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M a r t i n & A n n a ' s - T h e A q u a r i u m
[Updated on 20^th August 2004]

The aquarium

Introduction

We got our aquarium in April 2004 because we thought the children should have a pet but I didn't want a dog because of the mess it would make of the garden, Anna is allergic to cats, and our rabbits succumbed to blow fly which we don't ever want to go through again.

The tank is a Jewel Rekord 120, set up as a tropical freshwater tank with natural planting. We're still getting it set up but so far we have the following fish:

The Fish

b e t t a s p l e n d e n s (1 Male)
Siamese fighting fish. Kept on his own because he'll fight to the death with other males of his species and he will often pester females so much that they will die too unless kept in a group to share his attentions.

c o l i s a l a l i a (1 Male)
Dwarf Gourami. Kept on his own because he is agressive towards other males of his species.

h e l o s t o m a t e m i n c k i i (3 Males)
Kissing Gourami. These often test their strength by locking lips as if kissing.

b o t i a m a c r a c a n t h u s (2)
Clown Loach or Tiger Botia. Very useful for keeping the tank clear of snails but unfortunately forced me to move the large golden apple snails to another tank after they ate two of those as well. They make a strange clicking noise when excited and have a sharp retractable spike under the eye which can be used in defense.

m i c r o g e o p h a g u s r a m i r e z i (1 Male, 1 Female)
German Blue Ram. These are a very intelligent fish and often watch what I'm doing when I'm in the room. They have spawned twice, making a depression in the gravel about three inches across and just under an inch deep into which they deposit their eggs. Unfortunately the eggs have been eaten both times. The male is of the unusual long-finned variety.

g y m n o c o r y m b u s t e r n e t z i (6)
Black Widow Tetra. These are tough little fish which were used initially to get the tank ready by being the catalyst to start the nitrogen cycle.

p a r a c h e i r o d o n a x e l r o d i (4)
Cardinal Tetra. These are a small, colourful shoaling fish but they are unfortunately not very toug hdue to overbreeding. I originally had 9 of which 8 died. Then once the tank had matured a bit more I took pity on the one left and bought him six companions, of which three died. The remaining four seem fine now.

e p a l z e o r h y n c h u s k a l o p t e r u s (1)
Flying Fox. There is a lot of confusion over the common name which is often applied to the 'False' Siamese Algae Eater which is a completely unrelated fish which looks very similar but they can be distinguished by the black lateral stripe which continues into the tail on the true 'Flying Fox'. The Flying Fox can apparently become aggressive when older but I suspect this may be due to the conditions in which it is kept. Mine has been no trouble, spending most of it's time hiding under the bogwood with the clown loaches.

o t o c i n c l u s a f f i n i s (2)
Dwarf Otocinclus. These are a small, algae-eating catfish. They spend most of their time holding onto leaves with their fins, grazing the algae off.

t a n i c h t h y s a l b o n u b e s (16)
White Cloud Mountain Minnow. These are a small shoaling fish which like to stay near the surface

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	b e t t a s p l e n d e n s (1 Male) Siamese fighting fish. Kept on his own because he'll fight to the death with other males of his species and he will often pester females so much that they will die too unless kept in a group to share his attentions.
	c o l i s a l a l i a (1 Male) Dwarf Gourami. Kept on his own because he is agressive towards other males of his species.
	h e l o s t o m a t e m i n c k i i (3 Males) Kissing Gourami. These often test their strength by locking lips as if kissing.
	b o t i a m a c r a c a n t h u s (2) Clown Loach or Tiger Botia. Very useful for keeping the tank clear of snails but unfortunately forced me to move the large golden apple snails to another tank after they ate two of those as well. They make a strange clicking noise when excited and have a sharp retractable spike under the eye which can be used in defense.
	m i c r o g e o p h a g u s r a m i r e z i (1 Male, 1 Female) German Blue Ram. These are a very intelligent fish and often watch what I'm doing when I'm in the room. They have spawned twice, making a depression in the gravel about three inches across and just under an inch deep into which they deposit their eggs. Unfortunately the eggs have been eaten both times. The male is of the unusual long-finned variety.
	g y m n o c o r y m b u s t e r n e t z i (6) Black Widow Tetra. These are tough little fish which were used initially to get the tank ready by being the catalyst to start the nitrogen cycle.
	p a r a c h e i r o d o n a x e l r o d i (4) Cardinal Tetra. These are a small, colourful shoaling fish but they are unfortunately not very toug hdue to overbreeding. I originally had 9 of which 8 died. Then once the tank had matured a bit more I took pity on the one left and bought him six companions, of which three died. The remaining four seem fine now.
	e p a l z e o r h y n c h u s k a l o p t e r u s (1) Flying Fox. There is a lot of confusion over the common name which is often applied to the 'False' Siamese Algae Eater which is a completely unrelated fish which looks very similar but they can be distinguished by the black lateral stripe which continues into the tail on the true 'Flying Fox'. The Flying Fox can apparently become aggressive when older but I suspect this may be due to the conditions in which it is kept. Mine has been no trouble, spending most of it's time hiding under the bogwood with the clown loaches.
	o t o c i n c l u s a f f i n i s (2) Dwarf Otocinclus. These are a small, algae-eating catfish. They spend most of their time holding onto leaves with their fins, grazing the algae off.
	t a n i c h t h y s a l b o n u b e s (16) White Cloud Mountain Minnow. These are a small shoaling fish which like to stay near the surface