March 2009

Lighting for Aquarium Plants

Lighting for plant growth is rather a specialized topic. Most plants need quite bright light to grow properly. Because water absorbs light much more quickly than air does, a deep tank needs a lot of lighting if you want to grow plants.
Types of Plant Lights
The most common aquarium lighting is the normal output, or standard, [...]

Breeding the Cherry Barb, Puntius titteya

The cherry barb, Puntius titteya, is a common aquarium fish that is an easily spawned egg layer. The fry are somewhat hard to rear as they require extremely small food and protection from their parents, but when these needs are met they do very well. This is a description of my experiences in spawning and [...]

Fry in the Filter

Fry have a reputation for being sucked into filter intakes. The question is, how does this occur and is it actually a problem?
The most often recommended type of filter for the fry tank is the sponge filter. This type of filter works by pulling water through the sponge. The holes in the sponge are small enough [...]

Conservation Status of the Black Ruby Barb, Puntius nigrofasciatus

This small barb comes originally from Sri Lanka and is a popular fish in the aquarium hobby. It is designated as low vulnerability conservation dependent by the IUCN, which means that there are some conservation programs in place to protect it without which it would be considered vulnerable (Pethiyagoda, 1996). There are some indications that [...]

Fish Tank Filtration

There are three main types of filtration: mechanical, biological and chemical. Mechanical filtration removes particles from the water by forcing the water through a medium with holes. Particles larger than the holes get stuck in the filter and are removed from the tank. Biological filtration uses bacteria to transform ammonia into less toxic substances. Chemical [...]