Angelfishes - Rolf C. Hagen Inc. · because the discus has pushed ... who collected the fish during...

Aquatic News

Issue #3

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AngelfishesAngelfisheswww.hagen.com

NUTRAFIN Nr.3/USA 17-07-2003 11:28 Pagina 1

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has long ceased to be the case.NUTRAFIN Aquatic News

believes in sticking to a suc-cessful formula. In this issueyou will again find the redthread leading through the

pages – this time referring tothe angelfish, the former king of

aquarium fishes (former onlybecause the discus has pushedit into second place). After theneon and cardinals (NAN #1)and the guppies (NAN #2) we

now come to this group that haslikewise won the hearts of

animal and aquarium-loversworldwide. Angels, like the

community fishes covered in thetwo previous issues of NAN, arean ornament to (almost) everyaquarium. They come from the

Amazon and its basin and survive only in the rain forest

(or in the aquarium). Which reminds me of a splendidquotation from the meeting of

the indigenous peoples of SouthAmerica and forest-dependent

peoples (and does this not apply to us all?) in Leticia,Colombia, on 9th November

1996: “All peoples are descen-dants of the forest. When the

forest dies we die. We are givenresponsibility to maintain bal-ance within the natural world.When any part is destroyed, all

balance is cast into chaos.When the last tree is gone, andthe last river is dead, then peo-ple will learn that we cannot

eat gold and silver. To nurturethe land is our obligation to ourancestors, who passed this to us

of future generations....” If we follow this precept then

our children and our children’schildren will have a future. The

same applies to the best of hobbies: with biotope- and

species-correct maintenanceour hobby has a future and we

can enjoy it at its best.

Yours,Heiko Bleher

Dear ReaderNUTRAFIN Aquatic

News is now well and trulyinternational – published in no

less than six different lan-guages. Everyone is talkingabout it and not just in the

world of the aquarium hobby.Our editorial office receives ona daily basis inquiries regard-ing biotope aquaria. People

who have previously had no in-volvement with the best of

hobbies want to get started anddo it right: true to nature or

biotope. Although such aquaria have been discussedfor decades, they have only

now, thanks to NAN, gained afirm foothold. You find the con-cept wherever you look, at con-ferences and exhibitions (page14), in magazines and books,

and on the Internet, not to men-tion discussions at fish auc-

tions, in aquarium clubs, and atlectures. Even the trade has got

wind of it: suddenly biotopeand natural aquaria are being

promoted in brochures, inleaflets, and in magazine ad-

verts. Biotopes and nature havebecome the guiding light for

many people, and this can haveonly a positive effect. Fishes(and plants) should as far aspossible be kept as Nature in-tended (100% authenticity is

virtually impossible), and thenwe will have an environmentthat provides a fascinating

glimpse of life above and belowwater. And not just that: we canenjoy something and simultane-ously learn from it (practicallyall of our knowledge is derivedfrom Nature). In addition, thereis the relaxing effect (the pres-ence of an aquarium has nowbeen found to ameliorate the

incurable Allzheimer’s disease). A biotope aquarium makes thebest of hobbies even better – inevery respect. And in the 21stcentury the general view thatan aquarium is a lot of work

Editorial Editorial

3 NUTRAFIN Aquatic News 3

NUTRAFIN Aquatic News

Publisher: AquapressEditor-in-Chief: Heiko Bleher

Editorial address: Nutrafin Aquatic NewsVia G. Falcone 11,

27010 Miradolo Terme (Pavia), [email protected] - www. Hagen.com

Tel. +390382 754707 - Fax +390382 754129

Scientific adviser: Dr. Jacques GéryLithos: Fotlito ‘73, Borghetto Lod. (LO), Italy

Layout: Rossella Bulla & Heiko Bleher Copy editor: Heiko Bleher

Printer: Grafiche Dessì s.r.l., ItalyPhotos: Aquapress archives

unless otherwise statedNAN is printed on paper produced using

chlorine-free bleach

Pterophyllum scalare – the Angelfish – the first drawing, made by the well-known naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace

(1823-1913), who collected the fish during his trip to the Rio Negro and Uaupés (1848-1852).

Fishes in nature and in the aquarium 4Angelfishes and their history

Aquatic plants in nature 6and in the aquarium

Aquarium technology 8External filters

The aquarium hobby on the Internet 8

Do-it-yourself 9Basic aquascaping - Part 1

New practical products 10WaterHome, Fish Feeder, Master Test Kit, New Foods

New in the trade 11Fishes and plants

Biotope aquaria 12For angelfishes

Aquarium history 13Part 3: The story continues…

Nutrafin news 14Nutrafin for the first time presents a discus biotope set-up at the 4th International Discus Championship

Contents


NUTRAFIN Aquatic News 34

...and the storyteller, the German BrunoSagratzki, did in fact manage to collect thevery first the live angelfishes, in 1909. Hecould hardly believe his eyes when, afterseveral exciting collecting trips in theAmazon region, he finally held this fish,known locally as acara bandeira (whichtranslates as flag cichlid) in his hands.Even though after the six-hour canoe jour-ney he captured only a single specimen.Luckily for us, however, he later caught 50juveniles with a dip-net in a bay in thevicinity of Manaos (= Manaus). He foundthem in deeper water near a steep bankcharacterised by overhanging marginalvegetation. During the months-long voy-age back he acclimatised his angelfishes toa water temperature of 77°F – from a start-ing point of 89.6°F.

In English-speaking countries they areknown almost exclusively as angelfishesor angels, because their finnage resemblesan angel’s wings. But Sagratzki calledthem Blattfische (leaf-fishes), and at thetime of the first importation to Germanythey were known only by this name (andthe scientific one), cf Brehms Tierleben;Fische, published in 1910. Round about1914 the French christened the angel le roide l’aquarium tropicale (the king of thetropical aquarium), and a pair of TheirMajesties purportedly spawned on the leafof an aquatic plant in the aquarium of oneParisian enthusiast. But it was J. Cvancarof Hamburg who, just before the outbreakof World War I, first demonstrably bredthese aquarium fishes, by now crowned“King of the Amazon”. And shortly there-after somebody came up with the nameSegelflosser (sail-fin), which remains theusual German common name to the pre-sent day (except for some call it Skalare).

The species had been scientificallynamed as long ago as 1823. In Berlin an-other German, Martin Heinrich Carl Licht-enstein (1780-1857), described the speciesscalaris from the east of Brazil and placedit in the genus Zeus, which Linnaeus haderected in 1758. Lichtenstein may havebeen thinking of a ladder (the Latin adjec-tive scalaris = ladder-like), possibly of themarkings like the rungs of a ladder or – asMeinken has put it: because of the ladder-like rise of the dorsal and anal fins of thespecimen collected by Marcus ElieserBloch (1723-99). In 1831 the FrenchmanBaron Georges Léopold Chrétien FredericDagobert Cuvier (1769-1832) apparentlydescribed the same specimen after a visitto Berlin by his colleague Valenciennes,but this time as Platax scalaris. Now, thiswas understandable, as the elegant fishesof the genus Platax, which Cuvier haderected in 1816 and which today is re-stricted exclusively to marine species, arealso very tall and majestic, and the an-gelfishes resemble them in some respects.

However, in 1840 the famous zoologistJakob Heckel gave the angelfish its owngenus name: Pterophyllum (the Greekwords ptero = wing, feather (= fin in fishtaxonomy) and phyllon = leaf), signifying“leaf with fins”– perhaps this is whereBrehms got the name Blattfisch. But thiswas not the end of this confusion of names.The scientists now placed it in the Chromisfamily, which were known mainly from thesalt lakes and pools of the eastern Saharaand Ashanti Land, but with other speciesof the family found in the inland waters oftropical Africa, America, and the West In-dies (Brehms Tierleben 1896).

Nowadays, of course, the former King ofthe fishes (now ousted by the discus) is as-signed to the cichlid family (Cichlidae).

When, back then, Sagratzki arrived inGermany with his angelfishes everyonewas absolutely amazed by their bodyshape, totally different to the aquariumfishes previously known. For this reason

Fishes in nature andin the aquarium

and their history

by Heiko Bleher

“The Indio tirelessly dipped his round remo (paddle) deep in the waters of the tea-coloured Rio Negroand thrust backwards powerfully so that our unsteady dug-out moved a little further upstream.

The sun burnt down on us mercilessly. The thermometer showed 40 degrees in the shade. A fresh-water dolphin surfaced close to the boat, shooting a fountain of water into the air, about 30 blue-yellow aras flew away squawking above us, and woolley monkeys leapt shrieking from branch to

branch in the canopy of the impenetrable jungle. We had been six hours en route to the place wherethere were supposed to be acara bandeiras. I didn’t know what these were, but perhaps the legendary

angelfish which I had been hunting everywhere for years...?”

AngelfishesAngelfishes Unfortunately many popular scientific publications contain arather confused jumble of views on what constitutes the cur-rently valid taxonomy of the genus Pterophyllum – that of theangelfishes. I will endeavour to provide an overview here.First of all, below there are drawings of the head region madeby Natasha Khardina. The detail drawings of the 3 scientifi-cally recognised species were prepared from the type materi-al (without scales), and those of the local variants from

specimens from the locality in question: 1. P. altum, Atabapo,Venezuela (specimens from type locality right-hand page). 2. P. scalare – Rio Negro Altum (likewise right-hand page). 3. P. scalare – Peruvian Altum. 4. P. scalare from the centraland lower Amazon basin (still often labelled as P. eimekei = a synonym of P. scalare). 5. P. leopoldi (see right-hand page).

1

2

3

4

5


alone they were immediatelysought after avidly. People paid as-tronomic prices for this “luxuryfish”. The less wealthy enthusiastsstood no chance. Even after theFirst World War breeding was keptsecret because of the value of thefishes. Not until round about 1924did breeding success becomegreater and these majestic creaturesbegan their triumphal progress intothe hearts and aquaria of enthusi-asts. And the angelfish has retainedits popularity to the present day.Despite the discus and almost innu-merable other aquarium fishes, im-ported and captive-bred, the an-gelfish remains one of the mostcommonly kept fishes.

Its presence in practical everygeneral community aquarium is a“must”. The fact that the angel isan attractive fish, suitable for thecommunity, as well as easy to keepand breed, make it a front runner tothe present day.

Of course, Man always finds itnecessary to “improve” on Nature.Thus since the 1930s we have seennew cultivated forms and thestrangest crosses practically everyyear (sometimes almost monthly). InGermany things remained very con-servative (true to nature) for someyears, and until shortly after the Sec-ond World War only a few colourvariants were known. People weresatisfied with the “Veil-tail”, the“Black”, and the “Marbled” angel.

But the Americans (and later theSingaporians) quickly began tobreed their angelfish in all sorts ofcolours and numerous forms::“Half-Black”, “Albino” “Smoke”,“Blushing Smoke”, “Blushing”,“Chocolate”, “Ghost”, “Two-SpotGhost”, “Unspotted Ghost”,“Koi”“Gold”, “White”, “Blue”, “Zebra”,“Zebra Lace”, “Leopard”, “Cobra”,“Blushing Gold Marbled”, “Blush-ing Half-Black”, “Pearl”, “Pearl-Gold”, “Pearl-Red”, “Marbled-RedHead”, and many more, to name buta few of the cultivated forms. Un-fortunately most were produced byinbreeding (not line-breeding, aswith almost all other animals) Sincethe First World War sibling matingshave been the norm. This weakensthe strain and commonly results indeformity or poor health (the natur-al immune system is upset and dis-ease-resistance is lost). I have oftenadvised breeders – worldwide – totake note of this and turn to line-breeding.

This reminds me of when, in the

1950s, I visited isolated indiantribes with my mother and sawchildren with six toes and somewith six fingers – deformed. Andwhen I asked mother, she ex-plained to me that among thistribe it was the custom for broth-ers and sisters to marry and thatsuch deformities were the result.Since then at least I have knownthat it was wrong to do the samewith fishes (let alone other crea-tures). Let us rather stick to thebeautiful long finnage that isseen in wild individuals of allthree known species everywherein nature. Natural offspringshould undergo a revival andbring us pleasure, just as in thebeginning. This is the wish of theeditors (and I believe I also speakfor the publishers of this excel-lent magazine, the Hagen fami-ly), and hopefully all the fans ofHis Majesty.

In conclusion, some more on the three known species and wildvariants:

1. P. altum Pellegrin, 1903: TheAltum angelfish, the largest andmost majestic of them all, can at-tain a height (including fins) ofup to 20 in. (in nature) and isfound only in the tributaries ofthe upper Orinoco (Venezuela,Colombia) (the type locality, andI have several times caught themthere and imported lives ones forthe first time at the begin of the1970s). The true Altum (left) canbe distinguished not only by itsextremely high body and finnage(seen in no other Pterophyllum),but also by its extremely indentedsnout (see drawings), the oftenreddish striped markings – but al-ways with a boldly shaded patternon the body (not seen in the otherspecies), and scales that are ap-preciably smaller than in the oth-er two species. It is important torealise that the fish often offeredas Altum angelfish in the tradeand by breeders are, in fact, theso-called “Rio Negro Altum” (avery lovely P. scalare, which canalso be tall and possess a some-what indented snout – but is notas tall as the Altum, and doesn’thave such a deeply indentedsnout) or the “Peruvian Altum”(which is likewise a scalare vari-ant, but looks less Altum-likethan the Rio Negro form). Otherindividuals often labelled as Al-tumare simply normal scalarefrom Guyana, the lower Amazon,


P. scalare – the so-called Rio Negro Altum (centre - see also head on the left-handpage and the Wallace drawing on page 3). The true P. altum is left in this picture.

Pterophyllum altum - Altum angelfish from the type locality, an Orinoco tributary at Atabapo, Venezuela. Collector: H. Bleher. Photo: H.-J. Mayland.

Pterophyllum leopoldi - King Leopold III angelfish (often labelled P. dumerilii, a synonym of P. scalare, in the popular literature). Photo: B. Kahl



or Peru (these may include more than onespecies, but all populations known to dateinterbreed).

The Altum has been very expensive rightfrom the start. They can be collected onlyduring a single period of some threemonths each year (just like discus – be-cause of the high water) and are (some-times) supplied by just a single exporter.The Altum angelfish is in demand world-wide; people have been trying to breed itfor at least 50 years – all over the globe –but, without exception, with no success(those who claim to have done it in fact bredthe above-mentioned scalare forms). Andfor this reason the price remains very highas in the past (and a few exploit this fact...)

2. P. leopoldi (Gosse, 1963), KingLeopold III’s (of the Belgians) angelfish, isthe only one of the three species to have aslightly to strongly down-turned snout, andis found only in the central Amazon basin aswell as in the lower Rio Negro. It can alsobe recognised by its striking large blackshoulder spot. The only one of the threewith such a marking. This species is, how-ever, rare in the trade, and as far as I knowhas not been bred.

3. P. scalare (Lichtenstein, 1823), thecommon angelfish, is found in Guyana,Venezuela, Colombia, in the Amazon southto Mato Grosso (Brazil) and in Peru. But adifferent race (or possibly a distinct subspecies or even species) inhabits everylocality, often every river. The form fromthe lower Rio Negro and the central Ama-zon basin is that which is today bred world-wide (there are now also some from Peruand Guyana in breeding establishments)and from which the majority of the colourvarieties (old and new) mentioned aboveare “created” – nowadays mainly in Asia.

On these pages you can see the threespecies (with detail drawings showing howto distinguish the so-called Rio Negro andreal Altum, and the Peruvian Altum fromthe real Altum), and a number of cultivatedforms. On page 12 how an angelfishbiotope aquarium should be decorated andon page 8 additional angelfish informationin the internet.

Cobra angelfish

Two-Spot Ghost angelfish

Zebra angelfish

Half-Black angelfish White angelfish Marbled-Red Head angelfish

Pearl-Red angelfish

Koi angelfush

New cultivated angelfish ?


Aquatic plants in nature and in the aquarium

1

Hydrocotyle leucocephala

2

Aponogeton crispus

3

Hygrophila difformis

4

Aponogeton ulvaceus

5

Echinodorus bleheri

6

Vallisneria spiralis

7

Hygrophila polysperma

8

Ceratophyllum demersum

9

Echinodorus osiris

10

Cryptocoryne walkeri

11

Cryptocoryne wendtii

12

Anubias barteri

This time under the NAN topicAquatic plants... we would like topresent a number of species thatare easy to grow, do well in atropical aquarium, and can toler-ate a variety of temperature,light, and water conditions. Wepresent these species in associa-ton with a new series, starting inthis issue (see p. 9: Basic aquas-caping).1. Hydrocotyle leucocephala orpennywort can be used as a float-ing plant or rooted, offers shelterfor fry, and is fast-growing. 2. Aponogeton crispus has a veryattractive olive-green coloration;fast-growing. 3. Hygrophila dif-formis or water wisteria is fast-growing, recommended for newaquaria, rapidly takes up micro-nutrients. For this reason the addi-tion of Nutrafin Plant Gro IronEnriched is stronglyrecommended. 4. Apon-ogton ulvaceus is suit-able for aquaria of 100 lupwards, and is fast-growing. 5. Echinodorusbleheri or Bleher’s sword-plant is a popular aquari-um plant and veryattractive. Itneeds spaceand regularpruning. 6. Vallisneria

spiralis is recommended as abackground plant and a goodchoice for newly set up aquariaand hard water. 7. Hygrophilapolysperma or hygro is extremelyresilient and likewise recom-mended for new aquaria. 8. Ceratophyllum demersum orhornwort grows very rapidly. It isnormally a floating plant, and al-so well suited to circular aquaria. 9. Echinodorus osiris or Osirisswordplant is particularly attrac-tive with its red-coloured leaves;suitable for aquaria of of 80 l up-wards. 10. Cryptocoryne walkeriis suitable for group planting inthe foreground, and fast-growingonce rooted. 11. Cryptocorynewendtii is also ideal for groupplanting, but in the centre area;

fast-growing, with brownishleaves. 12. Anubias bar-

teri (Nana) is recom-mended for the

foreground and forgrowing on drift-wood or lava rock(slow-growing). 13. And Microsorium

pteropus (Java fern)will also attach to drift-

wood or stones;thrives under dimor bright light and

a variety of pH and KHvalues (undemanding).Microsorium pteropus13



AAqquuaarriiuumm TTeecchhnnoollooggyy:: pprroodduucctt hhiigghhlliigghhtt

In conjunction with our articles on an-gelfishes (pp.3-6+12), some internet pages:at www.freshwatertropicalfishkeeping.com/fishes–catalogue/angelfishes.htmthere is brief but good information, exceptthat the photo of P. altum= P. scalare, thatof P. dumerilii also = P. scalare, P. leopoldiis correct, and P. eimekei= P. scalare, as P. eimekei is a synonym (see p. 6). www.e-aquaria.com is another good an-gelfish site with very nice aquarium plantsand beautiful photos of decorated aquaria.The website www.aquatic-gardeners.org/is the home page of The Aquatic GardenerAssociation (AGA) and has a lot on plants:ie nicely decorated aquaria under viewShowcase, and decoration suggestions forall sizes of tanks (Large, Medium andSmall); an aquascaping contest (4th time),AGA convention information (C. Kassel-mann is coming in November 2003); andbest of all, Biotope/Habitat aquaria.There are so many entries under angelfish-es on the internet – mainly because of the marine angelfishes (family Pomacentri-

en for P. altum, with text from Sven Forn-bäck. A team of Norwegian and Danishaquarists went to the Atabapo (type local-ity of P. altum) - a picture shows Alf Stals-berg with an real P. altum in a bag (onecan see it perfectly - same species as on p.5, centre). But all the fishes collected died.Eight months later they received an im-port with P. altum (says the report), whichthey bred about 16 months later in de-mineralized water (30 µS/cm and a pHnear to 5) and filtered over peat (the para-meters measured in the Atabapo were: pH4.8; conductivity 15 µS/cm; total hardness0°; carbonated hardness 0° KH; nitrite 0mg/l, and temperature 30-32°C). The fish-es were fed mainly on black mosquito lar-vae and they spawned after a pair of dis-cus showed them how...Unfortunately thespawning angelfishes in the photo are notP. altum...they are the fishes shown onpage 5, top photo. Last but not least, theidentification leaves a lot to be desired,but check out www.aquaworldnet.org/tasanother great site:The Angelfish Society.

dae) which have the same English name -that it is almost unbelievable. But one pagethe enthusiast should not miss is at:http://www.finarama.com/tba/chronicles/the famous The Angelfish Chronicles,which is made for the serious aquatic hob-byist online and has everything the heart ofan angelfish-lover could desire. The scient-ifically oriented write-up by W. Burgess isextremely interesting. He proves what isshown in this issue, that the Rio Negro Al-tum (P. scalare) is close to P. altum. As amatter of a fact he classified (1979) the an-gelfishes into subspecies (but omitted P.leopoldi), but his work was revised by Kul-lander in 1986. There is a nice text in thechronicles from Wayne S. Leibel, in whichhe summarises the entire angelfish con-fusion very well. Also very interesting is abreeding report (from the Australian RobRaulings) on P. leopoldi. However the fishshown seems to be (as he mentions) possi-bly a tank-raised form, which actuallylooks different from the natural species.Another report on breeding success is giv-

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smoothly separate the motor from the canister when opening and securely clipand clamp it when closing.Completely redesigned hosing brackets easily adapt to any aquarium framewhile securing flexible hose placement. Fluval canister filter systems have once again taken a step ahead.

THE AQUARIUM HOBBY ON THE INTERNET


DDoo iitt YYoouurrsseellff:: BBaassiicc aaqquuaassccaappiinnggBasic Aquascaping

and the Planted AquariumWith a little planning and creativity, one canbuild a strikingly beautiful planted aquari-um that will highlight any interior environ-ment. The process begins with purchasingthe right basic equipment. Here are somehelpful tips to help you create a successfuland aesthetically-pleasing aquarium.

Equipment and AccessoriesIn order to facilitate aquascaping, it is ad-vantageous to select an aquarium that iswider than 12 inches (approx. 30 cm.),preferably starting at a minimum of 14inches (approx. 35 cm.). The additionalwidth will allow a greater choice of plantsand accents, such as stones and driftwood,as well as provide superior visual effectsthanks to an improved depth perspective.The general rule is to purchase the largest

aquarium that both your budget and floorcan support. Water weighs approximatelyeight pounds per U.S gallon (3.78 L). Foraquariums in excess of 90 U.S gallons (ap-prox. 342 L) this is an important considera-tion. Having a large aquarium but not beingable to provide adequate illuminationand/or filtering can be another problem, soconsider the purchase as a whole system.Aquarium kits can provide an easy alterna-tive to obtaining the right basic equipmentin one convenient package. Where you place your aquarium is also animportant consideration. In general, posi-tion it away from home entertainment de-vices and natural light and ensure that it iswithin view of the main seating areas. Canopies play a major role in aquariumlighting. With recent innovative productssuch as Light-Glo, which offer dual fluores-


cent lighting, waterproof endcaps and re-placeable reflectors, the need for glass lens-es is eliminated. Light-Glo provides superi-or light transmission and reduced mainte-nance, plus it has an attractive design thatallows superior underhood air volume forefficient gas exchange. The dual bulb Light-Glo canopies are recommended for mostplanted aquariums to support healthy plantgrowth.Beautifully planted aquariums require es-sential support equipment such as test kits,CO2 systems, and plant nutrient supple-ments. They should be purchased at the startto maximize the potential of rapidly grow-ing plants, which are the best choice fornew plant displays. Nutrafin Nitrate, Phosphate and Iron testkits are the preferred tools to determinewhen to re-dose with Nutrafin Plant GroIron Enriched and NPK. Different combina-tions and quantities of plants, along withother factors will result in varying rates ofnutrient absorption. Regular testing will re-veal when plants really need to be fed. Thiswill not only help plant growth but is also agood preventative strategy against excessnutrients that could contribute to undesir-able aquarium conditions.Plants are composed of 40 to 50% carbon(dry weight). Carbon dioxide (CO2) pro-vides plants with the best and most easilyassimilated source of carbon. This majornutrient is rapidly provided by units such asthe Nutrafin CO2 Natural Plant System. Therate of growth and condition of plants isdramatically enhanced by the use of CO2. Inorder to maximize the benefits of CO2 in-jection, the following recommendationsshould be respected:1. Keep surface water movement to a min-

imum, just enough to support comfort-able fish respiration and behavior.

2. Test pH and KH regularly. Maintain prop-er KH values to support ideal pH ranges.

3. Test iron levels regularly and supplementwith Nutrafin Plant Gro Iron Enriched tomaintain values between .25 to .5mg/L.For densely planted aquariums, nitrateand phosphate tests should be performedregularly and supplement with NutrafinNPK when levels are close to 0.

4. Maintain lighting intensity by keepingfluorescent tubes and glass or acryliclenses free of any deposits. Normal out-put fluorescent tubes should be replacedat least annually.

Through the invigorated growth of aquaticplants, the aquarium owner can expect ahigher degree of water quality. CO2 injec-tion can provide a safe and gradual methodof reducing pH values, ideal for many plantand fish species.

(To be continued in NAN #4)Discus - Biotope aquarium 48 inches long.

Ruby Barb - Biotope aquarium 40 inches long.



NNeeww pprraaccttiiccaall pprroodduuccttss

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Waterhome Table Top aquariums providean attractive focal point for any desktop orroom environment. Aesthetically con-toured, the aquarium kits come completewith many very appealing features. Apowerful compact fluorescent light unitcomplete with a 5500K bulb (optional for2 gallon model) that emits plenty of light,

tressed, many aquarium owners forgo prop-er diagnoses and immediately assume thatdisease is the reason and medicate, upset-ting the biological balance as well as jeop-ardizing plant and fish health and condi-tion. The proper protocol when evaluatingfish stress is to first check temperature andfiltration, then test pH, Ammonia, and Ni-trite levels. Only after water conditions areverified should investigation of potentialdisease problems be considered as the soleor additional cause of stress. The Nutrafin Mini Master Test Kit, is an es-sential tool for water quality analysis andprovides effective problem diagnoses foraccurate solutions.

Nutrafin Max Complete Micro Granules for small Tropical Fish

Nutrafin Max Complete Micro Granules isa complete tropical fish food for smallerspecies such as tetras, rasboras, livebearers,gouramis, bettas and others. Even largerspecies that have small mouths will appre-ciate the bite-size format. The palatablegranules will initially float and then slowlysink to allow fish that prefer feeding at dif-ferent levels ample opportunity to do so. Like all Nutrafin Max foods, premium in-gredients for optimal nutrition is the focus.Micro Granules contain P.D.P. (Pre-Digest-ed Plankton) which rapidly enhances colorsand is easily digested. Multi-vitamin supplements are also included to ensuregrowth and disease resistance. Granules are an ex-cellentchoicefor auto-maticfeed-ers due tomoreconsis-tentdis-burse-mentascom-pared to flakefood.

perfect for stimulating plant growth, a sig-nificant advantage in supporting waterquality for smaller aquariums. The Glo lidis designed to blend harmoniously with theaquarium and base and allows easy accessto the tank. To maximize aquarium spacefor fish and plants as well as to enhancewater quality, a hidden dual cartridge topfilter is located in the canopy. There are 3 models available: 2, 3, or 5U.S. gallons (7.5, 11, or 19 L).

Nutrafin Profeed Programmable fish feeder

Nutrafin Profeed fish feeder can be pro-grammed to feed up to two times daily.Programming is a quick and simple one-button process. Even the more seriousaquarists can benefit from an automaticfeeder by using it to provide fry with theextra feeding they need for improvedgrowth.In order to prevent humidity contamina-tion and maintain fish food quality, thefood dispenser opening is oriented awayfrom the water surface. Complete with amanual operation test button, variablequantity control and a convenient trans-parent dispenser cover, this feature-

packed programmable feeder is ideal forvacations and busy schedules.

Nutrafin Mini Master Test KitNo aquarium owner should be without ba-sic test kits. The Nutrafin Mini Master TestKit is a convenient all-in-one starter kit fortesting pH, KH, Nitrite and Ammonia infreshwater aquariums. These interrelatedtests are essential when establishing a newaquarium, as pH will directly affect the tox-icity of ammonia with nitrite being the nexttoxic nitrogen compound after NH3 (toxicform of ammonia) and KH being a criticalcomponent of pH stability. Established aquariums also require regulartesting to ensure efficient biological filtra-tion is taking place and that KH values aresuitable for pH stability as well as for planthealth. In cases where fish seem to be dis-

Fish Food

Fish Feeder

Master Test Kit


NNeeww iinn tthhee ttrraaddee

New swordplants“Yet more swordplants!” These are nowthe most popular aquarium plants of all.Moreover the genus Echinodorus offers themost new types, and recently more thanever before. In addition they are idealplants for the angelfishes (pages 4-6+12).Here are 3 “new” ones:

1. Echinodorus longiscapus

In the aquarium young plants of E. longi-scapus are easy to cultivate. Its origin insouthern Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguaymeans that this swordplant will also toleratecooler temperatures without problem. Un-fortunately its (eventual) size and its tenden-cy to form floating leaves mean that it has sofar failed to become more widespread.

2. Echinodorus “Red October”

Named after the Hollywood film “TheHunt for Red October”, a fantastic new cul-tivar from the company ZOOLogiCa inBerlin, Germany. For years E. osiris hasbeen repeatedly incrossed and this new“creation” results from E. “Harbich Red” xE. “Indian Red”. 3. Echinodorus uruguayensis var. minor

is a variety discovered by Chr. Kasselmannin 1995, only recently described. At onlyabout 6 - 12 inches tall, it is significantlysmaller than the nominate form. A splendidornament for smaller aquaria. But pleasemake sure you use a nutrient-rich substratewith added clay and intense lighting. Clickon www.Echinodoren.de/ (in German).

2. The red-head ApistoApistogramma gibbiceps

Herr Müller has likewise intensified thecolours, again by selective breeding, of thisdwarf cichlid discovered by Heiko Bleher ina bay in the lower Rio Marmoré, Brazil. .Innature the species lives in bank zones rich inaquatic vegetation at temperatures up to 86°F, pH 5.8-7.5, conductivity 20-150µS/cm. A prize for all dwarf fish freaks, anda new colour variety.

3. Two new dwarf cichlidsApistogramma species 2 and 3

A second Apistogramma (possibly two dif-ferent undescribed species that live sym-patric) discovered by Bleher, and collectedby him in 1996 in the central Rio Guaporé,on the Bolivian border with Brazil. It hasnow been bred several times in captivity.species 2 has a striking orange-yellowbreast, violet banding in the fins and a slen-der body. By contrast, sp. 3 has a bulkierbody structure, roundish, extremely longyellowish dorsal finlet, no colour on thebreast, and the violet bands are finer. Thewater parameters at the collecting site werevery similar to those for species 1 (top).

Fishes Plants


New Dwarf CichlidsDwarf cichlids belong to the family Cich-lidae, order Perciformes (like the angel-fishes). In the aquarium hobby the speciesof the genus Apistogramma are often cate-gorised thus. But this general term isbroadly used to encompass all the smaller– and usually suitable for a community –species of attractive and colourful dwarfcichlids of various genera from SouthAmerica and Africa.This time, however, we will be discussingjust new Apistogramma species. Thesedwarf cichlids – are found in South Ameri-ca, east of the Andes, from the extremenorth of the continent to northern Argenti-na. They often live for only a single year innature, but longer in the aquarium – on av-erage 3-5 years. They are extremely peace-ful little chaps and well suited for commun-ity aquaria. And they are not only attractivein their coloration, but also interesting intheir almost exclusively bottom-orientedbehaviour and their continual interactions.A fascinating spectacle for ages of 7 to 100years. The number of variants in nature isalmost too large to catalogue – new onesare discovered almost every month (oftenevery week). There are also cultivatedforms, usually produced by selective breed-ing, with increasingly more colour. Hereare just a few of them, along with newdiscoveries.

1. Cultivated form of Apistogramma viejita

Using selective breeding, the German breed-er Uwe Müller has “created” this colourfuldwarf cichlid, almost matchless in its formand colour. Water parameters are: tempera-ture 75-84°F, pH 6.5-7.0, conductivity 100-330 µS/cm. A splendid, undemanding fish.

The fellow on the left iscertainly not a dwarf cichlid, but it is a cichlid:Geophagus proximus.A splendid male specimenthat Khardina and Blehernetted in 2002 in a bay inthe Rio Itaparana in thesouth of Amazonas state,Brazil. Geophagus, alsoknown as eartheaters, arevery peaceful (likeApistogramma) large cichlids and they can bethis beautiful.

Photo: N. Khardina

Photo: N. Khardina

sp. 2

sp. 3

Photo: W. Ise

Photo: W. Ise

Photo: W. Ise

NUTRAFIN Nr.3/USA/1 17-07-2003 11:44 Pagina 11

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The angelfish aquariumAlmost everyone who starts maintaining

an aquarium (usually with guppies, seeNAN #2) sooner or later becomes aware ofthe angelfish. It is – and always has been –a majestic creature, an (almost) indispens-able adornment for any underwater land-scape. Its elegance, its extremely long fins(present in all but a few cultivated forms),jerky swimming movements, inquisitivelook, and its constantly repeated search (inadults) for a nice big leaf (or undisturbedspot on the aquarium glass) on which to layits eggs, all provide endless fascination.Likewise the way two individuals some-times face up to each other with wide-spread fins, as if in rivalry, is a real wow.This is, however, not actual aggressive be-haviour, as these are truly the most peacefulof fishes – like discus, their close relatives,often found together with the angelfish innature. (But P. altum and P. leopoldi are notfound with discus in nature.)

Now if you want to provide this formerking of the aquarium fishes with an optimalhome and enjoy it to the full, here are a fewsimple suggestions as regards the biotope.

Setting up the aquarium: As usual, thelarger the better, but for the angelfish theaquarium should be at least 40 in. long and14 in. wide (or wider), and 16-20 in. deep.(For Altum angelfishes at least 48 in. longand 24 in. deep.) We also unreservedly rec-ommend (biotope correct) fine white sand.This should be at least 2 in. deep (3-4 in.deep at the rear) – and, of course previous-ly well washed (always check sand sold as“washed”). A number of nice pieces of bog-wood are indispensable – either pre-soakedor weathered over a long period. If youwant to add rocks then please use roundedones, as the fishes may injure themselves onsharp rocks. It is advisable to plant the

aquarium: as can be seen from the biotopeaquarium below left, the so-called PeruvianAltum is often found with the large-leavedhorizontal swordplant (Echinodorus hori-zontalis). The common angelfish and Ble-her’s swordplant (E. bleheri) are a goodcombination (page 7). But in all cases a fewlarge swordplants. You may also care to in-clude – more for the foreground and be-tween the pieces of bogwood – the dwarf,grass-like swordplants (E. quadricostatusand E. tenellus), both of which are carpet-forming. For the sides (or in between) Hy-drocotyle leucocephala and a further group(at the sides) of Hygrophila guyanensis.You must, of course, decide for yourselfwhether or not to add lots more plantspecies. Those mentioned are biotope-cor-rect, except that the majority of angelfishesdo not occur in areas where aquatic plantsgrow. Like discus, for the most part theymake their homes among roots, branches,and fallen trees, as well as trailing greenery(at high water). The tank will look ratherdifferent with a population of only, or main-ly, tank-bred angelfishes or cultivated

forms. Or, if you deviate from the actualbiotope (as below) and mix cultivated dis-cus varieties with wild-caught angelfishes –and Altum angelfishes (which we really donot recommend), then you can add plantsthat are alien to the biotope. It is, however,important always to allow a large amount ofopen swimming space for angelfishes.

The fish population for the aquarium:Here the question arises: do you want to bebiotope correct, as then you should mix on-ly wild-caught individuals or tank-breds ofnatural forms (ie one, two, or all three of thespecies mentioned: P. scalare, P. altum, P.leopoldi). Next there is the question ofsmall specimens or those already adult: ifsmall individuals, then start with a group of8-12 in the size of tank cited. Fewer if larg-er, and with Altums only about 4 in 100l..As tankmates in such a tank you can adda group of mailed catfishes (eg 6-8 Corydo-ras leucomelas, C. atropersonatus, C. tri-linetaus, or a mixture). About 10 Otocinclusarnoldi to eat algae. Plus 1-2 groups oftetras will look nice. About 10 brilliant rum-mynose tetras (Hemigrammus bleheri) and

6-8 bleeding heart tetras (Hyphessobryconerythrostigma). Always remember that thetotal number of fishes depends on the rule:1 cm of fish per 2 l of aquarium water.

General: The water temperature shouldbe 77-85°F (max. 86°F); The lightingshould be on for 10-12 hours per day (seeNAN #1); the pH about 7 – up to 8 doesn’tmatter too much (except for Altums); allowbiological filter media to do their work;change water now and then; feed youngspecimens several times daily, adults onceper day; and that’s it. And then you willhave many hours of educational viewing –often better than the TV.

This 100 gal angelfish aquarium is not biotope correct, but nevertheless the fish are happy. There are 20 adult Altumswith Rio Negro Altums with 6 solid-coloured discus, characins, mailed catfishes, Java fern and hygro plants.

In this authentic Nanay biotope (Peru) there is a wonderful mix of wild angels (P. scalare) with the so-called Peruvian Altum and green

Peruvian P. scalare in a 62.5 gal aquarium. The cultivated Red-Headed angelfish is not, of course, biotope-correct.


The story continues…Those of you who have read NAN #1 and #2 have already learnt

how people. maintained, housed, and prized fishes for the first, ap-proximately 48,500 years up to 1644. We have also seen how thefirst “ornamental fish book” (Chu sha yü p’u) was published in 1596BC by Chang Ch’en (1577-1643), and covered practically every de-tail: how to suck water out of the basin or glass, along with themulm; how to feed the fishes; how to protect them fromthe heat of summer and the cold of winter; and how bestto house and breed these prized ornamental fishes. (Sowhy do we bother publishing this newsletter?!). In allconscience we can justifiably call Chang the father of theaquarium hobby, as although Guillaume Rondolet had al-ready written about a fish in a glass back in 1554 (NAN#2), he mentioned no details of the maintenance andhousing of ornamental fishes...

Unfortunately the pre-Columbian cultures didn’t havewriting, as it may in fact have been they who first kept or-namental fishes, even before the Chinese. Although evi-dence of this has only recentlysurfaced (or rather, been dugup). The Tiwanakus, a culturethat lived long before the In-cas – some people assert up to14,000 years before our time– had a seahorse and fish cult(see aqua geõ no. 24). Per-haps they also kept them, asceramic sculptures and golditems have been found asgrave goods, and similarobjects have come to lightin the Temple of the Rain-bow (Huaca el Dragón,circa 1300 AD). Thetomb of a priest, deco-rated with ornamentalfishes (?), was discov-ered in the middle ofthis gigantic Andeancitadel (see photo,centre). There iseven an aquarium(?) above histhrone (seat). No-body knows thesignificance ofthis, as there is noi n s c r i p t i o n . . .Was this perhapsthe first aquarium?

But we do know from the diary of Samuel Pepys, entry for 28thMay 1665, that he kept ornamental fishes: “Thence home and to seemy Lady Pen; where my wife and I were shown a fine rarety: of fish-es kept in a glass of water, that will live so for ever, and finallymarked they are being foreign.” This must have been the first exot-ic aquarium fish, as goldfishes were at that time still “marooned” inEurope. That much can be proven. Undoubtedly Lady Pen had someparadise fishes (Macropodus obercularis), which is “fine” and “livesforever”, a labyrinth fish can survive “forever” in a glass...

Next, in the 18th century, the first writings and books on goldfish-es (= ornamental fishes) came out in Europe. In 1742 Thomas Graywrote his “Ode on the Death of a Favourite Cat – Drowned in a tubof goldfishes”. Although it is impossible to establish whether thiswas the first cat to drown in a goldfish bowl, without doubt it won’t

have been the only one, for, as Gray writes: “What female heart can gold despise? What cat’s averse to fish?” - something that everyone knows.Barely 4 years later William Arderon, an exceptional student of na-

ture who lived in East Anglia, sent a communication to the RoyalSociety. He had studied sticklebacks in his fish bowl and reported on

their unique behaviour (they are underwater nest-builders, like birds) and their insatiable appetites.

In his Zoophylacium, published in 1763, Gronoviuswrites in detail about 11 different goldfishes. From thiswe can deduce that there were by then cultivated formssuch as the the lionhead, comet, veiltail, etc in Europe.Thus by the second half of this (18th) century at the lat-est the ornamental fish and the goldfish bowl had foundtheir way into European courts and among the upperclasses. About 200 years after it became an almosteveryday practice for the Chinese to enjoy keeping fish-

es and learning from them (astoday...?). There are a numberof other publications, not allof which can be mentionedhere, however. But none ofthem mentions an aquarium.Up to this time the only con-tainers known ranged frombasins set into the ground toelevated floating bowls orlarge vases made of potteryand jade, of marble orstone, and, of course,glass, in which ornamen-tal fishes (= goldfishes)had their permanenthome. But only for aslong as the cat didn’tswallow the golden fish-es, or until they died oflack of oxygen or over-feeding (or the oppo-site occurred – therewas no Nutrafin backthen...). And, ofcourse, the lady of the

house or dear James, thebutler, may have forgot-ten to change the water(as Fluval filters wereunknown, and there wasas yet no electricity...).

The aquarium (as we know it today) had not yet been invented.That didn’t happen until the 19th century. A very exciting story, asyou may well imagine – but that must wait for next time. Don’t missit, as it will be very interesting...

AAqquuaarriiuumm hhiissttoorryy Part 3

133 NUTRAFIN Aquatic News

The tomb of a priest (centre) discoveredin the Andean citadel, with the “aquarium” above

his seat and surrounded with (ornamental) fishes, indicates worship, a cult,or maintenance (Chimú culture, circa 1300 AD). And what is the meaning ofthese 2 fishes from the Bahia region of Ecuador (500 BC-500 AD)?



Nutrafin for the firsttime presents a discusbiotope set-up at the

4th International Discus Championship

Who would have thought that more than24,000 visitors (20,462 paying) wouldstream into a discus championship from allover the world. The championship itselfprovided a stage for 402 discus from 24 na-tions, in order to select the finest discus inthe world. Over 2 days eight judges select-ed the victorious fishes from those exhibit-ed in the 12 categories, with both of the ma-jor special prizes going to Singapore. Win-nie Nio/Conrad Chia won the award for the“best wild form” with a discus from the cat-egory “D/green”, and Chai Koon Seng tookthe prize for the “best bred form”. As at theexhibition two years previously (this wasthe fourth of its kind), the “King of theaquarium fishes” was a very good RedSpotted Leopard Snake.

But the visitors had much more to enjoythan just the judging of the competitionfishes. There were about 80 exhibitors, of-fering discus of every colour and virtuallyall available discus-related products. An

outstanding event, underlining how far thediscus still retains its status despite theworld economic crisis and Flower Hornhysteria in Asia. And Nutrafin was verymuch at the forefront. Heiko Bleher – withthe support of Rolf C. Hagen, Inc., also oneof the main exhibitors and sponsors of theevent – had specially sought out and locat-ed new discus variants in the Amazon re-gion for this exhibition in Germany. Thesewere now presented for the first time any-where in the world on the unique Nutrafinbiotope stand (a number of these new discusare shown here).

The Nutrafin discus biotope stand wasstormed by all the visitors, often severaltimes, and question upon question asked.For the first time in the history of the discuspeople were shown how “TheKing ” lives in nature, in8 huge aquaria. Thehabitats of bothspecies (and 4 sub-species) were por-trayed true-to-na-ture, includingdecor supplied byHagen Germany.(For details see www.hagen.comor ask aquapress.com)

1. Nutrafin biotope stand. 2. Jack Wattley, the world-famous discusbreeder, with Heiko Bleher. 3. Heckel discus from the Rio Negro athigh water (the leaves of the trees are submerged and discus hiddenbeneath them). 4. A high-bodied Nhamundá-red cultivated formfrom the breeder G. Schneider. 5, 9+10. Heiko’s Heckel discus newdiscoveries from the Rio Uatumá (unbelievable colour forms). 6.Heckel discus (subspecies S. discus willischwartzi) in the ParanáUrariá biotope. 7+11. Brown discus (red variety) and typical Alen-quer region biotope with 50 specimens from the area (this is how theylive). 8. A green discus in the Lake Tefé biotope (with 50 specimens).

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NEW

NEW

NEW

NEW

New Hose Brack•ets, adapts to any aquarium frame; securely positions hosing; maximum placement flexibility ofthe intake and output on aquarium rim

New More Pow'er•ful Mo•tor, increased pressure; flowrates and head heights have increased 15-25%; air evacuation isdramatically improved for quicker starts

New Lift Lock Clamps, new dual function design optimizes opening and closing of the filter canister; function 1.easily separates the motor from the canister bond; function 2.securely seals the motor head to the filter housing

New Aq•ua Stop, quick and convenient filter access; newmaintenance free valve design with integrated flow control

In order to excel you must evolve. With this in mind, our Fluval engineers and designers are continuously challengingthemselves to develop new ideas to keep Fluval at the forefront ofthe aquarium industry. Using this innovative approach, we’ve created a multi-stage filter that is versatile, convenient, and delivers optimum performance. Discover for yourself the filter engineered to excel.

ev•o•lu•tionan unfolding; process of development of change

MULTI-STAGE EXTERNALCANISTER FILTER

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Distributed by:U.S.A.: Rolf C. Hagen (U.S.A.) Corp., Mansfield, MA. 02048Canada: Rolf C. Hagen Inc., Montreal, QC H4R 1E8U.K.: Rolf C. Hagen (U.K.) Ltd., Castleford, W. Yorkshire WF10 5QH

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4 o u t o f 5 c h e f s a g r e e . . .

Quality ingredients are the keyto any fine meal.’’ ’’

The 5th chef felt it was all about presentation!You don't have to shop the world to provide your fish with the best quality food.We've done it for you. Feeding Nutrafin Max

will ensure that your fish receive the finest meal available.• Fish Meal from Alaska, U.S.A.

• Organic Spirulina from Kona, Hawaii, U.S.A.• R.A.P. (Red Algae Pigment) from Kona, Hawaii, U.S.A.

• P.D.P. (Pre-Digested Plankton) from British Columbia, Canada• Earth Worm Meal from Venezuela

• HFPC (Pre-Digested Fish Meal) from Alaska, U.S.A.• Proprietary Vitamin Pre Mix from Ontario, Canada

• Blood Worms from Taiwan• Brine Shrimp from the U.S.A. and China

• Fine Herbs and Spices from Quebec, Canada

Distributed by:U.S.A.: Rolf C. Hagen (U.S.A.) Corp., Mansfield, MA. 02048Canada: Rolf C. Hagen Inc., Montreal, QC H4R 1E8U.K.: Rolf C. Hagen (U.K.) Ltd., Castleford, W. Yorkshire WF10 5QH


Angelfishes - Rolf C. Hagen Inc. · because the discus has pushed ... who collected the fish during...

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Transcript of Angelfishes - Rolf C. Hagen Inc. · because the discus has pushed ... who collected the fish during...