I ran across this great article about freshwater aquarium bio-filtration the other day. It would seem as though, once again, what we took for conventional wisdom in the area of filtering our aquariums was incorrect. I’m starting to believe that the longer I keep fish, the less I really know about it!
Here’s the link to the article I’m referring to ==>> http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0023281 In a nutshell it’s about how the bacteria we believed were doing the work in the aquarium nitrification process, (cycling your tank), are not the ones really doing the work. The cycle still works as it always has, it’s just that now we are one step closer to having a better understanding of the actual underlying process.
While we’re on the subject, here’s a link to a great article about filtration in our aquariums ==>>
http://fishchum.okstate.edu/featured-contributions/79-freshwater-filtration-novel-insights-and-practical-considerations This article offers a great explanation of the processes going on in our tanks and some of the best methods in filtering your tank.
Reading through these articles once again brings to mind how diverse and rewarding fish keeping can be. It can take you on adventurous trips into chemistry, biology, genetics and all the while provide stress relieving enjoyment at the end of a busy day. Enjoy your fish!