I can’t remember when I didn’t hatch a batch of baby brine shrimp (bbs) on a daily basis. That said, after years of producing a daily batch, I started to notice that my hatch rates were falling and I was at a loss as to the reason why. Well after checking all the obvious causes without any improvements I though perhaps a refresher course was in order, BBS 101 if you will. Continue reading BBS 101
Author: Dennis Ball
Spawning Devario sondhii
These fish were first described by Hora & Mukerji in 1934 as Danio sondhii, and later reclassified by Fang Fang Kullander in 2001 under the genus Devario. By any name, Devario sondhii the Fireline Danio, brings a subtle beauty to any aquarium.
These fish can only be found in a remote mountainous area of Myanmar. According to fish exporter Kamphol Udomritthiruj, they are collected from the same high altitude wetland pools as that of the Celestial Pearl Danio, Danio margaritatus. Currently, they are only know to exist in an area east of the village of Hopong, in the southern Shan States of Myanmar, but it is hoped, that further exploration will discover that they can be found in other areas near by. Continue reading Spawning Devario sondhii
Spawning Danio choprae
Danio choprae is without a doubt, one of my favorite Danios. Practical Fishkeeping magazine in the UK lists Danio choprae as one of the 10 best fish for the beginning aquarist. It was also a favorite of the late Mr. U Tin Win of the Hein Aquarium in Myanmar. The fish was rediscovered by the Hein Aquarium in 2000, and it was mainly through his efforts that it was made available to the hobby, and rose so quickly in popularity. Continue reading Spawning Danio choprae
HMF aquarium filtration
If you have a fish room, and you are NOT using HMF aquarium filtration, then you my friend are missing out. HMF, or Hamburger Mattenfilter, is an aquarium filtration method invented by aquarists near the city of Hamburg Germany. While it’s considered fairly new in the US, it’s old school in Europe dating back to the 1960’s.
The original HMF aquarium filtration, or Mattenfilter for short, was simply a foam sheet inserted vertically in the tank, about 2 cm from the side wall. This works extremely well in a working fish room where tanks are placed on end into tank racks. There are also several variations on this basic theme, like the corner HMF pictured above. Continue reading HMF aquarium filtration
GCAS Swap
Had a blast yesterday at the GCAS (Greater Cincinnati Aquarium Society) 2015 Swap! I’ve attended many of their club functions and always had a great time, but yesterday was my first experience as a seller at one of their events.
It is a bit early in the season for me so I didn’t have a full complement of fish, but my good friend Bob was kind enough to split a table with me so we had a good selection of fish. Bob has some fantastic tank raised and super cool cories and plecos. He’s also got some very nice livebearers.
There were several of us from my club CAFE (Columbus Area Fish Enthusiasts) that had tables and the great folks at GCAS made us feel right at home. Many thanks to Eric and the gang at GCAS for putting together such a great event!
I’ll be looking to move my spawning schedule up just a bit to have more fish ready for this great event next year. Already looking forward to the next GCAS Swap!