, Hans!” It was true— the third time was the charm! I had a new fishroom, some of the same old tanks, and plenty of fresh courage.

I did everything just as I had the last time, but instead of the dense Java Moss, I planted the dark sand-gravel mixture lightly with some feeble Lagenandra meeboldii “Red.” Supposedly, this plant is very sensitive and does not like to be transplanted, but it has now been growing quite well for two years under my dim light. The water comes out of the tap with about 12°dGH and a pH of 7.

I change about 50 percent of the tank water every week.

A flash photo shows the swim bladder and internal organs very well.

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A half-grown female with a few eggs in her body cavity. Sometimes the head region and caudal peduncle are tinged with yellow.

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After a few days, the pH is 7.5 and the electrical conducstrate during water changes to remove sludge and uneattivity about 400 μS/cm. This all sounds planned, but it is en food. That no longer seemed like a good idea! My new not. Besides performing water changes and supplying lots insight was rewarded in the following weeks with hordes of small live food, I am not doing anything to the aquarium.

After a few weeks, the starting lineup began to produce fry.

I frequently observed two males meeting in the open water and performing a kind of display fight. Head to head like two fencers with swords that are way too short, they competed with erect pectoral fins. One of the fighters usually retreats a bit and then nudges the opponent in the abdominal area until they just turn in a circle, and then this ritual starts again from the My largest female is very gravid. She measures just over 0.8 inch (2 cm) in total length. Older and larger females beginning. This behavior usually may develop dark pigmentation on the sides. occurs after water changes; it happens very fast and can go on for hours. Every now and then I see a male approach a very thick, apparently spawning-ready female in a very similar way. I of young fish that remained close to the gravel until they have not observed an actual spawning. were about 0.2 inch (0.5 cm) long. Then they joined the ever-increasing group of adults. Hooray—success!

How and where Thus, after nearly 20 years, I was able to celebrate success with Danionella translucida. Meanwhile, other I have bred quite a few species of barbs, and in my experinano-fish fans have also been rewarded with offspring. ence the juveniles of most species appear near the water’s The recipe is quite simple: just leave them alone—and surface after swimming free. Based on that history, I don’t vacuum the substrate! knelt down each day in front of the aquarium and looked toward the surface. I didn’t see anything until, by chance, my eyes were drawn to the bottom when I saw something REFERENCE scurry away. Sure enough, there were some tiny juveniles Britz, R. 2013. Myanmar—A fascinating country and its diversity of fishes.

AMAZONAS 2 (2): 22–33. hovering just above the substrate. This made me quite uncomfortable, because I had always vacuumed the sub-

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Good food, fast current, and lots of patience: successfully propagating a Brochis species

article and images by Hans-Georg Evers • Some fishes just aren’t easy to breed. If a Clockwise from top left: Brochis sp. CW034 has a rounded head (compare to CW035 opposite page, bottom).

Brochis multiradiatus is occasionally imported from Peru.

Brochis sp. “Pantanal” is imported now and then as a bycatch of Corydoras pantanalensis.

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Brochis sp.

“Columbia” has a large head with an adjacent spot pattern.

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fish is very rare, and especially if it has a good story behind it, I see it as a challenge.

Difficult to reproduce? Well then, just try harder! Over the years, I have met a number of true “tough nut” species. Brochis sp. CW035 is definitely one of these.

“My goodness! These things are huge!” This utterance has been heard often in the last few months when fellow aquarists stopped by see my favorite extra-large armored catfish. The largest female in my group of Brochis sp. CW035 measures an impressive 4.2 inches (13 cm) in total length and is as high as she is wide. The eight animals in my group make a spectacular sight when they are rummaging through the substrate with their tails up and their snouts buried, rooting for something to eat.

The targeted propagation of these fish was my wish from the day I got them, because to me they have sentimental value. They came to me from the estate of my friend Joachim Knaack, who discovered the species in eastern Bolivia, imported some specimens, and was the first to breed them. When Joachim died unexpectedly in late 2012, I inherited these scientifically undescribed Brochis, which are now swimming in my basement. To honor his memory, I would spare no effort in trying to breed and maintain the species for the hobby.

Three or more species The genus Brochis was last scientifically revised a while ago. Nijssen & Isbrücker (1970) recognized only two species as valid and synonymized a number of other species with the type species of the genus, Brochis splendens, the Emerald Catfish. This fish was described from the Rio Tocantins in Brazil; it purportedly occurs throughout the Amazon region and south of it, in the Pantanal. The Hognosed Brochis (Brochis multiradiatus) from Peru was recognized as the second valid species. Nijssen & Isbrücker (1983) finally described the third currently valid species, B. britskii. In a major revision of the subfamily Corydoradinae, Britto (2003) suggested

dropping the genus name Brochis for the time being because no unique characteristics distinguishing them from Corydoras had been identified—and reassigned the species to the genus Corydoras. I do not agree with this; even in living animals the differences between Brochis and Corydoras (sensu lato) are obvious and clear. A rank beginner can recognize a Brochis at first glance because all species share the typical higher number of dorsal fin rays, body shape, and metallic green body coloration. (In preserved specimens, the live coloration cannot be determined.)

In addition to the three described species, other forms that are different from the valid species are known. From Colombia, for example, comes a very stout form with a pointed head; it cannot be confused with B. multiradiatus because of its coloration. Brochis sp. “Columbia” has a number of dark spots in the region behind the large head.

Every now and then a very burly, larger-growing species appears among Brazilian imports of Corydoras pantanalensis, and I refer to them here as Brochis sp. “Pantanal.”

Upon closer examination of the many well-known local forms, it could eventually be revealed that B. splendens contains more than one species. I know of animals from the upper Amazon basin in Peru (Yarina Cocha, Rio Madre de Dios, and Río Ucayali) and along the entire central Amazon in Brazil. I have to wonder whether all of them belong to just one species.

The two species that Joachim Knaack collected in the Río Blanco in eastern Bolivia, in the drainage area of the Río Negro, definitely have not been described.

In some areas the two species are syntopic, but they also occur alone and are locally quite abundant (KonnVetterlein, pers. comm.). Both species show a strong spotting pattern in the frontal part of the body, which,

although faded, can still be seen in adult specimens.

Juvenile specimens are more densely spotted and cannot be confused with any of the other known species. I have therefore assigned the code numbers Brochis sp. CW034 (for the round-head form) and Brochis sp. CW035 (for the pointed-head form; Fuller & Evers, 2011). CW stands for “Corydoras World,” Ian Fuller’s website, a dedicated repository of information about novel armored catfishes. Presenting species with verified locality data under the new code numbers creates a unique name for each species that can be used until a scientific description is published.

CW035 has a pointed head and grows quite large.

According to what Joachim told me, the specimens I have are not yet fully grown. He told me of specimens he caught in Bolivia that measured approximately 8 inches (20 cm) in total length. This is consistent with reports by Bleher (pers. comm.) about huge Brochis that he believed were B. britskii. When comfortable, these fish display beautiful orange areas on the head and abdomen and gorgeous metallic green body sides. In my opinion, the juveniles of this species rank among the most beautiful Cory catfishes out there.

Heavy on the food Before I describe my breeding efforts with this species, I must give a word of advice: If you cannot manage to provide these fish with enough food, you need not bother trying to breed them. I watched them for years at Joachim’s place, and I know that a group of adult Brochis can demolish astonishing amounts of food. His animals were also very spoiled, and when I first acquired them they would accept only live food, ignoring tablets, flakes,

Brochis sp. CW035 has an orange abdomen and pointed, orangish head; if the fish is healthy, the flanks have a metallic shine. It can grow very large.

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and granules. However, this habit can be broken, and my eight fish now occasionally accept food tablets. The group gets about 20 tablets twice a day to satisfy the most insatiable specimens. For the period imitating the dry season, during which there is less food, you can feed live water fleas (Daphnia). However, if you want to condition the animals for breeding, they need protein-rich worms.

To fulfill this requirement, I got myself a White Worm culture and every day, I run to the garden with oatmeal, tweezers, and a glass to harvest the worms. This provokes pitying looks from my neighbors when I have to brave the continuous Hamburg rain to feed my fish.

After I obtained the fish in December 2012, I placed them first in a cool (about 72°F/22°C) tank measuring 47 x 16 inches (120 x 40 cm). The important thing is to keep the water level low to imitate the dry season; the level

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One of my females likes to deposit her eggs on the front of the tank. Despite the fish’s size, the eggs are surprisingly small—about the size of Corydoras aeneus eggs.

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in the aquarium at this time was about 8 inches (20 cm).

In the following months, I fed them Daphnia (frozen and live) and food tablets. They kept pretty quiet—the unitiated might call them boring—and were only active at feeding time. Typically, as soon as they smell food they lift their tails and vacuum it up with their snouts just above the bottom or slightly below its surface; the substrate must consist of fine sand. My squad easily took care of half a liter of pure water fleas in one night. They were not as wild about the food tablets, but I fed them 15–20 tablets in the evening, and in the morning everything was gone.

In May 2013, my basement warmed up and the water temperature in the Brochis tank rose to 75°F (24°C). Up to this time, I had not done a water change. The tank is connected to a high-performance biofilter, so no nitrite or nitrate could be detected. However, this risky approach

should only be used if the water values are constantly monitored; if necessary, a water change can fix any developing problems. In nature, the fish swim in very shallow and rather cool “water”—dirt broth would be a more appropriate term—during the dry season, and that for up to half a year. This is precisely what I wanted to replicate in the tank. The rainy season in the drainage of the Rio Negro in Bolivia starts about September, but I did not want to wait that long. Joachim had told me that his animals had already spawned spontaneously in June 2012, so of course I was hoping for a repeat performance.

Now I began to feed them properly. Every other day I gave them about a quart (1 L) of live water fleas. On the alternate days, they got a handful of White Worms in the morning and frozen large brine shrimp in the evening.

This had an impact: the Brochis ate everything and became noticeably fatter.

Fast current creates the mood By the end of May, the time had come to move the animals into a larger aquarium. I put them in a 60 x 24 x 20 inch (150 x 60 x 50 cm) tank with a volume of 125 gallons (472 L). Using a Tunze Turbelle Stream pump, I created a habitat that resembled a whirlpool. Such pumps have long been used in saltwater systems, but few freshwater aquarists take advantage of these wonderful devices. The adjustable Turbelle Stream creates a really strong flow, even in larger aquariums, which is very beneficial for the well-being of riverine species. I would no longer want to do without these flow pumps in my Loricariid aquariums. My fish behave quite differently in this environment: they are much less shy and more active.

But back to the Brochis. I increased the water temperature to 90°F (32°C) for the next two weeks, doing about 30 percent water changes every three or four days. I think these measures, particularly creating a strong current, are needed to mimic the onset of rain. The water in nature is warming during this time as well, and the fish swim for days against strong current with rising water levels.

That is what I wanted to imitate. Based on the completely changed behavior of the animals, it was a success. These large armored catfish swam along the aquarium glass against the strong current and ate more than ever. Their rather dark colors gave way to bright orange and green colors that were beautiful to behold.

I continued these measures for a period of about two weeks, then changed two factors in the tank. With an 80 percent water change, I brought the water temperature down to 75°F (24°C), where it should remain. In July, it did become a bit warmer, up to 79°F (26°C). I switched off the Turbelle Stream and used only two strong airlifters, which still produced a slight current. I intensified my feeding by adding water fleas every two days, so that I could no longer see the animals. On the intervening days, I did a 50 percent water change straight from the tap (pH 7.0, 300 μS/cm). Before long the Brochis were ready.

At 75°F (24°C), the first larvae hatch after about three days. They are quite small and already have the first black pigment spots on their backs.

Five days after hatching and three days after they absorb their yolk sacs, the young fish start to develop dark banding and will eat Artemia nauplii.

Eight days after hatching, the young fish are very dark and the dorsal fin has a white border. They have little resemblance to their parents at these young stages.

At 14 days, the fry measure about 0.5 inch (1.2 cm) and the dorsal fin has greatly increased in size. The body markings slowly dissolve into a spot pattern.

H.-G. EVERS

At 21 days the juveniles are about 0.8 inch (2.0 cm) long and have changed significantly. The amazing dorsal fin has large spots and a white border; the caudal fin has three black crossbars on a creamcolored background. The body is heavily spotted and a black bar has developed along the dorsal ridge.

It’s hard to believe that these fish are already 85 days old.

The largest ones measure a proud 2.6 inches (6.5 cm) in total length. Small dark green spots cover the entire body and the dorsal fin; the flanks are dark green.

Now I could clearly see that their swimming behavior had changed to the next stage: the males began to be interested in the thick females instead of just swimming around.

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Masses of eggs

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These animals are a little shy, and my attempts to photograph them interfered with their reproduction. They swam merrily back and forth, but as soon as my dark shadow fell across the tank they became timid and hung back cautiously. However, I found that I could watch them from a few meters away if I was quiet. It seems that the females signal that they are ready to spawn by nervously swimming up and down along the glass.

One female was very plump and probably needed to get rid of her eggs soon. She repeatedly swam up and down the glass at the back of the tank, disappeared in the foliage for a short time, and then emerged; between her ventral fins she carried up to 30 eggs, which she stuck to the glass. This went on all day, and finally an estimated 600 eggs were attached to the glass and under the leaves of some Anubias barteri var. nana. I was a bit skeptical because all the other fish swam in a group through the tank, but the males obviously had no great interest in this egg-bearing female.

I have reproduced 115 species of Corydoradinae, but I had never seen this kind of emergency spawning before.

Maybe I did not pay enough attention, and the many times when all their eggs were infertile the females had, like this one, spawned alone. Anyway, I was disappointed because all the eggs had turned white by the next day. To this day—

September 2013—this female spawns all alone and gives me hundreds of white eggs. When I see eggs stuck to the rear glass, I do not collect them, because I know they were laid by the “behaviorally disturbed” female.

On the other hand, my other two females had started to procreate. This time, I thought, I would surely find at least a few fertilized eggs. One of the females always laid her eggs under the leaves of Anubias. Of these, perhaps 5–10 percent were fertilized. The third female stuck her eggs on the front glass. Although she produced fewer eggs—about 300—the fertilization rate was better at 10–20 percent. I attributed the poor fertilization rate to the advanced age of the animals; Joachim brought them home from Bolivia as an adult group in the late 1990s.

From early June to mid-September 2013, the three females and five males produced no fewer than 4,000 eggs, about half of which the loner female contributed. Of these, only about 300 eggs were fertilized, but I still could not raise them all.

“Decelerated” T-position Several years ago, I was able to successfully reproduce Brochis splendens in large numbers. I remember veritable spawning orgies, in which the whole group raced and stormed through the aquarium and completed matings quite quickly. Two, sometimes three males then rushed after the females, who swam very fast along the glass and tried to get in front of them to enter into the T-position.

Brochis sp. CW035 does this a lot more calmly—it is downright decelerated. Whether this is typical or due

This juvenile is exactly 132 days old and measures 2.85 inches (7.2 cm) in total length.

The many small dots are still visible, but the adult coloration is slowly emerging. The base color is a very attractive orange.

Colorful and active fry The day after spawning, the white, unfertilized eggs can be easily separated from the fertilized eggs and placed in a 0.5–1 gallon (2–5 L) container. One or two alder cones or, better yet, half a leaf of Terminalia catappa will reduce the number of bacteria in the rearing container, thanks to their humic substances. Once or twice, I exchanged 100 percent of the water with clean tap water. The last change, on the morning of the fourth day after spawning at 75–77°F (24–25°C), caused a mass hatch. I pipetted off the hatchlings and raised them in a small aquarium with an internal filter. In the first weeks, I daily swiped the bare tank bottom with a small paintbrush and changed about 20 percent of the water. Terminalia catappa leaves were used as hiding places in the breeding tank. After approximately four weeks, I added a very thin layer of sand to the aquarium. As they increased in size, I fed them live size-sorted water fleas, which have the advantage that they do not die and thus do not spoil the water quality.

The eggs and larvae are surprisingly small. You might think they would be much larger relative to the size of the parents. The larvae measured 0.25 inch (6 mm) total length after hatching and already had darkly pigmented o backs. They darkened further over the following two days, during which their yolk sacs were completely absorbed.

As a first food I offered Artemia nauplii, which they readily accepted, as evidenced by their orange bellies. The fry were now 0.3 inch (8 mm) in size and grew rapidly in the next few days. I was able to document their growth and the development of coloration. It was important to

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to the age of the actors, I cannot judge. Only one male swims after the very slow-swimming female and stops her at some point. The female slowly descends, allowing the male to place himself in front of her head. The male clamps the female’s barbels with one pectoral fin. She folds her ventral fins into a “pocket,” in which she lays 20 to 30 eggs at the moment when the male clamps her barbels. This spawning behavior has already been described for a large number of armored catfishes. Due to the size of the Brochis and their rather leisurely pace, it is easy to watch. I believe that a weak shaking of the male signals the delivery of his semen, almost exactly after the eggs appear in the female’s pocket. The T-position is held for up to about 20 seconds, until the male releases his barbels and rests some distance away. The female remains on the bottom for up to 2 minutes and finally swims away to get rid of the eggs. The male rarely accompanies her. Other catfish males, even those of B. splendens, often track the female on her mission and touch her in the head region with their barbels—probably to initiate the next mating.

My “old gentlemen” fish always waited patiently until the female returned with an empty pocket, thus ushering in the next round. I could never observe the touching with the barbels. A day after spawning, I laboriously collected the eggs so that I could raise the fry separately.

This leads me to the last and, in my opinion, the most exciting chapter in the story of these remarkable fish. No other Cory has surprised me more during rearing or given me more pleasure than these small, fastgrowing Brochis babies!

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supply the young fish with food all the time.

They grew incredibly fast. The 15 juveniles of the first brood, which hatched on June 6, were of course particularly pampered. On August 31—only 85 days later—the largest juvenile fish measured 2.6 inches (6.5 cm) total length! This is the absolute record for any Cory catfish. This growth can only be accomplished with large numbers of young fish if you are willing to put in a lot of work, including water changes and food collection.

However, even with the larger batches, growth is rapid and the fish consistently measured 2 inches (5 cm) or more after three months.

I had learned from the offspring of the Emerald Catfish that in the first weeks of life, young Brochis develop very high dorsal fins and the fry are quite attractively colored. This is also true of young CW035, except that the fry are even more eyecatching than those of the Emerald Catfish. As can be seen in the photos, their colors are in flux during the first weeks of life. The coloration of the dorsal fin, which is initially trimmed in bright white, changes every few days. It is amusing to see a squad of five-week-old juveniles sitting side by side with highly erect dorsal fins. As soon as food is served, they all lift their tails and drop their little heads to graze along the bottom. When two siblings meet, they fold their dorsal fins up and down a few times—a greeting ritual that I have never seen in a catfish species before.

After observing this behavior, my guests were so impressed by the animals that they asked for offspring. The high dorsal fins remained for approximately four months before the body shape and coloration slowly morphed into the adult form and dress. If you feed many crustaceans (Daphnia, Cyclops), the young fish develop a very attractive orange coloration on the head and abdomen.

The successful propagation of Brochis sp. CW035 is one of the highlights of my aquaristic career. It confirms my theory that with reasonable preparation and replication of known natural conditions, even difficult-to-breed fishes can be persuaded to reproduce in the aquarium. I am quite excited now to try the next “tough nut.” What about you?

REFERENCES

Britto, M.R. 2003. Phylogeny of the subfamily Corydoradinae Hoedeman, 1952 (Siluriformes: Callichthyidae), with a definition of its genera. Proc Acad Nat Sci Philadelphia 153: 119–54.

Fuller, I. and H.-G. Evers. 2011. Identifying Corydoradinae Catfishes, Supplement 1. Ian Fuller Enterprises, Kidderminster, Germany.

Nijssen, H. and I.J.H. Isbrücker. 1970. The South American catfish genus Brochis Cope, 1872 (Pisces, Siluriformes, Callichthyidae). Beaufortia 18 (236): 151–68.

———. 1983. Brochis britskii, a new species of plated catfish from the Upper Rio Paraguay system, Brazil (Pisces, Siluriformes, Callichthyidae).

Bull Zoölog Mus Univ Amsterdam 9 (20): 177–86.

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C OV E R

STORY Displaying male Betta stigmosa with the typical “ladder pattern” in the caudal fin.

Compare with the male Betta apollon, below.

Betta stigmosa: a charming mouthbrooder

by Richard Brode • Among those of us captivated by wild bettas, it is often said that

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Described by Tan & Ng in 2005, Betta stigmosa is, in fact, a close relative of the more common B. pugnax. According to the International Betta Congress database, the Betta Pugnax Complex includes B. pulchra, B. breviobesus, B. enisae, B. schalleri, B. fusca, B. lehi, B. raja, B. pallida, B. prima, B. stigmosa, B. cracens, and B. pugnax itself.

In the late 1980s, Neugebauer & Co. discovered this species in the vicinity of a large lake in the Malaysian state of Terengganu. For some time, the species was known under the name of Betta cf. pugnax “Tasik Kenyir” (Schäfer, 1997). Only at the beginning of the new millennium was it rediscovered during a scientific collection and described as a separate species. Although the relationship with B. pugnax is evident, the smaller size of ~2.8 inches (7 cm) and the distinct ladder pattern in the unpaired fins of

both sexes are apparent species-specific features. One year after its description, two closely related species were described by Schindler & Schmidt (2006) as Betta ferox and Betta apollon. Distinguishing between them in the aquarium is difficult due to the great similarity. Although my own doubts about the validity of the two newer species were eliminated in a discussion with Jens Kühne, I suspect these fishes could be easily confused by hobbyists and non-experts. Their husbandry requirements are likely

A male Betta apollon with his pointed tail.

TOP: R. BRODE; BOTTOM: J. KÜHNE

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“everything is Betta pugnax.” Indeed, there are a number of similar species in the Pugnax Complex, but this newcomer has its own charms and distinctive appearance.

Betta stigmosa can be kept with other small, peaceful fishes. For breeding, however, a species tank works best.

very much the same, so mistaken identity should not have dire consequences.

In its native habitat on the east side of the Malay Peninsula, B. stigmosa inhabits streams and small rivers in the foothills. The water is clear and moderately soft, but not acidic. Currently it is becoming apparent that the species has a relatively wide distribution area, extending about 160 miles (250 km) north and south of the type locality. A quite similar population that is being referred to as B. cf. pugnax is known from the island of Bintan.

This sort of geographic and habitat information provides an important foundation for successful keeping in the aquarium. With a relatively small size of 3 inches (6–8 cm), a 20-gallon (54-L) aquarium is sufficient for a pair or a group of five or six animals. As with most mouthbrooding Betta species, it is advisable to choose a spacious aquarium and opt for group housing. Only then will you experience their exciting social behavior up close.

Betta stigmosa is not specialized for an extreme habitat or a narrow area of distribution. From that, we can deduce that the species is probably relatively adaptable and non-problematic in terms of water parameters.

The aquarium water should have a total hardness of 0–15°dGH and a pH between 6 and 7.5 with a temperature of 72–80°F (22–27°C). Remember that the species is a resident of small mountain streams, so water hygiene

Reproduction To spawn, a pair looks for a low-flow area in the aquarium, which they defend against conspecifics for the duration of mating. They do not claim territories when they are not mating. In typical labyrinth fish manner the female collects the eggs—two to five eggs per mating act— from the anal fin of the male and turns them over by spitting them in front of him one at a time. Sometimes you wonder if she really wants to give up the eggs at all,

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R. BRODE

Aquarium care

and high oxygen content (surface movements) are of great importance when keeping them in the aquarium.

In their natural habitat, shrimps and small insects comprise B. stigmosa’s main foods. Various live foods should be the first choice, although they will accept frozen or granulated food. If you consider these demands, they will reward you with constantly changing, mooddependent colors. It is amazing how quickly B. stigmosa changes from a gray mouse into an astonishing beauty!

A dark substrate and floating plants have positive effects on the colors. Shine a beam of light from the front of the aquarium, and their flashing scales can look like fireworks!

Betta stigmosa fits in well with smaller barbs, danios, loaches, or hillstream loaches. You can also keep armored or whiptail catfishes and peaceful tetras with them. However, be careful not to choose nano tankmates so small that they could be viewed as food!

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Mating. The speckled head pattern is typical for females.

During mating, the male wraps himself around the female.

have coverage for the breeding male in the form of Java Moss, Najas, or Elodea so that he is not stressed unnecessarily. If he does not complete the mouthbrooding, low oxygen content, excessive bacteria, or organic substances are usually responsible. Keep in mind that in a stream full of leaf litter, fresh spring water or rainwater is constantly flowing. In the aquarium, however, decomposition quickly turns leaves into water pollution. Especially for residents of flowing habitats, leaves should be left out, unless slowly decaying foliage such as beech is used and it is regularly renewed. Frequent water changes are recommended either way. After the male releases the fry, he can be moved back to the main aquarium.

As well suited to the community tank as armored catfishes are, I keep them out when breeding Betta stigmosa. Due to their rapid metabolism and their fondness for digging in the substrate, they stir detritus and bacteria into the water column, which can affect the development of the clutch. The rearing of the young fish is not a problem; just be sure the temperature does not fall below 72°F (22°C), as they are sensitive to that up to a size of 1.6 inches (4 cm). With good water quality and varied feeding, they grow up quickly.

I can recommend Betta stigmosa to anyone who is interested in mouthbrooding fighting fishes—from beginners to old-timers looking for exciting behavior.

Acknowledgment: I would like to thank Norbert Neugebauer for this exciting fish, and especially for his information and insights.

REFERENCES

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because the male has to be fast to catch the eggs before she grabs them again. After several hours, the male finally has 30–80 eggs in his mouth. He mouthbroods them for 14–20 days. The young hatch after 5–7 days and International Betta Congress: http://smp.ibcbettas.org/species/pugnax. continue to be brooded by the male. At the end of the html gestation period their yolk sacs have been absorbed, and they are fully developed and hungry when the male releases them. At a size of about 5–6 mm, they Young Betta stigmosa at the age of 3 months. eat Artemia nauplii or finely sifted live pond food.

With dense planting and no additional predators, a few young fish may manage to grow up with their parents, but to guarantee their safety, you should separate the mouthbrooding male after about 10–12 days and put him in a small rearing aquarium. The fry tank should

R. BRODE

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Neugebauer, N. 1989. Durch Malaysia auf alten und neuen Wegen—ein aquaristischer Reisebericht, Teil II: Von Kota Bahru bis Mersing. Der Makropode 11 (10): 153–7.

———. 2005. Betta stigmosa—die Wiederentdeckung des Betta sp. “Tasik Kenyir.” Der Makropode 27 (11/12): 200–201.

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C OV E R

STORY A magnificent male Melanochromis johannii, the Bluegray Mbuna

Melanochromis:

first immigrants from Lake Malawi

by Jens Hamann • In the early 1970s, when the commercial export of Malawi cichlids

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The genus Melanochromis, endemic to Lake Malawi (known in some bordering countries as Lake Nyasa), consists of energetic and assertive mouthbrooding cichlids whose common feature is a slim, elongated body with longitudinal stripes. Males reach a size of 4.3 inches (11 cm); females are about 1 cm smaller. Unlike other cichlids, they do not defend a territory, but due to their high activity level they are only suitable for long aquariums of at least 50 gallons (190 L) and 48 inches (120 cm) long. Because of their easy care and assertiveness, they are often kept with larger cichlids (over 8 inches/20 cm) in aquariums of over 200 gallons (750 L). In order to offer them enough hideaways, especially the mouthbrooding females, the aquarium should contain substantial stone aquascaping. Sand and fine-grained gravel are the best substrates, as these fishes like to dig now and then. They will graze on the usual cichlid-hardy plants, such as Anubias, Java Fern, and Vallisneria gigantea, but rarely damage them. The fishes are very adaptable regarding water hardness and tolerate values between 10 and 30°dGH. The optimum pH is between 7.5 and 8.5, and the temperature should be around 77°F (25°C).

Melanochromis johannii The great cichlid discovery boom at Lake Malawi began in the early 1970s, when Peter Davis, the first ornamental fish exporter on the lake, sent Melanochromis johannii and a few other species to Europe. In keeping with the spirit of the times, this newcomer received a German name: the Kobalt-Orange-Buntbarsch. It was sold under the trade name Pseudotropheus daviesi before the scientific description in 1973 by Eccles as Pseudotropheus johannii.

Just a few years later, it was reclassified as Melanochromis.

This fish’s natural habitats are located on the southeast coast of Lake Malawi. They are often found in the transition zone at depths of 16–49 feet (5–15 m) between Metangula in Mozambique and Makanjila Point in Malawi. They stay near rocks, where they graze on aufwuchs, but also swim in the open water to prey on plankton.

The sexes are easily distinguished by their completely different colors. All juveniles are initially uniformly yellow. While this pigmentation becomes a strong yelloworange in females, an interesting change of color takes place in males with increasing age. Once the transfor-

H.-G. EVERS

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began, representatives of the Melanochromis species were among the first of these fishes to find their way into our aquariums. The small, colorful rock cichlids (mbuna) are still very popular, especially the three colorful species introduced here.

Female Melanochromis johannii have a yellow-orange base color.

mation is complete, males have a blue-black base color and two sky-blue longitudinal bands. The fin edges and strongly rounded forehead are the same bright blue color.

Egg spots in the anal fin are always present, usually one to three. Unfortunately, these gorgeous colors often fade with age. The females turn a yellowish gray and the males become a uniform blue-black.

As already mentioned, M. johannii are very assertive, especially during mating time, and also like to show off their earthmoving skills.

They tend to bury stones, so your rock decorations should be robust and their stability checked regularly. In stores, this pretty cichlid has become rare because another Melanochromis species has become more popular over the years.

of Likoma, in a rocky and mixed sand/rock zone at depths down to 66 feet (20 m).

Visually, the males of this new species are almost indistinguishable from M. johannii. But in M. cyaneorhabdos the females have the exact same pattern as the males, making the sexes difficult to determine. The females are 0.4–0.8 inch (1–2 cm) smaller, the blue pigmentation is slightly lighter, and the dorsal and anal fins are more rounded.

The reason this new cichlid displaced the established M. johannii in the aquarium is probably the extremely attractive coloration of the juveniles. When released from the mouth of the mother, the 0.3-inch (8-mm) fry are a delicate blue-gray. The fry are fully pigmented by the time they are about an inch (2–3 cm) long, something that is true of only a few other mbuna species (e.g., Labidochromis caeruleus and Pseudotropheus demasoni). Naturally, aquarists are magically drawn to this intensity of color.

Unfortunately, like M. johannii males, M. cyaneorhabdos males keep turning darker as they get older until black is the dominant color; the females keep their light and dark blue longitudinal bands as they mature.

A new member of the Melanochromis species complex suddenly appeared in the early 1990s, and was initially Melanochromis cyaneorhabdos male, sold in pet shops under the known as the Maingano Cichlid trade name Melanochromis “maingano.” At first, people disagreed as to whether this was a new species or a locaThe female Melanochromis cyaneorhabdos is blue too. tion variant of M. johannii that is blue in both sexes. In 1997, Bowers & Stauffer eliminated all doubt and described the species as M. cyaneorhabdos. As with many newly introduced fishes from Lake Malawi, the collection site was used as a trade name before the scientific description.

The species lives near Maingano on the northeastern coast of the island

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Melanochromis cyaneorhabdos

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R. BRODE

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Melanochromis auratus is frequently encountered on the southwestern coast of Lake Malawi. The northern distribution limit is the Jalo Reef. The color pattern is identical throughout the range, but the intensity of the yellow coloration of the females and the black of the males varies.

Melanochromis auratus is a classic among the mbuna (male New species in the M. aushown). ratus complex were discovered in the 1990s, when it became possible, after long years of war, to dive and collect on the Mozambican coast of the lake. A new dwarf morph was found there and was first traded as Melanochromis sp.

“Auratus Dwarf.” These fish grow to be about 3–3.5 inches (8–9 cm) long and are not nearly as colorful as the “West Coast Auratus.” The species has now been scientifically described as Melanochromis dialeptos. The southern area of distribution ends approximately at the Londo Bay in northern Mozambique.

The east coast of Mozambique is also home to Melanochromis sp. “Auratus ElongaFemale Melanochromis auratus with fry in her mouth. tus,” which has a more pointed head and an elongated body shape and reaches 4.3 inches (11 cm). Females are somewhat lighter in color and canMelanochromis auratus not compete with the intense yellow seen in M. auratus.

The distribution area is extremely limited to around the Around 1960, the very first immigrants from Lake Mavillage of Metangula, so there is no overlap between the lawi arrived in our aquariums. An extraordinarily colorful habitats of these two closely related species. cichlid was regularly imported as Pseudotropheus auratus.

This fish was called Türkisgoldbarsch (Turquoise Golden Need for swimming space Cichlid) in Germany. The species was originally described The fun that can be gained from keeping these dynamic

by Boulenger in 1897 as Chromis auratus (Greek for cichlids increases with the size of the aquarium. Mela“golden color”) and is still called the Auratus Cichlid. nochromis auratus in particular is an extremely agile and These fish show a very pronounced sexual dichrotemperamental fish, and the males won’t hesitate to bully matism. The females and juveniles have a characteristic even significantly larger representatives of other genera. pattern: on a golden yellow to silvery white base color, Keeping them with several conspecifics or other robust they have two deep black longitudinal bands, and a third species is actually a very good idea—the attention of the at the edge of the dorsal fin. The upper half of the caudal dominant male is deflected from his peers, so females and fin is spotted black; the bottom half is completely yellow. lower ranking males are not constantly under pressure.

Dominant males have two bright turquoise stripes on If space is limited and you can only keep one species, I the flanks over a black background. This striking color recommend M. cyaneorhabdos, the Maingano Cichlid. This develops with the onset of sexual maturity, which occurs fish is much more reserved in its temperament and can when the fish are about 2.4 inches (6 cm) long. Lowerbe mixed with less assertive species. However, all species ranking males camouflage themselves by assuming the presented here have one thing in common: they jump, so female coloration to signal subservience to the alpha it is very important to cover the aquarium carefully. male and avoid attacks. They are still distinguishable by Because these cichlids accept all foods greedily, feedthe one- to two-egg spots in the anal fin, which females ing poses no problems. Given that they are aufwuchs do not have.

Spawning Melanochromis cyaneorhabdos: the T-position.

grazers in the wild, a high-fiber diet with lots of vegetable content should be offered, in addition to meaty foods. Cucumber and zucchini slices and lettuce leaves are good choices. After release from the mother’s mouth, the little babies will accept any food that is the appropriate size.

Breeding these fishes is relatively easy. If you want to raise the fry, the mouthbrooding female should not be separated from the community before day 18. When a Young Melanochromis cyaneorhabdos shortly after release female is separated for too long, from the mother’s mouth. she risks losing her rank in the community. After the food-free brood care period, the already weakened female would be harassed upon return.

Note: A revision (Tawil 2002) of the genus Melanochromis assigned M. johannii and M. cyaneorhabdos to the genus Pseudotropheus.

REFERENCES

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Boulenger, G.A. 1897. Description of a new fish from Lake Nyassa. Ann Mag Nat Hist 19 (6): 155.

Bowers, N.J. and J.R. Stauffer, Jr. 1997.

Eight new species of rock-dwelling cichlids of the genus Melanochromis (Teleostei: Cichlidae) from Lake Malawi, Africa.

Ichthyol Explor Freshwaters 8 (1): 49–70.

Eccles, D.H. 1973. Two new species of cichlid fishes from Lake Malawi (formerly known as Lake Nyasa). Arnoldia (Rhodesia) 6 (16): 1–7.

Konings, A.F. and J.R. Stauffer, Jr. 2012.

Review of the Lake Malawi genus Melanochromis (Teleostei: Cichlidae) with a description of a new species. Zootaxa 3258: 1–27.

Tawil, P. 2002. Notes sur le genre Melanochromis johanni, Eccles, 1973. L’an Cichlidé 2: 61–8.

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REPORTAGE

Islands among the rapids of the lower Rio Xingu.

in black and white

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The stretch of the Rio Xingu known as Volta Grande (Big Bend) begins southeast of Altamira. Eighty miles (130 km) of rapids (cachoeiras) alternate with sandy areas, creating an ideal habitat for loricariids.

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by Haakon Haagensen • There is no armored catfish more popular among aquarists than the black and white Hypancistrus from the Rio Xingu in Brazil known as the Zebra Pleco.

Would-be breeders please take note: People are willing to pay big money for these catfish. Many pleco forms are near extinction in their natural habitat; we have the unique opportunity to conserve them in the aquarium, at least on a small scale.

Ever since the late 1980s, when the first pictures of a black and white striped Peckoltia (L46) were published, aquarists all over the world have enjoyed keeping and breeding these little gems in their home aquariums. It did not take long for new and slightly different forms of black and white striped plecos to be discovered and shipped out of Brazil. Although aquarium magazines everywhere provided tantalizing images of the early exports, most of those fancy and shockingly expensive plecos went to wealthy customers in Asia.

In the heyday of the L-numbers, importers clamored to present the latest sensational and exclusive catfish species. The fewer specimens were available, the higher the prices. Both L236 and L250 were supposedly caught in very difficult-toreach areas in an Indian reservation on the Rio Iriri, a Rio Xingu tributary upstream of Altamira, but later it became clear that L236 is also found in the Rio Xingu, even in the same region as the well-known L333. (Specifying false catch sites is a practice commonly employed to prevent other collectors from visiting the true locales.) There is still controversy as to whether there are any Hypancistrus in the Rio Iriri; experienced collectors and travelers claim that there are none, but others maintain that no one has searched hard enough to find them.

In recent years, new restrictions by the IBAMA (Brazil’s conservation authority, similar to the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service) have made it harder to find these fishes in the trade. Fortunately, most have already been propagated in the aquarium. Although this has partially satisfied the demands for these fishes, it has also led to a new and complicated issue: hybridization. It turns out that it is anything but easy to distinguish the different but very similar forms from one another, even those found in the same river system.

Hypancistrus spend the day in the many crevices and only come out at night to look for food.

Given the impending completion of the Belo Monte Dam Complex near Altamira on the lower Xingu, we should all try to learn as much as we can about these great catfishes before they disappear from their natural habitats. About 15 forms of Hypancistrus are known from the lower part of the Xingu River between Altamira and Porto do Moz. Some of them, such as L250, are still shrouded in mystery, but it is likely that they, too, come from this region.

Besides the many L-number catfishes, there are others that are difficult to identify. It is unlikely that they are all separate species, since they all come from a single river and are closely related.

While it is not unusual to find several forms of a species in a single habitat, the huge number of forms that occur in the Rio Xingu is confusing. Entirely different standards are needed to categorize these fishes, and it is hardly surprising that some people are so overwhelmed by the

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H.-G. EVERS

Species confusion

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Rock formations offer a maze of crevices and caves. The feeding trails are made

by Baryancistrus chrysolomus (L47), which live syntopically with Hypancistrus zebra in this area and graze on the rocks at night.

sheer variety that they just put their heads in the sand.

There is a huge amount of general information about these catfishes out there. Breeding reports, husbandry experiences, and identification guides are ubiquitous on the Internet; some sources are reliable, others questionable. What is certain is that so far, nobody has a foolproof way to identify the many types and forms.

With all this in mind, I have tried to summarize the available information here. I admit that this article does not give any definitive answers, but I hope it leads to a better understanding of this amazing catfish group.

Clearwater habitat The various forms of black and white striped Hypancistrus are usually caught between Altamira and Porto do Moz in water 6–100 feet (2–30 m) deep. They occur in moderate to fast-flowing, soft to slightly acidic warm water. They prefer rock structures and like to hide in cracks and crevices. The water parameters, which are constant almost all year, are: pH 6.0–6.5, very low conductivity, and temperatures of 82–90°F (28–32°C). The distribution of various populations is restricted by the extreme currents and precipitous waterfalls, so they stay in their own territories.

However, one must not underestimate the vastness of the region: the Xingu River basin is larger than most people can imagine. The river is several miles wide in places and contains some islands. Large rocks that create rapids alternate with extensive sandy areas, representing distribution barriers for these littoral-colonizing catfishes.

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A form that occurs without the presence of another from the same genus is usually referred as a valid or emerging species. It seems that there are four of these base forms in the Rio Xingu: Hypancistrus zebra, L174, L66, and L333. The latter two are larger than the rest (6–6.4 inches/15–16 cm TL). Hopefully, detailed molecular DNA studies will soon reveal more about their genetic relationships, but there is no doubt that the forms are all closely related. A very compre-

H.-G. EVERS

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The best-known Hypancistrus forms of the Rio Xingu

Right: Old males may darken slightly with age.

The animal in the top photo is 16 years old and still as beautiful as it was on the first day; the fish pictured at right is not.

Bottom: Offspring of L66 with barely forked tail fin and wide striping pattern.

Anyone who didn’t know better would assume this was an L333.

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TOP: H.-G. EVERS; MIDDLE: E.D. BERTELSEN; BOTTOM: D. KONN-VETTERLEIN

Top: The Zebra Pleco (Hypancistrus zebra), the type species of the genus, started a real pleco craze at the beginning of the 1990s. This beautiful species is still one of the most popular catfishes.

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A wild-caught male Hypancistrus sp. L66.

L66 females are not as thorny as males.

hensive study is currently in progress and should shed some light on the issue.

Hypancistrus sp. L174 has small eyes and is relatively easy to distinguish from other species.

This juvenile fish from the yellow line of L333 is approximately 1.2 inches (3 cm) long.

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The four main forms or species Hypancistrus zebra is remarkably uniform and is very attractively patterned. Occasionally, H. zebra specimens with pattern variations, such as L98, do occur. Through breeding experiments, we know that this variation is not heritable. L250 may also be a H. zebra variant; all known images show specimens with silvery eyes, a feature known only from H. zebra. The blue shimmer in the fins of H. zebra is also present.

However, most Hypancistrus from the Rio Xingu have brown to reddish eyes and do not show any trace of blue on the fins.

Without further imports, a clarification in this case is difficult. The distribution of H. zebra includes four to six different localities between Altamira and Belo Monte. H. zebra is usually found in deep water. Based on aquarium observations, the species is more active at night. Both factors suggest that the zebra pattern is well suited for low light conditions.

Hypancistrus sp. L66 is a large and robust form with a black wormline pattern on a gray or yellowish background.

While L333 is usually cream-colored, L66 is more commonly white and gray. In mature animals, the pattern is denser and finer, often breaking down into stripes or

Approximately 1.2-inch (3-cm) juvenile of the white line of L333.

TOP TWO: E.D. BERTELSEN; REST: D. KONN-VETTERLEIN

An L66 specimen with very long caudal filaments.

As L333 specimens age they turn dark and their eyes become sunken.

even spots. However, color and pattern are not reliable differThis Hypancistrus sp. “Mimic” was caught with L174s. The species are entiation features between the similar, but the “Mimic” is larger two. Compared to L333, L66 and more elongated, like this female. is flatter and the caudal fin is more deeply forked. L66 is one of the most widespread forms in the river; it occurs from Altamira down to the huge lake located at the river’s end.

This form is also found in the tributaries.

Hypancistrus sp. L174 is easy to recognize: the most characteristic feature of this deep-water species is its small eyes. There are only a few Wild-caught male Hypancistrus sp. “Mimic.” known locations, which are downstream of Altamira. L174 is, so far, the smallest known member of the genus with a maximum length of 3.2 inches (8 cm). The pattern always consists of dark dots or spots, which led to the nickname “Ocelot Pleco.” Contrary to previous reports, L174 shares no habitats with H. zebra.

Hypancistrus sp. L333 has a highbacked, compact, sturdy shape with a reverse D-shaped caudal fin. The many known variants differ in both pattern and color. Usually, the pattern of wormA Hypancistrus sp. “Belo Monte Special.” This form is lines becomes narrower and shows less very similar to L333. The offspring all look alike. contrast with age. Some individuals have beautiful wide lines. This rather large species is mostly caught near Porto do Moz, but is also found near Vitoria do Xingu.

The Rest The biggest challenge for aquarists is to identify the many other forms that occur in the river, as they are all very similar.

They have a bright base color, which can vary from pale yellow to gray and white.

The pattern consists of dark wormlines or spots. The eyes are brown and their

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TOP LEFT, BOTTOM RIGHT: H.-G. EVERS; MIDDLE: D. KONN-VETTERLEIN; TOP RIGHT, BOTTOM LEFT: E.D. BERTELSEN

A superb specimen of the yellow form of Hypancistrus sp. L333.

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Adult L399/L400 specimen. The stocky physique distinguishes this fish from the similarly patterned Hypancistrus sp. “Mimic.”

A tank-raised L399/L400 with an unusually shaped tail fin.

Hypancistrus sp. L173 (left) and Hypancistrus zebra (right).

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Hypancistrus sp. L287/L399/ L400: These are three numbers for one

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and the same form, in my opinion. It is apparently a highly variable form.

Although spotting is the most common pattern, there are specimens

TOP TWO: D. KONN-VETTERLEIN; BOTTOM TWO: E.D. BERTELSEN

Hypancistrus sp. L287. Although the number is more like a phantom, some dealers continue to use this name. There are hardly any differences between this form and L399/L400 due to intraspecific variability in these Hypancistrus.

size varies. Some forms have a short, compact build, while others are rather slim. The caudal fin can have long filaments or be small and non-elongated. The head shape is not uniform; it can be pointed or rounded. Most hobbyists pay way too much attention to the color pattern. This is where there is the most overlap between the various forms, which makes identification impossible. Never rely on the color pattern to identify these forms!

Hypancistrus sp. “Mimic” lives syntopic with L174 near Altamira. In the last few years, it was often mistaken in the trade for L399/L400 or L173. Hypancistrus sp. L174, L399, L400, and “Mimic” share one feature: the dark spot pattern.

Hypancistrus sp. L174 and “Mimic” have much smaller eyes than the others. Hypancistrus sp. “Mimic” is larger and has a flatter body and a more pointed head than L174. Young animals are almost impossible to distinguish. Hypancistrus sp. “Mimic” babies have a striped pattern, similar to H. zebra, whereas young L174 always have a spotted pattern.

Hypancistrus sp. “Lower Xingu” is a complex group of similar forms that are very difficult to distinguish. Apparently, this group is in the process of slowly separating into individual new species. They live within a radius of just over 6 miles (10 km) of Belo Monte.

Janne Ekström works there every day with these catfishes and says the following: “There are four or five variants in this complex. One of them, known as H. sp. ‘Gurupa,’ is always light gray to white and has smaller eyes relative to the head size.

The body shape is compact and the caudal fin has no filaments or extensions. A second variant is black and white, with a flatter body and extended caudal. This variant is very similar to L173; some look exactly like it (not all L173 look like discolored H. zebra). The third variant is also black and white, but shares the compact body and the lack of filaments with H. sp. ‘Gurupa.’ It resembles L333, but has a pattern that varies from spots to broad, irregularly arranged stripes. L399 and L400 are from the same region and possibly also belong to this group.”

TOP AND BOTTOM: E.D. BERTELSEN; MIDDLE: H.-G. EVERS

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that have very broad lines or fine lines with plenty of open space. Intense captive breeding has revealed an enormous number of variations. Characteristics of coveted forms such as L173, L236, and L345 are among them. These L-numbers may be all morphs of the same form. L399 differs from L400 only slightly by a somewhat more delicate physique—L400 appears more robust.

This group consists of smaller catfishes (about 4.8 inches/12 cm) that are more elongated and a little less bulky. They have large, forked caudal fins with the longest filaments A wild-caught L173. The similarity to Hypancistrus zebra is striking, which is why some people believe that L173 is a variant of that in the genus. There are variations species. Nevertheless, there are certain distinguishing features. in the anatomy. Such immense variability among loricariids is not common and is very noticeable in this case. To complicate matters, This Hypancistrus sp. L236 specimen sports a wormline pattern on a light gray background. the home of these catfishes is in the surroundings of Belo Monte.

During just one dive, different variants can be caught in a single locality. They share their habitat with some of the main species in the river (L66, L333, and H. zebra).

Belo Monte seems to be a hotspot for the development of new forms and species. So far, the gene flow between these forms has not been well studied, but a form like L173 suggests that there are regular natural hybridizations among some of them. The question is, to what extent is this A tank-raised L236. The majority of the offspring show this pattern. happening?

Hypancistrus sp. L173 is a highly sought-after but controversial form from near Belo Monte. The similarity to H. zebra is striking, especially in juveniles. However, there are differences: L173 has brown eyes, a rather off-white base color, a variable wormline pattern, a taller and more compact body, and a longer caudal fin. This form also grows larger than H. zebra. In the hobby, L173 was unfortunately hybridized with H. zebra to produce more of the “L173 type.” Some L173 lines differ so much from the norm that it is hard to believe that they belong to this form. Not all individuals have the typical pattern. Some offspring of L400 a typical pattern and color would therefore be “L173a.”) show a pattern similar to L173, hence, a close genetic relationship is very likely. It is important to note that L173 is Hypancistrus sp. L236: The image from the initial not a morph of H. zebra, as was previously assumed. introduction of L236 shows a fish with a few wide black The commercially available L173b should be regarded wormlines on a pale cream background—an unusual patwith skepticism. (The “b” was introduced by Aquarium tern, even within this genus. Nevertheless, such individuGlaser. Specimens that differ externally from the normal als occur in all forms with wormlines, although it is rare. habitus were identified with the letter “b.” Individuals with The individual shown shared many characteristics with

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L236 juveniles may look this variable!

L66, such as the flat, slender physique and the forked caudal fin. However, there are also examples known that combine the physique of L333 with the pattern of L236.

These are L333, which are advertised as L236 because of their pattern. Over time, L236 has become a “brand.”

Each Hypancistrus that corresponded to the original pattern, no matter where it came from or what body shape it had, was called L236.

Many catfish friends seem to forget or ignore the fact

This fish was caught in shallow water near Belo Monte and represents the form L236.

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This L236 looks very much like L333, but descends from the same parents as the fish in the picture on the left.

that all the wormline Hypancistrus are inconsistent in their patterns. Two parents with exactly matching patterns will not guarantee that the same pattern will show up in the offspring. With the exception of H. zebra, there is no Hypancistrus form with a consistent pattern that is found in large quantities. Even in Colombian species such as H. debilittera and L340, there are animals with a “negative pattern” (H. sp. “Platinum”). However, this is never the standard pattern of any species.

Starting with an “ideal pair,” we attempted to select out the dark parts of the body pattern. At the beginning, 10 percent of the offspring corresponded to the desired appearance. After 10 years, the yield of fishes with the desired pattern increased to 30 percent per clutch. This shows that a certain color or pattern type can be bred selectively in the aquarium.

In addition, it should be noted that at the juvenile stage (1.6–2.4 inches/4–6 cm), all Xingu forms except H. zebra look very similar, so they cannot be identified by the pattern. Therefore, it is important to see the parents in order to assess whether a breeder has properly named the animals

THIS PAGE TOP: H.-G. EVERS; THIS PAGE MIDDLE TWO: D. KONN-VETTERLEIN; REST: J. EKSTRÖM

This gorgeous black and white pattern is what people expect to see in an L236.

or not. The impressive pattern of babies usually becomes denser and darker with age.

Thoughts on the development of Hypancistrus in the Rio Xingu Currently, the Rio Xingu is the most species-rich habitat for loricariids. Among them are many forms and species that are still evolving—and not only Hypancistrus. Spectracanthicus, Scobinancistrus (at least six), Ancistrus, Baryancistrus (at least nine), and others are represented by many similar forms that differ by color pattern.

This shows that this river, with its natural The forms pictured on this and the next two pages were all caught at Porto do Moz and reflect how variable the genus Hypancistrus is in this area. Some could be boundaries, contributes to the rise of new assigned to various L-numbers, if body shape is the determinant used. This one is species. This may be the case for HypancisHypancistrus sp. “Porto do Moz 1.” trus, although they differ much more, not just in the pattern. The large variation is the evolve into new, slightly different forms as they adapt to result of specific adaptations to the environment, such the habitat. as predation, food, the structure of the riverbed, water It seems that some forms exist very close to each depth, flow, and intraspecific communication. other, even in the same biotope. How they differentiate The rapids, waterfalls, and sandbars form natural to find their partners, and whether this is done by looks, barriers in the river, so it is not surprising that one finds smells, sounds, or ecological niches, such as water depth isolated populations. This physical isolation, and the fact or rock structures, is one of many questions that remain. that the catfishes do not move very much and thus rarely For example, it is not yet known whether all Hypancistrus overcome these boundaries, allow these populations to

Hypancistrus sp. “Porto do Moz 2”

Hypancistrus sp. “Porto do Moz 4”

Hypancistrus sp. “Porto do Moz 3”

Hypancistrus sp. “Porto do Moz 5”

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Hypancistrus sp.

“Porto do Moz 6”

can interbreed. Right now it looks like that is the case.

The possibility that all forms hybridize is certainly greater in the aquarium than it is in nature. We do not yet know how mixing takes place in the natural habitat or what makes a fish choose a given partner.

Tropical fishes occurring in different morphs is nothing new, and these forms can serve as a basis for breeding new lines. One of the best-known examples is the discus (Symphysodon sp.). In this genus, even crossspecies hybrids are widely accepted. However, catfish enthusiasts tend to reject that idea, and the results of hybridizations from Eastern Europe are frowned upon by serious hobbyists. In Asia, however, the creation of new lines seems to have been widely accepted. I personally hope that this view will not prevail elsewhere.

Hypancistrus belongs to the undemanding L-catfishes, and this makes the genus popular with beginners, which in turn increases the risk of unintentional hybridizations. It is well described that the various forms cross and produce fertile offspring (a list of known hybrids can be found at www.L-Welse.com). Take, for example, the hybrid offspring of L66 and L333. Such fry are simply given a number and then passed on, knowingly or not. Thus, we run the risk of creating singular hybrid strains with unknown provenance. This

Hypancistrus sp.

“Porto do Moz 8”

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Hypancistrus sp.

“Porto do Moz 7”

Hypancistrus sp.

“Porto do Moz 9”

happened long ago with the “common bristlenose pleco” (Ancistrus sp.).

It is important to know the origin of your animals.

Are they wild caught, captive-bred from a breeder, or bought as individual animals? There are countless discussions on the Internet about the identity of individual ani-

mals. Many Hypancistrus from the Rio Xingu are expensive, and most fish keepers who care for them try to keep them pure, but some people do not want to know what they have in their aquariums if the truth does not agree with their wishful thinking. Due to IBAMA restrictions in Brazil, for a long time there were no wild-caught animals available commercially. Even today, most fishes offered are tank-raised offspring. Consequently, it is all the more important for breeders to be aware of the identity of their catfishes and not simply pass them on under a name that will bring the greatest profit. While H. zebra is propagated in large numbers worldwide, some species and forms are very rarely kept. These are the species and forms we must multiply and preserve!

The Rio Xingu offers a unique display of evolution, where we can observe the formation of species within a lifetime. If we have an interest in exploring this unique group of fishes, we must act quickly. Time is running out: we all know about the Belo Monte Complex, now under construction. In a few years, the environment could be so severely degraded that many fishes might disappear. The reality is that we are destroying a treasure before we have understood it. However, we do have a breeding foundation for maintaining some black and white Hypancistrus, at least in the aquarium, for a long time to come.

Acknowledgments: This article is the result of years of personal experience and research. Still, I would not be able to present this work without the help of many knowledgeable people in the catfish world. I am grateful for their time, their dedication, their criticism, and their willingness to communicate. I am sure we will all continue to benefit from the great collaboration we have established. My thanks go to my friends Erlend D. Bertelsen, Hans Johan Mengshoel, and Bjørn Iversen (all from Norway), Janne Ekström (Sweden/Brazil), Mikael Håkansson (Sweden), Heriberto Gimênes, Jr. (Brazil), Saul Paredes, Nathan Lujan, Jon Armbruster, and Milton Tan (all from U.S.), Daniel Konn-Vetterlein, Ingo Seidel, Torsten Schwede, and Hans-Georg Evers (all from Germany).

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TOP TWO: J. EKSTRÖM; BOTTOM: A. WERNER

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The beautiful Hypancistrus sp. L250 is one of the most coveted aquarium fishes of all. Unfortunately, the form has been collected only a few times.

This interesting Hypancistrus sp. was caught on the lower Rio Xingu.

Under which name or number this juvenile Hypancistrus from the lower Rio Xingu could be sold is anyone’s guess.

Budrovcan, R. 2011. Die L236 Story—Teil 2. BSSW-Report 23 (3): 9–17.

Ekström, J. 2010. Der Belo-Monte-Staudamm am Rio Xingu—ein vorprogrammiertes Desaster.

AMAZONAS 31: 8–12.

Evers, H.-G. 2005. Quo vadis, Hypancistrus zebra? AMAZONAS 2 (German): 36–8.

Evers, H.-G. and I. Seidel. 2002. Wels-Atlas, Band 1, Mergus Verlag, Melle, Germany.

Lechner, W., M. Geiger, and A. Werner. 2005. Neues aus der Gattung Hypancistrus—Teil 1. DATZ 58 (11): 6–13.

———. 2005. Neues aus der Gattung Hypancistrus—Teil 2. DATZ 58 (12): 10–17.

Schmidt, E. 2011. Die L236 Story—Teil 3. BSSW-Report 23 (2): 18–21.

Schraml, E. and F. Schäfer. 2004. Aqualog Loricariidae All L-Numbers. Aqualog Verlag A.C.S., Rodgau, Germany.

Seidel, I. 2005a. Besonderes zur Gattung Hypancistrus. AMAZONAS 2 (German): 16–25.

———. 2005b. Die Neuesten Hypancistrus-Arten. AMAZONAS 2 (German): 26–9.

———. 2007. Schon wieder ein neuer Hypancistrus aus dem Unterlauf des Rio Xingu. Aquar Fachmag 193: 30–31.

———. 2008. Back to Nature: Guide to L-Catfishes (Loricariidae). Fohrman Aquaristik AB, Jonsered, Sweden.

———. 2010. Hypancistrus-Fibel—Die schönsten L-Welse im Aquarium. Dähne-Verlag, Ettlingen, Germany.

———. 2011a. Der Rio Xingu in Brasilien—ein Paradies in großer Gefahr. Aquar Fachmag 213: 4–7.

———. 2011b. Rio Xingu—große Artenvielfalt durch verschiedene Lebensräume. Aquar Fachmag 213: 8–19.

———. 2011c. Die vom Aussterben bedrohten L-Welse vom Rio Xingu. Aquar Fachmag 213: 20–27.

———. 2011d. Die L236 Story—Teil 1. BSSW-Report 23 (3): 6–8.

Seidel, I. and H.-G. Evers. 2005. Wels-Atlas, Band 2. Mergus Verlag, Melle, Germany.

Stawikowski, R., I. Seidel, and A. Werner. 2004. DATZ Spezial: L-Numbers. Verlag Eugen Ulmer, Stuttgart, Germany.

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M. HÅKANSSON

REFERENCES

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AQ UATI C

PLANTS

WINTER 2014 • More than once I have heard friends in the reef hobby, remarking on their preference for saltwater scapes, proclaim that corals are simply much more colorful than freshwater plants and fishes. While the color palette is distinct, the variety of hues in this large planted setup by Don Boyer of Nashville, Tennessee, surpasses all of the reef tanks and every other kind of aquarium that I have ever seen. This masterful planting features a great variety of plants, including several new introductions to the aquarium hobby and others apparently never used in planted aquascapes before. The large, shallow enclosure includes a broad substrate bed for hardscape and aquatic plants, as well as a planted above-water area. Although it was developed as a planted display, the setup also houses a charming population of nano fishes and aquatic livestock.

ALIVE in AMAZONAS

TECHNICOLOR:

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Don Boyer’s 200-gallon planted riparium article by Devin Biggs • images by Don Boyer

A view of the above-water area showing epiphytes growing on manzanita branches with green riparium plants as taller background foliage.

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1. Cryptocoryne affinis “Metallic Red” 2. Lilaeopsis brasiliensis 3. Cryptocoryne affinis “Green Brown” 4. Alternanthera reineckii 5. Bucephalandra sp. “Brownie Ghost”

6. Ludwigia glandulosa x palustris 7. Hygrophila sp. “Tiger” 8. Tillandsia bergeri 9. Tillandsia ionantha “Rubra” 10. Tillandsia funckiana

Aquarium: Custom 200-gallon (757-L) (20 x 48 x 48

inch/50 x 120 x 120 cm) rimless, high-clarity glass Lighting: 2 Sunlight Supply Tek Light Elite 8 x 54W HO

T5 fixtures • 2 Giesemann Lagoon Blue 16,000K T5 lamps • 2 UVL Red Sun bulb 633NM T5 lamps • 2 UVL Indigo Sun T5 Lamps • 5 D-D Giesemann Aquaflora T5 lamps

Glossary:

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Aquarium Details:

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Three broad classes of plants, grouped according to their habitats in nature, grow in this setup: 1) epiphytes, 2) marginal aquatics, and 3) submerged aquatics. Distinctions between the ecologies of these different kinds of plants are critical for successful plant care and for better appreciation of their natural environments and adaptations. To better explain how this large aquarium was adapted for the care of these plants, I offer a list of relevant terms below.

• Epiphyte—a plant that grows upon another (usually living) plant. The most characteristic epiphytes are the orchids, bromeliads, ferns, and other plants that adorn the limbs of trees in tropical forests.

• Marginal aquatic plant—a plant that grows along the edge of a stream, lake, or river with its roots in very wet soil or in soil under shallow water, but with most of its stem and foliage above water.

• Paludarium—a planted setup that includes a water area and a terrestrial feature. The water portion can be

11. Nephrolepsis exaltata ‘Fluffy Ruffles’ 12. Tillandsia geminiflora 13. Asceplias curassavica 14. Cyperus involucratus ‘Baby Tut’® 15. Hygrophila salicifolia

• 4 D-D Giesemann PowerChrome Midday 6,000K T5 lamps Water Filtration: Fluval FX5 canister filter Hydor Koralia powerheads In-line UV sterilizer CO2 Injection: 4 bubbles/second, needle wheel pump (1,400 gallons/hour) Owner/Location: Donald M. Boyer Nashville, Tennessee planted or unplanted, while the land area can be planted with marginal aquatic or terrestrial plants. Paludariums sometimes also include three-dimensional branches or background features for planting epiphytic plants.

Paludariums can be good habitats for fishes as well as amphibious animals.

• Riparium—a planted aquarium featuring marginal aquatic plants grown in riparium planters or similar structures. In contrast to paludariums, ripariums do not include built-up terrestrial features. Ripariums are suitable mainly for fishes and other fully aquatic animals.

• Terrestrial plant—a plant rooted in soil in an upland (away from water) situation.

• Terrarium—an enclosed planted setup designed mainly for terrestrial plants (planted into the bottom) and sometimes also for epiphytes (planted on a threedimensional background structure or branches). A terrarium can also include a small water feature. Planted terrariums can serve as good habitats for terrestrial animals, such as poison dart frogs (Dendrobatidae).

The Planted Setup The very broad (2,304 square inches/14,864 cm ) footprint of this tank provides a lot of space for underwater plants. Most of these specimens are rooted in a substrate bed comprised of a forest topsoil layer with a cap of white pool filter sand. While aquarists have used this sort of layered topsoil method for decades, in recent years more and more hobbyists have been discovering the numerous benefits of real topsoil as a long-term, slow-release source of plant nutrients, humic acid, and dissolved carbon dioxide. An important caveat for the use of topsoil in a planted tank is that the soil layer must be kept covered with gravel or sand; by carelessly uprooting plants or otherwise disturbing the soil layer, one can stir a large amount of plant nutrients (especially phosphorus) into the water column and trigger an algae bloom. Nevertheless, with careful planning and careful aquascape maintenance it is pretty easy to avoid this hazard. Don Boyer’s techniques have supported a truly amazing variety of underwater plants growing with robust vigor and intense colors.

Three long ridges of Seiryu stone form the underwater hardscape and accentuate visual depth as they ascend to the rear glass panel. These boulders also serve as habitat for some of the submerged aquatics, including several different Bucephalandra and Anubias species/varieties.

These underwater plants, along with the familiar Microsorum pteropus and Bolbitis heudelotii ferns, grow as creep2

ing rhizomes attached to hard surfaces such as sunken logs and rocks. All of them can likewise grow above water on wet surfaces in humid air, as can be found right along the edges of jungle streams. This ability to grow above the water or below suits these plants very well in their habitats, where most are subject to seasonal immersion as waters rise with rainy season flooding. Since they grow on hard substrates, they are often referred to as “epiphytic” plants in aquascaping circles, but this is technically less than correct. Nevertheless, this terminology serves well enough in the hobby.

Several long manzanita branches extend upward from the underwater portion and curve forward over the water’s surface to create a setting for true epiphytic plants.

This innovative planting method provides perfect habitat for a number of different Tillandsia air plants, along with orchids, mosses, ferns, and other epiphytes. Genus Tillandsia belongs to the bromeliad family (Bromeliaceae) and includes more than 500 species that usually grow as epiphytes or lithophytes (rock dwellers) and sometimes as terrestrials in habitats from the Southern United States through Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean, and South America. These interesting little plants are often called “air plants” because most can live and grow with little more than air. A few kinds of Tillandsia are very common in gardening and can even be found for sale as trinkets on a drugstore checkout counter. The roots

The underwater area has an amazingly rich and deep variety of textures, attesting to careful plant selection and expert plant-growing skills.

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of Tillandsia usually grow as just a few thin, tough cords that anchor the plants to tree bark and other hard substrates. The air plant roots have little role in nutrient or water uptake, which occurs instead on the leaf surfaces.

The leaves of Tillandsia are covered in fine, hairy scales known in botany as trichomes. These microscopic structures trap water and dust particles on the leaf surfaces, while also slowing evaporation and helping the plant to conserve water. The wooly or satiny trichome texture is a diagnostic identification feature for some Tillandsia species and it is attractive in appearance. Air plants that grow in more sunny, arid, or windy situations usually have more dense trichome coverings, and thus more silvery or powdery textures.

While they resist desiccation, Tillandsia and other epiphytes do require water. In nature epiphytic plants receive their moisture from precipitation and they do not

tolerate the metals and mineral salts found in most tap water. Don Boyer mists his Tillandsia and other epiphytes a few times a week with clean reverse osmosis water or rainwater. Their positioning over the tank is a convenient feature because dripA panoramic view of the underwater ping irrigation water plantscape and just drops right into fishes. the aquarium. Most epiphytes grow best with some moisture in the air, and the open-top aquarium helps to maintain higher relative humidity in the area above the tank.

Several taller (up to 24 inches/60 cm) marginal aquatic plants are rooted in riparium planters positioned on the tank’s rear glass panel. As true swamp, marsh, or stream-dwelling species, these plants are evolutionarily adapted to the permanently wet conditions of this kind of planting, especially the low available oxygen in the root zone. Regular upland terrestrial plants, conversely, do not work in riparium planters because their roots perish in this low-oxygen environment.

The riparium plants are of just a few easy-to-grow species. In contrast with the underwater plants and epiphytes planted on the manzanita branches, the riparium plants are of just a few similar shades of plain green.

This monochrome background functions as a contrasting foil for the underwater plants and epiphytes planted

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The golden-yellow inflorescence of Mexican milkweed (Asclepias curassavica).

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Fully aquatic Selaginella sp. spike moss.

on the manzanita branches, accentuating their bright and varied colors.

This tank is a creative design and it is difficult to characterize it among the established kinds of planted displays. While it has some riparium plants, the manzanita branches provide quite a lot of habitat structure for the epiphytes. Unlike most paludariums, however, the above-water area is not developed with a broad hardscape extending into the below-water portion; the slender branches leave the underwater area mostly open for fully aquatic plants and aquarium livestock. Neither is there any true land area for amphibious livestock or terrestrial plants. Perhaps the tank is best described as an adapted riparium or riparium/paludarium hybrid setup.

Livestock Most of the animals in this riparium setup are true nano fishes. Their diminutive proportions accentuate the vast scale of the whole display enclosure.

• Ancistrus sp., Bristlenose Pleco Catfish • Boraras merah, Phoenix Rasbora • Corydoras aeneus, Bronze Cory • Corydoras habrosus, Salt-and-Pepper Cory • Glossolepis incisis, Red Irian Rainbowfish • Glossolepis wanamensis, Emerald Rainbowfish • Neritina reclivata, Olive Nerite Snail • Rasbora paucisqualis, Largescaled Rasbora • Stiphodon semoni, Cobalt Blue Goby • Sundadanio axelrodi, Neon Blue Rasbora • Trichogaster chuna, Sunset Honey Gourami • Tylomelania sp., Sulawesi Snail

Plant Highlights A few select plants in this complex and very lush system are of special interest, including species that are new introductions to the hobby or less familiar for use with planted aquariums.

UNDERWATER

Crypts—Cryptocoryne species are probably the most popular of all aquarium plants. This tank features numerous unusual collector species and rare localities for some common species. The following lists the crypts growing in Don Boyer’s tank along with the locality name or variety (in single or double quotes), where known, and geographic region, where known: • Cryptocoryne affinis “Green Brown,” Peninsular Malaysia • C. affinis “Metallic Red,” Peninsular Malaysia • C. bullosa, Sarawak, Borneo, Malaysia • C. cordata var. siamensis ‘Rosanervig,’ Southern Thailand • C. cordata var. siamensis “KR01,” Southern Thailand • C. cordata ‘Flamingo,’ horticultural origin • C. ferruginea • C. hudoroi, Borneo, Indonesia • C. keei “Jambusan,” Jambusan, Sarawak, Borneo, Malaysia • C. nurii • C. usteriana, Philippines • C. wendtii ‘Green Gecko,’ Sri Lanka While most crypts are easy to grow and all are beautiful to behold in planted aquascapes, they are also of interest for their variety, unique adaptations, and native environments. Among my favorite places to visit on the Internet is the crypt-themed site Illumbomb’s Cryptocoryne Blog (http://illumbomb.blogspot.com), featuring detailed habitat observations for many species, by Singaporean rainforest explorer T.S. Wang. Another excellent online resource, maintained by Dutch crypt expert Jan D. Bastmeijer, The Crypts Page (http://crypts.home.xs4all.nl/ Cryptocoryne), provides range, habitat, culture, and variety information for most described Cryptocoryne species.

Floscopa scandens—This member of Commelinaceae, the same plant family host to the common houseplant

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A rosy pink Neoregelia bromeliad with other epiphytic plants growing on the manzanita branches.

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Wandering Jew (Tradescantia zebrine), has a broad natural range extending from India through Southeast Asia all the way to Northern Australia. In its wild habitats F. scandens usually grows as a marginal aquatic along the edges of forest streams, but it can also adapt to a fully aquatic lifestyle, completely submerged underwater. This plant appeared in the aquarium hobby in the United States just a couple of years ago and it shows very good potential as a decorative plant. It would be interesting to try this species above water as a riparium plant in a planter. The appearance of its bright green foliage is as cheerful and fun as the sound of the plant’s Latin name when you say it out loud.

Selaginella sp.—The spike mosses (Family Selaginellaceae) are “fern allies” distantly related to other ancient spore-bearing plants, such as quillworts (Isoetes) and club mosses (Lycopodiales). While Selaginella spike mosses superficially resemble the nonvascular bryophyte mosses and, like them, reproduce with spores, they have simple vascular systems thought to resemble those of the earliest vascular plants. A couple of common spike mosses are sometimes sold as “faux aquatics.” While they live in moist places and resemble aquatic plants, they are not adapted to be permanently submerged and are doomed to drown and die in a fish tank. This interesting, unknown Selaginella, on the other hand, is a true aquatic and it actively grows underwater in Don’s tank. Another new introduction to aquascaping, it will be interesting to see if others can have good success with this distinctive plant and share it within the hobby. There is apparently no species determination for this Selaginella. Perhaps somebody will figure out its origin and identity or publish a description for it if it is new to science.

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EPIPHY TES

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Tillandsia baileyi—While many more air plant species range south into Mexico, the Caribbean, Central America, and South America, 17 species and 2 natural hybrids grow in the subtropical or warm temperate forest habitats of the Southeastern United States. Of these, only T. baileyi does not occur at all in Florida and is instead found in Southern Texas and Tamaulipas, Mexico, where it prefers to grow on the limbs of live oak (Quercus virginiana) and Texas ebony (Ebanopsis ebano). This Tillandsia species has bright red and purple flowers, along with a distinctive bulbous base.

Tillandsia usneoides—The familiar Spanish Moss plant is not a moss at all, nor is it Spanish. Like other Tillandsia species, it is a true flowering plant, and it blooms with tiny yellow-green flowers. With long wisps of fine, needle-like foliage that hang from the branches of live oak and other Southern trees, Spanish Moss does superficially resemble a moss or a lichen. Like true mosses, it also lacks a functional vascular system. The stems and leaves of T. usneoides are so thin that all of its cells can

receive some sunlight or are immediately adjacent to photosynthetic cells, so it has no real need for functional xylem or phloem. Also distinguishing Spanish Moss from other Tillandsia is its lack of the holdfast roots of most other species.

This plant instead relies on its very light weight and numerous hook-like leaves to remain aloft on the limbs of trees.

Spanish Moss occurs from the Southeastern United States south through much of South America.

RIPARIUM

Asclepias curassavica—All of the riparium plants in this display are pretty common in horticulture and already familiar as choices for planted ripariums. It is worthwhile to mention Mexican Milkweed (Asclepias curassavica) in some detail because it is an especially useful and vigorous riparium selection. Mexican Milkweed is a true marginal aquatic plant adapted to grow in wet soil, and I once saw a large stand of it growing in a marshy area along the banks of a river in Southern Mexico.

The original native range of A. curassavica probably included Mexico and Central America, although it has spread through many tropical areas of the world as a naturalized weed. It is also popular in the United States as a fastgrowing annual bedding plant. Mexican Milkweed might be the easiest of all riparium plants to bloom and it quickly fills a riparium planter cup with dense white roots. It is also easy to propagate from cuttings by suspending cut stem bases in water to root.

Interview with Don Boyer Devin Biggs: This tank is really amazing. Thank you for sharing your photos and your descriptions.

Don Boyer: My pleasure!

How did you get started in the planted aquarium hobby?

I always loved water and nature as a kid. I especially enjoyed hiking on my grandfather’s farm through the creeks and forests. Fish were especially fascinating to me. When I got my first fish tank I loaded it with many different cichlids and large Tin Foil Barbs. I never liked plastic plants, so I tried to include live ones in the tank.

Most of the live plants were torn to pieces or eaten. I was frustrated, so I began to research aquatic plants, their

View of an area over the water’s surface with manzanita branches, mist fog, and Tillandsia air plants. A bright red Neoregelia bromeliad and a moss-covered branch are visible on the right-hand side.

growth stem plant scene due to the amount of maintenance required. As this is a square aquarium, it has three viewable sides and each side has a distinct combination of plants. Traditional tank geometries allow for only one viewable side, the “front” of the tank. I wanted a viewer to be able to go around the tank and see a different view from each perspective. I did not want a tank that looked like a two-dimensional picture.

Did you have any special challenges designing or establishing this setup?

The idea was a challenge. I love all different styles of setups, from a Dutch design to Iwagumi, and everything in between. However, I wanted something that would stand out and I knew that I did not want another high-

How did you get the idea for the branches planted with epiphytes?

I wanted to make a tank that looked as though someone had taken a cross-section slice right out of a tropical stream, complete with hanging tree branches. I wanted various flora to be growing among the branches, but I

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habitats, and their requirements. Most of the fish in that original tank were returned and exchanged for angelfish, kribs, and tetras. Amazingly, some of the new plants that I added managed to survive and grow!

Along with continued research I also took part-time work at a local fish store, which gave me access to plants and supplies at discounted prices. That is when I became really hooked by the hobby.

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knew that the warm and dry conditions in my house were not ideal for growing traditional humid terrarium plants. A hobbyist friend suggested Tillandsia species as good choices for drier air. With the addition of some Hygrolon® sheet (a wicking plastic fabric product designed for growing terrarium plants) and long-fiber sphagnum moss I was able to grow additional epiphytic species requiring more moisture, such as Neoregelia bromeliads, Marcgravia sp., Dischidia sp., Ficus sp., mosses, miniature orchids, ferns, and so on. The aquarium water and misting system also maintain higher relative humidity in the area around the tank.

You found some really unusual aquarium plants that I had never heard of before. Where did you learn about these selections and how did you get them?

Most of the time, I don’t really have to do much asking; I have some really great friends in the hobby. They are all very warm and giving people, so either I will work out trades with them, or I’ll try to pass a few extra dollars to them for their trouble.

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You are using a nutrient-rich substrate along with water column fertilizer dosing. What kind of dosing regimen are you following?

I replenish my substrate every three months with a root tab fertilizer. I dose the water column with PPDbased Macros on Day 1, Micros on Day 2, and a rest on Day 3. Day 4 is either another rest day, or I may add a small amount of Micros, and then restart the process on Day 5. The tank is full of slow-growing species, so over-fertilizing can lead to problems. I don’t really believe in strict dosing schedules or large water changes. I’ll do a water change about once or twice per month simply to remove mulm and get detritus out. This usually amounts to only about 10 percent of the tank volume.

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I’ve heard that Spanish Moss (Tillandsia usneoides) is difficult to grow indoors. Has your Spanish Moss been actively growing in the setup? Are you giving it any special treatment?

I have no problems with mine and it grows fast! I just take the longer strands and keep looping them around my manzanita branches. It’s a nice effect to let an inch or so dangle into the water because it helps to connect the top part with the bottom. I give the branches a good hand misting once per day and I also run the misting system most of the time.

My T. usneoides is a variety known as “El Circulito” that originally came from somewhere in South America.

I don’t know if I believe it, but I have heard that more tropical varieties of Spanish Moss can grow better indoors year-round because they do not require a cool winter dormancy period.

Can you explain the T5 lamp combination that you are using? It includes lamps with several different colors. It looks

as though the combined spectrum has encouraged especially intense coloration in your plants, while also improving the color rendering of photographs. Is that right?

I knew from my previous couple of setups that while a standard combination of daylight and 10,000K T5 bulbs worked really well for plant growth, the color was a little washed out. With that in mind, I upgraded my lighting to include more independently switchable bulbs.

This allowed me to set up my bulbs in sets of four and to experiment with different combinations of bulbs. With trial and error I developed my current selection of bulbs for the two Tek Light fixtures. The plants seem to benefit, as do my photos.

Your planting has an amazing variety of colors and textures, yet it does not look contrived, cluttered, or busy, as one might expect. It looks very natural to me. Can you explain how you achieved this?

This has been a consistent effort to showcase plant species in a collectoritis kind of tank. Although I really like Dutch planted tanks, I have never thought they looked very realistic or natural, so I modified this style as my own approach. In this tank the aquatic plants are planted in bunches or rows, as you would expect to see in a Dutch-style design, but there is an effort to have stems from different bunches in close proximity to grow and intermix with each other. The result is blending from plant group to plant group. Other plants which may have similar colors, but different growth habits, grow at angles or droop down in front of neighboring plants. This encourages a natural look, and it also showcases species differences in color or texture. I never felt that nature was very well manicured, and that is why I like to give the plants some freedom in the design.

Many of the bright colors in the above-water, epiphytic plants are mirrored in the colors of the underwater foliage. This helps to tie the two areas together and it also creates a more natural scene.

I think that planted aquascapes often reveal too much right away; regardless of the unique layout that might be developed, plant species are often used in the same way from one design to the next. There is an element of predictability in most designs currently. This is certainly fine, and can lead to a very striking aquarium constructed by a very creative mind. But I like to try to challenge the audience more, and compel the viewer to look more carefully. I hope that when they see this aquarium at least a few of the plants are new to them, and that elements of the construction will raise new questions. I hope that the aquascape will demand something more than a brief glance and hold your attention for a bit longer.

It certainly has captured my attention and stirred my imagination. Thanks, Don! You are most welcome!

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AMAZONAS 79

AQ UATI C

PLANTS

PART TWO • article and images by Kris Weinhold From heavy-duty industrial units designed to illuminate huge factory spaces to urban street lights to the tiniest pico aquariums lit by a single emitter, the invasion of the LEDs is clearly accelerating. As we wrote in the March/April issue of AMAZONAS (vol. 3, no. 2), LEDs can offer greater energy efficiency, configurability, and customization, and the freshwater aquarist can choose from a growing selection of off-the-shelf commercial options that deliver the benefits and versatility of this new type of lighting. Yet that is only part of the picture. More discerning or experimental hobbyists can now custom-configure LED fixtures to meet their exact specifications—or even build a fixture from scratch using readily available components.

If an off-the-shelf fixture doesn’t meet your needs, but you’re hesitant to build something yourself, several companies now sell built-to-order LED fixtures that give you a lot of flexibility and come with warranties. Building an LED fixture requires three basic considerations: choosing the heat sink and fixture type, picking the right mixture of LED emitters, electronics, and colors, and determining if any lenses are needed.

Heat sinks A heat sink transfers heat from one source, passively dispersing it to prevent overheating of sensitive components. Computers use heat sinks to prevent the central processing unit (CPU) from melting down and allow it to run efficiently. LEDs can generate a lot of heat relative to their size, so it’s very important to disperse that heat to extend the lifespan of the LED and to keep the LED cir-

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LEDs for Planted Aquariums

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length of the aquarium. This usually will provide the cuit from ultimately frying. The heat sink itself often has most uniform lighting pattern. However, if you anticifins or grooves to increase the amount of metal-to-air pate needing many different colors of LEDs, be careful surface area for maximum cooling effect. In an LED fixto avoid the rainbow effect, where individually colored ture, the heat sink usually serves as both a heat dissipater LEDs cast a slightly different light and detract from the and a mounting medium that spans the entire body of overall beauty of your aquarium. The clustered approach the fixture. Most are manufactured from aluminum and are silver or anodized black in color.

When choosing a heat sink you must determine whether you want the light output to originate from a cluster of lights or Solderless Cree LED from a RapidLED Kit. if you prefer a strip light with LEDs evenly distributed along its length. The clustered approach requires a much smaller, rectangular heat sink, but the fixture has to be hung higher above the aquarium so that the light is evenly distributed into the tank. Even then, the light will almost definitely be brighter directly under the cluster, so multiple pendants may be required to properly light large aquariums.

Using a longer heat sink allows you to spread the light evenly across the total

A 50-gallon planted tank in the author’s fishroom, lit by a do-it-yourself RapidLED Kit.

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RapidLEDs in a custom canopy built by the author.

Below: The heat generated by LEDs must be dissipated with a ribbed metal heatsink.

usually produces a more intense shimmer effect than the scattered approach.

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Choosing LEDs

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The next and most important consideration when building an LED fixture is choosing the right mix of LED emitters. This entails figuring out both the intensity of the LED and the color. If you are building the fixture yourself, you must ensure that the input currents required by the individual LEDs do not conflict, or you run the risk of overdriving any less power-hungry circuits and damaging them. We’ll return to this issue after discussing color.

There are dozens of colors available. As a plantedaquarium hobbyist, I will focus only on those relevant to planted aquariums, but the process of choosing and building a fish-only freshwater aquarium or one representing a particular biotope would be similar.

Plants grow by photosynthesizing light into sugar energy via the chloroplasts, combining carbon dioxide and water. Unfortunately, not all light is created equal, and plants can use some colors of light more efficiently than others. Plants primarily use red and blue light to grow; green light is the least effective, being reflected rather

than absorbed, which is why most plants appear th ggreen in color. Blue light encourages vegetative ggrowth, while red light promotes flowering—so in our aquariums blue is the most important color, but it must be balanced with red, green, co orange, yellow, indigo, and violet to make the o plants look aesthetically pleasing and natural. p This color balance is often represented as a specT trum chart on aquarium bulb packaging. tr Fortunately, we can meet the needs of the plants in our aquariums with relatively few p colors. Most white LEDs provide a full spectrum co with the color temperature (Kelvin) of of light, varying va the individual LED. (White, according to the Wikipedia definition, is the color produced by the reflection, transmission, or emission of all wavelengths of visible light, without absorption.) Just like light bulbs, white LEDs range in Kelvin from warm white (2500K) up to cool white (6700K and beyond). The lower the Kelvin rating, the more yellow or red the color appears; the light appears bluer as the number increases.

To ensure that the aquarium light looks natural to the eye, most hobbyists prefer light in the Kelvin range of 6400–10000K, depending on the fishes, plants, and desired overall look. The easiest way to achieve this is to pick a good balance of white LEDs and mix in a small number of red or blue LEDs to drive plant growth. It is important

A typical spectrum graph from an LED emitting predominately blue light.

400

450

500

550

600

650

700

LEDs emitting multiple colors in a grow-light over a tank with emersed plants.

not to overdo it on the blues and reds, because if they overpower the white light the colors will appear distorted.

Lenses

Drivers, dimmers, and accessories Just as bulb-based fixtures require a ballast to power the bulbs, an LED fixture needs a driver to distribute power to a chain of individual LEDs. When building your own fixture, note the input requirements of each LED so that you can match the type and configuration of the driver.

This ensures that you are delivering enough power, but not overdriving the fixture. Most drivers available from do-it-yourself supply companies will tell you how powerful the output is and define the minimum and maximum

A plant that demands good lighting, Syngonanthus sp. ‘Belem’ displays vibrant growth under an LED fixture.

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The choices do not end with the LEDs themselves. Even the highest-powered LEDs usually default to a very wide angle configuration, casting light 120 degrees or more.

While this creates a nice even spread of light throughout the aquarium, it may not penetrate deeply enough to grow foreground plants along the substrate. A PAR meter can be used to ensure that a PAR reading of 60–80 is present at the substrate.

Lenses help to focus or disperse the light emitted by LEDs in a more or less concentrated stream of photons.

The narrower the lens, the more focused the light will be and the deeper it will penetrate into the aquarium. For very deep aquariums, the LEDs may need to be placed closer together with narrow lenses to evenly light the tank from top to bottom. For clustered fixtures, wide-angle lenses are used to help more evenly distribute the light from the center of the cluster outward throughout the tank.

In addition, lenses can be used over select areas in the aquarium to highlight or accent them. I’ve used lenses to illuminate dark areas in the aquarium between large pieces of wood that would otherwise be unable to sustain plant growth.

You can also use lenses with different angles throughout the

aquarium. For example, since background plants typically grow taller than foreground plants, wide angle lenses may be sufficient in the back of the tank, while narrow angle lenses would penetrate more deeply and promote foreground plant growth.

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Table 1: Changes in PAR based on lens angle Lens angle

PAR at surface

PAR at 8"

PAR at 15"

40 degrees

1041

304

169

60 degrees

651

286

113

80 degrees

794

236

108

120 degrees (no lens)

253

151

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PAR measured with Apogee Quantum Flux MQ-200. Note: PAR readings may vary slightly based on equipment used and slight changes in angle or depth of light meter.

Table 2: PAR readings from custom fixtures Fixture

Configuration

PAR at surface

PAR at 8"

PAR at 15"

48" BuildMyLED Planted Tank

75-degree lens

1212

192

113

36" RapidLED custom strip

Cool white, neutral white, blue (no lenses)

253

151

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PAR measured with Apogee Quantum Flux MQ-200. Note: PAR readings may vary slightly based on equipment used and slight changes in angle or depth of light meter.

L Lens components, left, are used to focus or diffuse LED light or even to highlight certain areas of an aquascape. Below o left: a BuildMyLED fixture that can be customized for the le demands of different types of aquarium plants or animals. d

n number of LEDs a driver can run. Usually, as long as you’re within that range, you don’t have anya thing to worry about. th In order to dim an LED fixture, a controller or potentiometer is needed in addition to a dimmable p driver. A digital controller will often provide dimd ming capability, as well as features like sunrise/sunm set, timers, and more. The potentiometer is simply se an analog knob: you adjust the output of your LEDs a by turning it. b There are many other electronics available that ccan allow you to integrate your LED setup with home automation or standard robotics systems, but h th that is beyond the scope of this article.

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Custom-built fixtures C

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B BuildMyLED.com has become quite popular with planted-aquarium hobbyists in recent years. They p offer both preconfigured and completely customized o American-made fixtures at prices that are competiA tive with those of some of the better off-the-shelf ti lights on the market. They have predesigned fixtures li that you can customize, or you can design a comth pletely custom fixture yourself and they will build p it. Their website gives you all of the spectral and it PAR data up front, based on the configuration you P choose. They sell directly to aquarium keepers and ch also through participating local aquarium retailers, a

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A BuildMyLED brand strip light shows a custom-ordered mix of white, red, and blue emitters.

and I have found them very responsive to questions regarding their products and what options would meet the needs of a specific aquarium.

I’ve been running two BuildMyLED fixtures on a 75-gallon (284-L) aquarium for the past year. The lights are designed specifically for planted aquariums and have been growing plants wonderfully. They offer several different color temperatures, depending on your preference.

My frontmost fixture has a 75-degree lens to penetrate deep into the foreground, and the 90-degree rear fixture spreads the light evenly over the taller background plants.

I use an analog dimmer to adjust the light output as needed, and typically run it at less than full power.

The fixtures themselves are well built, fanless, and do not overheat. In fact, one of the benefits of these lights is that you can lay them across the glass, just like an oldfashioned strip light, without worrying about cracking the glass. In addition, the fixtures are well sealed, so an occasional splash will not harm you or the light.

BuildMyLED.com recently debuted a new XB Series of lights that they claim output up to 37 percent more light than their original series. A fellow hobbyist in my local aquarium club purchased one of these strips, and we compared the PAR output of his newer strip to that of my original model. Indeed, the light output of the newer fixture is about 30 percent higher.

For those looking to customize their lighting solution but retain the professional feeling of high-quality, off-the-shelf fixtures that are warranteed, BuildMyLED fixtures should be considered. Other companies offering build-your-own solutions may also appear.

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DIY kits

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For aquarists who have canopies over their tanks or prefer the freedom of building their own fixtures, I have found that RapidLED.com provides excellent DIY kits and accessories to design and build an LED light from scratch.

Unlike BuildMyLED.com, they sell all of the components separately and must assemble the fixture yourself.

They offer two sizes of heat sinks in black or aluminum. There is an array of LED colors available, but you must pay attention to the electronics of the LEDs to ensure you don’t overdrive them. They do offer nice solderless kits that eliminate the need to solder wires to the LEDs and have more of a plug-and-play approach.

My 50-gallon (189-L) aquarium has a custom canopy, and previously had a DIY power-compact kit

installed in it. I purchased RapidLED’s solderless, dimmable 24-LED kit and two 36-inch (91-cm) predrilled heat sinks. I also bought a controller to allow me to dim the output and use sunrise/sunset features. I’m using 10 cool white, 10 neutral white, and 4 royal blue LEDs, spaced evenly across the two heat sinks. Without lenses, the high-output Cree LEDs spread their light evenly at about 120 degrees, and the color blend produces a very natural-looking light.

Building the fixture is straightforward. If you use drilled heat sinks, all you do is apply a small amount of thermal grease to the back of each individual LED chip and screw it to the heat sink. Then, using the precut wires, you connect all of the LEDs into a chain, capping the last one with a terminating cap. Finally, using their excellent wiring diagrams and online videos for guidance, you connect the LED chain to the driver, controller, and power cord. That’s it!

I have used lenses on some of the individual LEDs when my hardscape cast too many shadows and I needed to boost the PAR levels at the substrate. RapidLED offers three lenses ranging from 40 degrees to 80 degrees. As you would expect, the PAR increases dramatically as the lens angle decreases and the light beam is more concentrated.

In my measurements, the PAR is roughly five times as intense with a 40-degree lens as it is without a lens, but of course the light coverage is much smaller. I’ve achieved some pretty nice spotlight effects in my aquascapes by strategically placing the lenses where needed.

I am also using a RapidLED fixture over one of my emersed vegetation setups. Since the color appearance is not as critical to me in this setup, I used mostly blue and red LEDs, with just a few cool white ones, to focus the light output in the photosynthetic range. The stem plants literally burst out of the terrarium that I’m growing them in.

Extra effort is required to make the fixtures more water resistant. The metal connections on the LEDs should be painted with a non-flammable varnish or silicone conformal coating. Some RapidLED heat sinks have a slot for a splash guard.

Building your own LED fixture provides ultimate control over your aquarium’s lighting at a reasonable price.

RapidLED.com offers a one-stop shopping experience for the DIY enthusiast, and they also respond promptly to questions, whether you’re a lighting newbie or an expert.

I highly recommend their kits, but there are also other LED kit suppliers out there.

Lifegard Power-3 LED LightingSystems

Lifegard Power-2 LED LightingSystems

High Output Ultra Slim Blue/White Series

New Styles and Features All Sensibly Priced

Ultra Slim Blue/White LED Light

Lifegard Power-2 and Power-3 LED Lighting Systems Designed for Reef systems. High output (14000K) LED’s deliver full spectrum and light intensity capable of supporting reefs.

Unique design and shape of the LED focuses all light inside the aquarium where it is needed. Sizes from 14” up to 48”.

Ultra Slim Red/White Plant LED

Ultra Slim Blue/White Series Cool running Energy-efficient LED aquarium light fixture provides excellent general-purpose lighting for freshwater or marine aquarium. High output (14000K) or Standard (6500K) LED’s deliver full spectrum and light intensity capable of supporting Marine life. Lighting features three-mode ON/OFF switch (Daytime, Lunar and OFF positions) so you can manually transition from daylight to lunar light conditions with ease. Sizes from 12” up to 78”.

Ultra Slim Red/White Plant LED

All Lifegard® LED’s include Rust-Resistant Adjustable Metal Brackets Adjustable Plastic Stands, Waterproof Touch Control Light Switches, Power Cord and Hanging Clips.

Waterproof Touch Control Light Switches

Hanging Clips

Adjustable Metal Brackets

Email: info@lifegardaquatics.com www.lifegardaquatics.com

AMAZONAS

Cool running Energy-efficient LED aquarium light fixture provides excellent general-purpose lighting for freshwater and planted aquariums. 6500K LED’s deliver full spectrum and light intensity capable of underwater plant growth.

Lighting features three-mode ON/OFF switch (Daytime, Red Spectrum and OFF positions) so you can manually transition from daylight to red spectrum light conditions with ease. Sizes from 18” up to 42”.

Adjustable Plastic Stands

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AQ UA R I U M

CALENDAR compiled by Matt Pedersen and Ray Lucas

MAY 4

15–18

16–18

23–25

23–25

31–1

6–8

Tropical Fish Club of Burlington, VT 25th Anniversary Event South Burlington, VT www.tfcb.org

7

ALA 2014 Convention American Livebearer Association St. Louis, MO http://www.livebearers.org

Northeast Ohio Fish Club Auction Valley View, OH www.neo-fish.com

20–22

55th Annual Convention Canadian Association of Aquarium Clubs Toronto, Ontario, Canada www.caoac.ca/convention.html

2014 NADA Discus Show North American Discus Association Austin, TX www.nadaaustin2014.com

JULY

18th Cichlid Congress Aqua Club Arlon Arlon, Belgium http://www.aqua-club-arlon.be/

2014 National Convention American Killifish Association Syracuse, NY http://aka.org Annual GCCA Cichlid Classic 2014 Greater Chicagoland Cichlid Association Hillside, IL www.gcca.net IFGA – Michigan Guppy Breeders Show & Auction Michigan Guppy Breeders Auburn Hills, MI www.michiganguppybreeders.com

North American Native Fish Convention North American Native Fishes Association Crossnore, NC www.nanfa.org

AMAZONAS

For a more complete listing of upcoming events, visit www.reef2rainforest.com/events.

To submit your event, contact:

88

2014 ACA Convention American Cichlid Association Louisville, KY www.cichlid.org

19

Champaign Area Fish Exchange Summer Auction Urbana, IL www.champaignfish.com

AUGUST 1–3

East Coast Monster Fish Konvention 2014 | K2 Parsippany, NJ www.eastcoastmonsterfish.com

OCTOBER

JUNE 5–8

10–13

Matt Pedersen: matt.pedersen@reef2rainforest.com Ray Lucas: kingfish51@verizon.net

11–12

Speakers & Auction Weekend Southwestern Michigan Aquarium Society (SWMAS) Kalamazoo, MI www.swmas.org

16–19

Catfish Convention 2014 Potomac Valley Aquarium Society Herndon, VA www.catfishcon.com

THE TROPICAL FISH CLUB OF BURLINGTON

Celebrates 25 Years!

PLEASE JOIN US - June 6-8, 2014 - Holiday Inn, South Burlington, VT Great seminars and speakers: • Eric Bodrock • Regina Spotti • Rachel O’ Leary • Stephan Tanner

For more information, please visit www.tfcb.org.

AMAZONAS

ALSO INCLUDES: Tour of Vermont Microbreweries, Dinner Cruise on Lake Champlain, Friday Night Social Barbeque...

PLUS Sunday Auction, Raffles, Vendors, and so much more!

We hope you will come celebrate this milestone with us!

89

Sources

Look for AMAZONAS Magazine in these outstanding local aquarium shops.

UNITED STATES

Arizona Aqua Touch 12040 North 32nd St Phoenix, AZ 602-765-9058 www.aquatouch.com

Arizona Nature Aquatics 3025 North Campbell Ave Tucson, AZ 520-321-9000 www.arizonanatureaquatics.com

The Pet Shop 2235 S Power Rd Ste 107 Mesa, AZ 480-807-7840 www.thepetshopaz.com

Arkansas Northside Aquatics 7610 Counts Massie Rd Ste A Maumelle, AR 501-803-3434 www.nsaquatics.com

Worlds Under Water 2105B Creekview Fayetteville, AR 479-521-7258

California All Seas Marine, Inc (Distribution Only) 1205 Knox St Torrance, CA 310-532-7769 www.allseaslax.com

Nature 4019 Orange Ave Cypress, CA 714-858-0851 www.livewithnature.net

Ocean Aquarium 120 Cedar St San Francisco, CA 415-771-3206 www.oceanaquarium.blogspot.com

White’s Pets 5212 North Blackstone Fresno, CA 559-438-4343 www.whitiespets.com

Colorado Animal Attraction Pet Store 2518 11th Ave Greeley, CO 970-353-3400 www.monsterreef.com

90

Hawaii

Maryland

Aquascapes

House of Tropicals

Connecticut

1150 N. Nimitz Hwy, Unit 1 Honolulu, HI 808-487-0077 www.aquascapes808.com

Global Fish & Pets

Kalihi Pet Center

7389F Baltimore Annapolis Blvd Glen Burnie, MD 410-761-1113 www.houseoftropicals.net

Neptune’s Tropical Fish 1970 E County Line Rd Unit A Highlands Ranch, CO 303-798-1776 www.neptunestropical.com

1522 Whalley Ave. New Haven, CT 203-503-7157

House of Fins 99 Bruce Park Ave Greenwich, CT 203-661-8131 www.houseoffins.com

Florida Barrier Reef 1921 NW Boca Raton Blvd Boca Raton, FL 561-368-1970 www.barrierreefaquariums.com

Father Fish Aquarium 536 E Venice Ave Venice, FL 941-266-9998 www.fatherfish.net

Fishy Business 140 S Ronald Reagan Blvd Longwood, FL 407-331-4882 www.fishybusinessaquarium.com

The Planted Aquarium Store 3230 NE 12th Ave Oakland Park, FL 954-990-8871 www.theplantedaquariumstore.com

Sea Life Aquarium & Service 174 Semoran Commerce Pl Apopka, FL 407-889-9887

Georgia Aquarium Outfitters 175 Old Epps Bridge Rd Athens, GA 706-546-1337 www.aquarium-outfitters.com

Creation Pet 8265 Hwy 92 Woodstock. GA 770-364-2240 www.creationpet.com

1199 Dillingham Blvd Ste C-101 Honolulu, HI 808-841-5234 www.kalihipets.com

Massachusetts South Coast Scientific

Idaho

109 McArthur Rd Swansea, MA 508-678-8306 www.socoscientific.com

Fish, Aquariums & Stuff

Michigan

6112 West Fairview Ave Boise, ID 208-377-1119 www.fishaquariumsandstuff.net

Blue Fish Aquarium

Illinois

2939 Wilson Ave SW Ste 109 Grandville, MI 616-667-2424 www.bluefishaquarium.com

Fish Planet

Funky Fish & Friends

839 Waukegan Rd Deerfield, IL 847-945-4700 www.thefishplanet.com

128 West Main Street Gaylord, MI 49735 989-732-1232 www.gaylordfunkyfish.com

Old Town Aquarium

Moby Dick Pet Store

1538 N Wells Street Chicago, IL 312-642-8763 www.oldtownaquarium.com

3700 Sashabaw Rd Waterford, MI 248-673-2520 www.mobydickpets.com

Sailfin Pet Shop

MVPets

720 S Neil St Champaign, IL 217-352-1121 www.sailfin.com

7429 S Westnedge Ave Portage, MI 269-492-7387 www.mvpets.net

The Pet Shoppe

Preuss Pets

1700 Rudy Av Mattoon, IL 217-234-7387

Indiana Inland Aquatics 10 Ohio St Terre Haute, IN 812-232-9000 www.inlandaquatics.com

Iowa Aquatic Environments 730 E Kimberly Rd Davenport, IA 563-445-3687 www.aquaticenvironment.com

Maine Easy Aquariums 17A Gorham Industrial Pkwy Gorham, ME 207-272-5212 www.easy-aquariums.com

1127 N Cedar St Lansing, MI 517-339-1762 www.preusspets.com

Minnesota Tropiquatics 2519 7th Ave E Saint Paul, MN 651-330-1635 www.tropiquatics.com

New Hampshire Laconia Pet Center 1343 Union Ave Laconia, NH 603-524-8311 www.laconiapetcenter.com

New Jersey Adam’s Pet Safari 19 W Main St Chester, NJ 908-879-8998 www.adamspetsafari.com

Reef Valley

Ferrybridge Aquatics

920 N 10th St Ste 40 Mcallen, TX 956-330-6155 www.reefvalley.com

11-13 High Street Ferrybridge West Yorkshire 01977 678016 www.ferrybridge-aquatics.co.uk

Vermont

Aquarium Center

Pet Advantage

1295 Blackwood Clementon Rd Clementon, NJ 856-627-6262 www.aquariumcenter.biz

350 Dorset St South Burlington, VT 802-860-1714 www.thepetadvantage.com

Aquaridise

Virginia

415 Rt 18, Ste 8 E Brunswick, NJ 732-967-9700

New York Eddie’s Aquarium Centre

Skoolz of Fish

1254 New Loudon Rd Rt 9 Cohoes, NY 518-783-3474 www.eddiesaqua.com

1503 Chamberlayne Ave Richmond, VA 804-496-1481 www.skoolzoffish.com

Markheim Tropical Fish & Pets

Washington

The Fish Place 141 Robinson St North Tonawanda, NY 716-693-4411

North Carolina Blue Ridge Reef & Pet 103 WNC Shopping Ctr Dr Black Mountain, NC 828-669-0032 www.blueridgereef.com

Ohio CNW Aquatics 6450 Township Rd 21 Marengo, OH 567-876-8663 www.cnwaquatics.com

Oregon The Nautilus Tropical Fish 727 Main St Springfield, OR 541-344-3474

Pennsylvania Oddball Pets & Aquarium 262 Joseph St Pittsburgh, PA 412-884-2333 www.oddballpets.com

Texas Austin Aqua-Dome 1604 Fortview Rd Austin, TX 512-442-1400 www.austinaquadome.com 2909 Fountain View Dr Houston, TX 713-523-3474 www.thefishgallery.com

203 N Huntington St Ste A Kennewick, WA 509-737-9777 www.finaticstropicalfish.com

Wisconsin Sunset Tropical Guppies 4864 County Rd C Auburndale, WI 715-254-4929 www.sunsettropicalguppies.com

(formerly Stunning Corals) Industrieweg 11G 3738JW Maartensdijk 31-615699743 www.achillesaquatics.nl

82 Triq Guzeppi Mattew Callus Mosta, MST 4105 003-562-762-7463 www.bluereefsmalta.com

SWEDEN

OJZOO Stormgatan 5 26138 Landskrona 0046-418-402831 www.ojzoo.se

Sell To sell AMAZONAS in your store, contact us today: Email: sales@rvmags.com CALL (800) 381-1288 FAX (630) 353-2692

CANADA

Big Al’s Aquarium Supercentres 3511 99th St Edmonton, AB 780-435-3474 www.bigalscanada.com

The aFISHionados 825 Erin St Unit 3 Winnipeg, MB 204-295-5375 www.cichlaholic.com AUSTRALIA

Aqua Blue Distribution

(Distribution Only) 22 Union Circuit Yatala Qld 4207 07-3806-4255 www.aquabluedistribution.com.au CHINA

Aquababie #14-1404, Li Yang Street Guangzhou 86-138-2226-0920 GREAT BRITAIN

Abacus Aquatics 168 Halfway St Sidcup-Kent 020-8302-8000 www.abacus-aquatics.co.uk

AMAZONAS

Fish Gallery Houston

Finatics Tropical Fish

Achilles Aquatics

Blue Reefs

Pet & Aquatic Warehouse 2408 Wards Rd Lynchburg, VA 434-239-6787

3311 Sheridan Dr Amherst, NY 716-832-2004 www.markheim.com

M A LTA

NETHERLANDS

91

SP EC IE S

SNAPSHOTS

➊ D AW K I N S I A A S S I M I L I S ➋ C A R I D I N A S P. “ B A N G KO K ” ➌ S C H I S T U R A J A RU T A N I N I ➍ C O R YD O R A S L O R E T O E N S I S “ H I G H F I N ” ➎ A K Y S I S V E S PA “ R E D ” ➏ S T I P H O D O N M AC U L I D O R S A L I S

Dawkinsia assimilis, known as the Mascara Barb, from southern India

AMAZONAS

1|

92

The medium-sized barbs of the former Puntius filamentosus group were transferred by Pethiyagoda et al. in 2012 to the newly created genus Dawkinsia. These barbs are all very interesting and attractive fishes that reach about 6 inches (15 cm) in size and are thus well suited for larger aquariums at least 4 feet (120 cm) long. Maintained in a group, these fishes develop into truly magnificent specimens. The males develop elongated dorsal fin rays and a metallic green, iridescent body color. One species stands out from this group of very appealing species: Dawkinsia assimilis.

When well cared for, this fish sports a row of red spots on the body flanks, a red dorsal fin, and a blood-red snout. The species is native to the southern Indian state of Karnataka and is rarely exported. The pictured specimen was photographed at Panta Rhei Aquatics in Brelingen, Germany. Such barbs should be imported more often. Perhaps someone out there is trying to breed them? It couldn’t be that difficult!

—Hans-Georg Evers

REFERENCE

Pethiyagoda, R., M. Meegaskumbura, and K. Maduwage. 2012.

A synopsis of the South Asian fishes referred to Puntius (Pisces: Cyprinidae). Ichthyol Explor Freshwaters 23 (1): 69–95.

Caridina sp. “Bangkok” After all the years that aquarists have been | 2 wandering around looking for critters, one might

think that the surroundings of the Thai capital would have nothing new to offer. That is what I thought during my last visit, when I spent a free afternoon searching for fishes in the area of Bangkachao.

In the local brackish marshes, I caught a little blue shrimp that I would like to introduce here as Caridina sp. “Bangkok.” This animal retains its pretty blue color even after acclimating to pure fresh water, though it pales somewhat compared to those living in their natural habitat. The blue color of dwarf shrimps often disappears when the water composition changes, but this small shrimp seems to be different. Travelers should scout for it in its natural habitat because to

N. KNAAK

The Mascara Barb, Dawkinsia assimilis

Caridina sp. “Bangkok”: pretty in blue and a candidate ripe for captive culture.

my knowledge, this little gem is not imported commercially. The females that I observed carried large eggs, an indication that their propagation could succeed in the aquarium.

—Hans-Georg Evers

Schistura jarutanini, Thai Blind Cave Loach

3|

In addition to our report on Thai cavefishes in the last AMAZONAS, I would like to introduce a small loach that I was able to photograph in Bangkok a few years ago. Schistura jarutanini was described from Tham Wang Badan, in karst caves in the drainage area of the Mae Nam Khwae Yai basin in the province of Kanchanaburi. The species is protected and cannot

legally be caught or traded in Thailand. This eyeless, faintly patterned loach still occasionally ends up in specialists’ aquariums, but not via the commercial trade. The loaches, which reach approximately 4 inches (10 cm), live in total darkness in the lower parts of the caves. There are a number of other loaches in the numerous caves of Thailand. At least in some places, they are considered endangered due to the increasing development of the region to grow crops and pasture animals and the resulting overuse and pollution of the water. As aquarists, we can do little for the conservation of these species in their natural habitats. Nevertheless, we can refrain from purchasing animals whose origin is not clear.

—Hans-Georg Evers

AMAZONAS

H.-G. EVERS

Schistura jarutanini, threatened and illegal to collect or sell.

93

Corydoras loretoensis “High Fin”

Akysis vespa “Red”

For a few months now, Peruvian exporters have | 4 had Corydoras loretoensis “High Fin” on their

To be honest, this fish is not a rarity! Akysis | 5 vespa has been available in the hobby for a few

stock lists. OF-Aquaristik in Butzbach, Germany, was kind enough to send me some of these fish so I could have a closer look. Corydoras loretoensis was originally described from the Río Nanay near Iquitos. In some places, the species is syntopic with C. atropersonatus and is regularly caught in large numbers for export.

Both species are very numerous in the Río Nanay.

According to Martin Mortenthaler of Iquitos, the new form is caught in the catchment of the Río Napo. They supposedly have taller dorsal fins than the fish from the Río Nanay.

At first glance, I would have said that this is just a typical C. loretoensis. However, the body markings are somewhat coarser and the spots larger and farther apart than in C. loretoensis. The dorsal fin in the nominal form is just as tall, and the first rays are deep black. If the new form is indeed from the Río Napo, the distribution area of C. loretoensis is larger than has been assumed, even if there are minor differences among the local forms. Their behavior is no different.

Conclusion: There’s no reason to become excited, dear Corydoras friends!

—Hans-Georg Evers

AMAZONAS

REFERENCE

94

Nijssen, H. and I.J.H. Isbrücker. 1986. Cinq espèces nouvelles de poissons-chats cuirassés du genre Corydoras Lacepède, 1803, du Pérou et de l’Equateur (Pisces, Siluriformes, Callichthyidae). Rev française d’Aquariol Herpétol 12 (3) (1985): 65–76.

years. In 2004, Achim Werckenthin reported on the successful breeding of this species. Every now and then, they are imported from the border area of Myanmar and Thailand. They are pretty to look at with their pattern of yellow and brown bands—one reason they are called vespa, Latin for wasp (the other is the sting that their pectoral fin spines can inflict).

However, I have never seen Akysis vespa as red as those offered by Der Welsladen, a catfish shop in Chemnitz, Germany. The usually sand-colored, sometimes reddish areas on these animals were deep red, sometimes almost purple. I was compelled to check the fluorescent lighting in the store to see if someone was playing tricks, but when I got them home the fish seemed to glow red from the inside out. The color is intense in every individual and not dependent on mood.

The larger, rounder females are paler than the males.

In addition, these Akysis are much less shy than other Akysis species—they hide less often and do not bury themselves in the substrate.

According to the owner of Der Welsladen, Sven Seidel, they originated from Arthur and André Werner’s Transfish in Planegg, Germany, several years ago. Since then, a fellow aquarist has been breeding them regularly in large quantities, so they are often available at Der Welsladen. I was quite surprised to hear that; I knew that while it is possible, it is not easy to breed Akysis and few succeed at it. I wonder whether the breeder uses the same methods Frank Strozyk employs to raise

H.-G. EVERS

Corydoras loretoensis “High Fin”: a new form from Rio Napo, Peru.

Akysis vespa “Red”: captive-bred in secrecy.

Akysis maculipinnis, as described in AMAZONAS? Sven Seidel is keeping silent on this topic.

—Andreas Müller

Stiphodon maculidorsalis, a newcomer from West Sumatra The genus Stiphodon belongs to the subfam| 6 ily of the “climbing gobies” (Sicydiinae) and

currently includes just over 30 valid species. An additional species has now been scientifically described as Stiphodon maculidorsalis Maeda & Tan (2013). For several years, this fish has been known in the aquarium hobby and regularly imported from West Sumatra together with S. ornatus and S. semoni. In the absence of a scientific name, the species has been traded as either Stiphodon sp. “Orange Fin,” because of the distinctively orange first dorsal fin, or as Stiphodon sp.

“Spotted Head,” due to the characteristic black spots

on the head and back. The striking head pattern also gave the species its scientific name (from the Latin maculosus, spotted, and dorsum, back). Stiphodon maculidorsalis reaches a total length of about 2.4 inches (6 cm). Like the other species of the genus, it is a very peaceful aufwuchs grazer in the aquarium. Only the males show some territoriality around their same-sex peers. Their natural diet consists mainly of algae and microorganisms that they scrape from stone surfaces using the teeth on the lower lip. In contrast to most other species of Stiphodon, S. maculidorsalis females show some color too—they have an orange first dorsal fin similar to that of the males.

—Michael Taxacher REFERENCE

Maeda, K. and H.H. Tan. 2013. Review of Stiphodon (Gobiidae: Sicydiinae) from Western Sumatra, with description of a new species.

Raff Bull Zool 61 (2): 749–61.

AMAZONAS

A. MÜLLER; BOTTOM: M. TAXACHER

A so-called climbing goby, Stiphodon maculidorsalis, with a distinctive orange first dorsal fin.

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A DV E RTI S E R S

INDEX

Amazonas Back Issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97 www.reef2rainforest.com/shop Amazonas Retail Sources. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90, 91 www.reef2rainforest.com/source-directory Amazonas Subscriptions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 www.amazonasmagazine.com Amazonas Website . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 www.reef2rainforest.com American Livebearer Association . . . . . . . . . . . . 89 www.ALA2014.com Beital’s Exotic Aquariums . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 www.beitalsaquariums.com Boyd Enterprises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 www.chemipure.com Brightwell Aquatics . . . . . . . . . . . inside front cover www.brightwellaquatics.com Dr. Tim’s Aquatics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 www.DrTimsAquatics.com EcoTech Marine. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79 www.ecotechmarine.com Fritz Aquatics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . inside back cover www.fritzaquatics.com Hikari . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25, 43, 55, 69 www.hikariusa.com Hydor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 www.hydor.com Hydra Forum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 www.hydraforum.com Invertebrates by Msjinkzd . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91 www.msjinkzd.com Lifegard Aquatics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87 www.lifegardaquatics.com Milwaukee Instruments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67 www.milwaukeeinstruments.com NEC Aquarium Societies Convention . . . . . . . . . 46 www.northeastcouncil.org New Era – Living Color . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 www.livingcolor.com

Ocean Nutrition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66 www.oceannutrition.com Omega Sea . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 www.omegasea.net Pet Advantage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 www.thepetadvantage.com Piscine Energetics. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 www.mysis.com Pleco Feeder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 www.theplecofeeder.com Poly-Bio Marine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 www.poly-bio-marine.com Prodibio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85 www.prodibio.com Riparium Supply . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 www.ripariumsupply.com San Francisco Bay Brand . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 www.sfbb.com Segrest Farms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 www.segrestfarms.com South Central Cichlids . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97 www.southcentralcichlids.com Swiss Tropicals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96 www.swisstropicals.com Tropical Fish Club of Burlington . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89 www.tfcb.org Tunze . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85 www.tunze.com Two Little Fishies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9, 67 www.twolittlefishies.com The Wet Spot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 www.wetspottropicalfish.com ZooMed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51, back cover www.zoomed.com

For an AMAZONAS Media Kit please contact: James Lawrence, Publisher • 802.985.9977 Ext. 7, James.Lawrence@reef2rainforest.com

South Central Cichlids

BACK ISSUES

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Enrich your aquatic library with back issues of AMAZONAS. All back issues are like new, in pristine condition in their original poly wrapping.

SPECIAL OFFER: Buy 3 issues or more at $8 each, 6 or more at $7each.

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AMAZONAS

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97

AMAZONAS

U N D E RWAT E R

98

EYE

A spawning pair of Paratheraps breidohri—one of the most colorful large Central American cichlids.

Endemic to Presa de la Angostura, Chiapas, Mexico, they are also known as the Angostura Cichlid. They breed frequently and, while tolerant of each other both during and after mating, they do not tolerate other conspeciďŹ cs in the tank.

by Morrell Devlin