SPLASHAUGUST 2012

Milwaukee Aquarium SocietySociety Officers:

President: Austin Braganza (414)447-5693

Vice President: Dave Miller (262)676-1616

Treasurer: Jerry Michels (414)353-5370

Secretary: Danielle Jirik (262)676-1616

Sgt. At Arms: Don Hinske (262)238-1916

Board Members:

Board Chairman Rob McLure (414)349-2226

Board Member: Kevin Steers

Committee Chairpersons:

Splash Editor tim.pilat@gmail.com Tim Pilat (262)853-4895

Breeders Award Program (BAP) Andy Hudson (262)389-2456

Horticulturists Award Program (HAP) Aaron Glass (262)436-1157

Fish Store Liaison Don Hinske (262)238-1916

Librarian Dave Miller (262)676-1616

Participation Awards Program (PAP) Ken King (262)284-2684

Speaker Chair Jim Everson

On the Cover:Julidochromis ornatus, a rock-dwelling cichlid from Lake Tanganyika, photo compliments of Ted’s Fishroom

Important Dates!M.A.S. September Board Meeting September 1 1:00 at Andy Hudson’s home, (414) 389-2456 7690 South Wayland Dr., Oak Creek WI 53216 Everyone is Welcome

M.A.S. September Meeting September 21

7:30 at Hoffer’s Tropic Life 7323 N. 76th St. Milwaukee, WI 53223

M.A.S. October Board Meeting October 6

M.A.S. Fall Auction October 14

M.A.S. October Meeting October 19

M.A.S. Fish-O-Ramma (swap) November 4

M.A.S. November Meeting November 16

M.A.S. Christmas Party December 9

For more information visit milwaukeeaquariumsociety.com

We will begin including a calendar of events for Species Clubs and surrounding City Clubs. Please submit your entries to tim.pilat@gmail.com.

AGA convention in November 3-5 in St. Louis. 

MAAH general meetings: visit madisonaquatichobby.comWisconsin Reef Society general meetings: visit wisconsinreefsociety.com

From the Fish Room of the President

Dear Milwaukee Aquarium Society readers this summer has been quite eventful. We have reveled in the Summer Olympics in London, watched around the world live through a multitude of devices, most notably live streaming media via the internet on hand held devices. At the Olympics swimming is one my favorite events to watch, maybe there is a fish connection there, I don’t know.

I saw this line in an interview with Ryan Lochte from the USA Olympic swim team, “Lochte unfazed by challenge of tackling Phelps” by Julian Linden Omaha Nebraska, Thu Jul 5, 2012.

"In 2008, Michael Phelps set the limit, eight gold medals. That's amazing," Lochte said. "But he's human. He's not a fish or anything like that. He's just like all of us, and he trained really hard to get there. Well he may not be a fish, but I have seen fish swim like him.

The Mars rover landed on Mars using the nicknamed ,”rover on a rope” landing procedure, which could be watched via the NASA site with only 7 to 11 minute delay. The horrible incident in Colorado at the Dark Knight midnight premiere and the hateful crime at the Sikh temple in Oak Creek shocked and saddened us. Hopefully we can learn some lessons from these incidents.

We had some great warm weather then drought and finally rainfall broke the dry spell turning our lawns green once more.

As I write this article I am in sunny Las Vegas where temperatures are in excess of 100°F all week long, but it is with good purpose. I am meeting my sister and brother in law from Australia and we are celebrating my 15th Las Vegas wedding anniversary since we got married in Vegas. There may be some gambling on the side.

I ponder the life cycle of my pond plants. Worth a few dollars each in the spring, my pond plants thrived, then they flowered and multiplied their numbers to their full glory that is the floating plant armada on the surface of my pond. My pond is now over grown with floating plants, which only a few months ago sprang forth from the dimunitive sprigs I was keeping alive in artificial light. They have been transformed by the sun’s rays into vibrant

whorls of greenish blue velvety petals. Now as Summer nears its end, they are destined to be composted into nourishment for their brethren in the garden, and such is circle of life. I heave net-fulls onto the compost pile to create open water enough for adequate oxygen exchange only to find the surface covered in a matter of days.

Often, as I read back over the past Splash articles, each article captures a little bit about the events surrounding the time of their writing, almost serving as a little snapshot in time. As time passes we understand more about fish in different parts of the world, their environments and what is takes to make them spawn. I hope that more people take the time to understand about the people and cultures in those parts, their environments as well as their hopes and dreams. We need to realize they are not so different from us, even though they may eat different foods, speak different languages or have year round tans.

Whether we realize it or not our hobby connects people and fish around the world almost like an inter twined web of life, people and fish spanning the globe, reminding me of the ending scene in the James Cameron movie Avatar. I can’t wait for the next one maybe they will have extra terrestrial fish or fish like species in it.

We (MAS) have been around while so what should we be doing? Should we try to make more money or get more involved in the community?. Should we help with organizing more events to get more kids into the hobby, maybe collaborate with the zoo? Should we help teachers set up aquariums in classrooms? What is it worth to you to see the aquarium society and the hobby not just survive but thrive?

Nothing is promised in this world, so live each day to your fullest and have fun living, otherwise what is the point?

I have to ask myself and I plan to ask you, what do you see as the future of this club? Let us know your thoughts and ideas. Ask yourself, what can you do to help us grow?

May your fish multiply and your plants propagate.

Austin BraganzaPresident, Milwaukee Aquarium Societyaka LIONFISH on the MAS forum

New Membersby Jerry Michels

Several new members have joined the club recently. Please join me in welcoming:

Melissa Fenninger - 32 freshwater & planted tanksTomm Renk - 3 freshwater tanks

Greet these people and ask them questions. They’ll be happy to talk and they will probably have questions as well. (I am sorry if I missed anyone. Please let me know and we will announce your name the next time.)

Speakers for 2012 M.A.S. Meetings

September: Ted Judy - vote for a topic on the ForumOctober: Michael Drawdy – Farming Fancy Live Bearers in FloridaNovember: Matt Pederson - Breeding Marine Fish.  December: no meetingJanuary: tbd

Note from the Editor

An article in the June 2012 edition of the SPLASH titled “My Experience Keeping and Breeding P. taeniatus ‘Moliwe’ was incorrectly attributed to Andy Hudson. The author is unknown. My apologies to Andy and the mystery author. This is a fine article. Would the true author advise the Editor for full and proper recognition?

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And the Stuart M. Grant Cichlid Conservation Fund

In May of 2012 Aqueon and the Milwaukee Aquarium Society launched a fund raiser to raise money for the Stuart M. Grant Cichlid Conservation Fund. This fund is used to protect the cichlids of Lake Malawi by developing and implementing Anti Netting Devices (AND’s) that are sunk underwater and prevent unlawful poaching of cichlids from national parks in Lake Malawi.

Aqueon donated a number of unmatched and discontinued aquariums and filters to the Milwaukee Aquarium Society and the items were then offered through a silent auction on the M.A.S. forum. When the all the auctions had completed the grand total collected amounted to $1465.00 which was sent to Professor Jay Stauffer at Penn State University who administers the fund along with Ad Konings.

The Milwaukee Aquarium Society and Aqueon are glad that we were able to help out this noble cause and protect the cichlids and other fish of Lake Malawi so that they may continue to thrive in their native environment and not just in our home aquaria. We look forward to continued stories of success at protecting the fish of Lake Malawi and other areas of the world where fish are threatened.

-Andy Hudson

For more information about the Stuart M. Grant Cichlid Conservation Fund please visit:

http://www.cichlidpress.com/smgfund/index.html

Andy Hudson (left) from MAS and Aqueon informing Ad Konings at the 2012 American Cichlid Association Convention in Indianapolis about the money raised for the Stuart M. Grant Conservation fund by M.A.S. and Aqueon.

Anubias Barteri “nana”Propagation Report

by Rob McLure

Anubias plants are thick leaved bunch plants that live in low water or swampy lands in western and central Africa. Because they are commonly being found in dark shaded areas they were named after Anubis, the Jackal-headed Ancient Egyptian god of the underworld. Anubias are good plants for aquariums housing plant eaters, as their thick leaves are often to hard to eat, even for cichlids and goldfish. Anubias do not require CO2 or bright light, but better growth rates have been shown when they do receive them. If they are in too much light though, algae can form on their broad leaves and cause problems. They are extremely slow growers, it is estimated that they produce one new leaf every 3 weeks.

Anubias barteri are the most common anubias in the aquarium trade. The “nana” variety is also the smallest, with each bunch growing about 10 cm tall with max leaf size about 6x3 cm. Anubias can be propagated by division of the stolon (also known as a rhizome) or by side shoots. The stolon should never be buried as it needs to obtain nutrients from open water.

I purchased 4 bunches of Anubias barteri “nana” at the Madison Area Aquatic Hobbyists auction in the spring of 2011. I placed them in a 20 long aquarium with about 30 watts of fluorescent light on it, and a small power filter. I originally attached each bunch to a piece of sunken driftwood, but several broke free and I left them free floating in the water. The free floaters grew the best. After 1 year I have the same 4 large bunches, and 11 smaller bunches of Anubias. I did not cut any of the stolons, but let the plants propagate through side shoots. They have not received a ton of light, and in fact at times their entire tank top was covered in duckweed. They are slow growers but given adequate time and good water quality they can reproduce quite well the aquarium. I have heard they will readily flower even under water, but have yet to witness this with my plants. I would recommend this plant for a beginner as it’s also pretty hard to kill.

Rotala macradra “green”by Rob McLure

This plant is the Green form of the Giant Rotala, Rotala macrandra. It is fairly common in the aquarium trade, and it originates from India. A typical stem plant, it propagates through stem cutting, and has fairly high light and CO2 requirements. It also benefits from adding Nitrates, phosphates, micronutrients and Iron to the water. Rotala macrandra “green” is not an extremely easy plant and I would not recommend it for beginners. I originally planted 5 of these stems in my 20 long aquarium that has approximately 5 wpg, CO2, and aquasoil to provide a lot of nutrient fertilization to the water and the roots. It grew to the top of the tank within 3 weeks and took on a redder color than when I first got it - this could be due to the intense light. I now have more than 20 stems and the plants are creating side shoots and dividing all the time. I have seen this form of Rotala used in a lot of Amano’s work, and with its lime green and pinkish red hues, it is a very different and beautiful stem plant for any planted aquarium.

Marsilea CrenataBy Rob McLure

Marsilea crenata is an aquatic fern that grows in Thailand and Indonesia. It is also known in the U.S. by the name false pepperwort, and as Semanggi in Indonesia where it is considered an edible plant. The leaves are eaten raw in Indonesia and used as part of a dip in Thailand. M. crenata also grows in the waterways of Hawaii where it is considered by the USDA to be an “alien fern”. The plant forms small four-leaf clover like leaves that grow on short thin stems towards the water surface. In nature it prefers waterways with a sandy or loamy bottom.

As seen with the plants I brought in when grown under very high light M. crenata creates completely different forms of leaf than when grown in low light or emersed. Under high light it forms single lobed leaves on short thicker stems. The leaves form in pairs on vines as it grows quickly to cover the substrate of the aquarium. On a post at the forum of the Plantedtank.net website it was said that M. crenata grown under high light is reminiscent of a small form of Glossostigma elatinoides. Having grown the 2 plants side by side I couldn’t agree more.

Marsilea QuadrifoliaBy Rob McLure

Marsilea quadrifolia is an aquatic fern that grows on 3 continents: North America, Europe, and Asia.It is also known in the U.S. by the name European water clover, and as Sushni in India where it is considered an edible plant. The plant forms large four-leaf clover like leaves that grow on long thin stems towards the water surface. The leaves can act like small lilypads floating just on top of the water, or they may stretch above, or grow below the surface. M. quadrifolia can also be grown emersed, in wet soil or loam. In nature it prefers waterways with a sandy or loamy bottom.

Being a fern, M. quadrifolia produces no flowers. Instead it makes what are called sporocarps which are small pods that grow on short stems from the base of the plant. Inside the sporocarps are many seeds, and if one is pierced or slit and placed in wet soil M. quadrifolia may be grown from seed.

M. quadrifolia is a diuretic and is used in medicine. It can be squeezed into liquid form to produce a salve for snakebites and abscesses. I found that it is fairly easy to grow given ample light. CO2, fertilizers, and mineralized soil were not needed to achieve what I consider to be very good growth rates. When planted in 1 location in my 33 long tank, my M. quadrifolia extended vines along the substrate that stretched the entire 4 foot length of the tank. It threw up stems and leaves at random intervals some areas it made a group and others a single stem. The leaves of this plant have a very sheen to them and a nice green appearance. I would like to try to grow M. quadrifolia emersed and grow it from seed as well. Hopefully in the near future.

Breeding Corydoras ehrhardtiBy Andy Hudson

I have been keeping a group of these fish for some time that I believe I picked up from Peter Durkin at an MAS swap some time ago. These are a neat little cory that look like a cross between C. paleatus and C. weitsmani. My group consists of two females and 4 males. Males are smaller than the females who are much larger and more plump.

I had been keeping my group in a 45 gallon community tank and although they were active and healthy I had never seen any spawning activity. Once I had my new fish room setup I decided to move them into their own 14 gallon tank and try to get them to breed. It didn’t take long before I was able to watch them spawn on the glass and every surface in the tank. Unfortunately this was done before I really had any setup for rearing the fry ready. I was able to save some eggs in a separate incubator and raise some microworms to feed them 10 days after the eggs were laid. Once they were large enough I moved the fry I still had into a 10 gallon tank with a sand bottom.

Unfortunately I was only able to raise 2 fry from this first spawn. The C. ehrhardti were not undaunted by my failure however and continued to spawn. I was even able to take some water from their tank while they were spawning and move it to two adjoining tanks containing Corydoras melini and Corydoras weitzmani and trigger them to spawn also. Unfortunately, I was unable to raise any of those spawns as I was away on vacation and not able to feed them at the critical time.

When I returned from vacation I was disappointed to find that the only cory babies I still had were the two I had in the empty 10 gallon. But that all changed when I looked in the parent’s tank! Scuttling around the bottom looking for food was not just adults, but five juvenile cory’s! Apparently the baby cory’s and their eggs had been able to avoid being eaten by the parents.

For the cory’s I had separated I fed them microworms for the first week and then added in freshly hatched brine shrimp. After that I fed finely crushed flake food. The babies in the adult tank received nothing but flake, algae wafers, and live blackworms. Water was very soft and water temperatures were in the low to mid 70’s.

MAS Exchanges I will keep this short because once again it is past deadline and this article must must go to the editor before I have to face his wrath at the meeting tonight. I certainly wouldn’t want a scene in the presence of our esteemed guest Dr. Paul Loiselle. I’m just kidding our editor is not a dragon…eel, he is very tolerant of me and I thank him for it.

Oh who am I kidding, I must share one story from my recent trip to Las Vegas, I did meet a celebrity, Jeremy Clarkson host on the BBC car show, Top Gear and his family. We were at the Titanic exhibit in the Luxor hotel, the staff at the counter of the Titanic exhibit were insisting on getting a photo ID in order for Jeremy and his family to store their camera as they would not allow it into the exhibit. They would not Google him even though he is famous and they certainly would not take the word of the people gathering around taking pictures. My sister and I, in spite of being star struck recovered our composure enough to step in to help a celebrity in need, we carried his daughter Emily’s camera through the exhibit, chatted about the Titanic and now we have a story to tell.

Upon landing in Milwaukee I drove directly to our MAS general meeting with barely a second to spare, just in time to address the club about club business and then sit down to a most excellent presentation on cichlid conservation by Dr. Paul Loiselle. Read about him online, he is involved with a lot of very cool stuff on cichlids and their conservation. He is on the ACA (American Cichlid Association) Preservation Program’s Conservation Committee along with Claudia Dickinson.

Speaking of conservation, Rob McLure is heading up our CARES program, Conservation Award Program (CAP) to rhyme with BAP and HAP. He will present more information at our next general meeting.

From the ACA website “The ACA C.A.R.E.S. Preservation Program is about our fish, and it is about people. We are one team, working together. Please, clear a tank ~ save a fish! We can and we are making a difference!”

Directly from the Aqueon and Milwaukee Aquarium, Society press release. “In May of 2012 Aqueon and the Milwaukee Aquarium Society launched a fund raiser to raise money for the Stuart M. Grant Cichlid Conservation Fund. This

fund is used to protect the cichlids of Lake Malawi by developing and implementing Anti Netting Devices (AND’s) that are sunk underwater and prevent unlawful poaching of cichlids from national parks in Lake Malawi.

Photo of Andy Hudson from MAS and Aqueon informing Ad Konings at the 2012 American Cichlid Association Convention in Indianapolis about the money raised for the Stuart M. Grant Conservation fund by M.A.S. and Aqueon.

For more information about the Stuart M. Grant Cichlid Conservation Fund please visit:” http://www.cichlidpress.com/smgfund/index.html Thanks to Aqueon, Andy Hudson and everyone else that helped make this happen.

On to the exchanges.

Reflector, June 2012 – publication of the Central New York Aquarium Society www.CNYAS.org reprinted a nice article titled, “Fairy Cichlid - Neolamprologus brichardi ”. This article does not list an author and comes from the website www.aquaticcommunity.com/cichlid/fairy.php. This is a nice concise article on housing and breeding the species. This Tanganyikan resident exhibits some fascinating behavior, they breed in groups and juveniles will help protect spawns. The princess of Burundi as they are sometimes referred to is a joy to keep and if you haven’t already give them a try. Note some of the marking on the gill plates are unique. Here is another tidbit I found about the species, Neolamprologus brichardi will have a sideway T shaped marking on the gill plates while N. pulcher var. 'daffodil' a popular geographic and yellow tinted color variant has chevron like “((“ markings on the gill plates. There are other types of similar gill plate markings for example a “V” on the N. helianthus. Ad Konings gave a fascinating talk once about gill plate markings and their locations around lake Tanganyika.

“Rainbows don’t come from Africa but they make great dithers for African cichlids. “In THE FINAL WORD. by Kevin Plazak from 2012 July, Cichlid Blues a publication of the Pacific Coast Cichlid Association. www.cichlidworld.com I love this article, I can relate to it and I should not be made to feel guilty about it. The title pretty much gives away what the article is about, it is a brave little article and it talks about how non geographically accurate tank settings and tank mates can work and be quite interesting. I know most of you have done

some mixing and matching in your tanks, but it’s not often that you write about it.

In other news the federation of American Aquarium Societies announces new searchable Speaker database to help search for speakers by: Topic, Speaker name and Zip code www.faas.info

The Aquatic Gardener’s Association Annual Convention is in St. Louis, MO, November 1-4, 2012. Awe inspiring website and great to inspire you to decorate that one special show tank, and maybe get into live plants. www.aquatic-gardeners.org/

Annual CWAS (Central Wisconsin Aquarium Society) tropical Fish Auction in September 2012 check website for details. www.cwas.org/ Eagle’s Club, 1703 S. 3rd Ave, Wausau, WI 54401.

OK that’s it for me, I wish you love and light. Love your fish and hope you have lots of light for your plants to grow and flower.

Austin BraganzaExchange EditorMilwaukee Aquarium Society

Milwaukee Aquarium SocietyBoard Meeting Minutes

August 4, 2012

This month’s meeting was cancelled due to scheduling conflicts. The next meeting will be held Saturday, September 1 at Andy Hudson’s home at 1:00 P.M.

The following Stores Support M.A.S.Aquatics Unlimited 3550 S. 108th St Greenfield, WI 53228 (414) 543-2552

Best Fish 1335 N. 3rd St. Milwaukee, Wi 53212 (414) 224-0486

Hoffer’s Tropic Life 7323 N. 76th St. Milwaukee, WI 53223 (414) 353-6553

Marineland Pets 3519 W Villard Ave, Milwaukee, WI 53209 (414) 527-2511

Pet Supply Port 620 E. Green Bay Ave. Saukville, WI 53080 (262) 268-9966

Smiley’s Pets N Things 5869 S. Packard Ave Cudahy, WI 53110 (414)481-5585

REMEMBER to show your M.A.S. membership card to possibly receive discounts on your purchases.

Splash ClassifiedsFOR SALE: Goodea atripinnis (livebearer) $ 7.00 pr.Ameca splendens (livebearer)  $ 7.00 pr.Xenophorus captivus (livebearer) $ 7.00 pr.Limia variatta ( livebearer)    $7.00 trio.Xenotoca eiseni (red-tail Goodea - livebearer) $8.00 pr. contact: Ken King (262) 284-2684 ( will not ship out fish )

(Place your Ad Here for items you wish to sell or are looking for)Contact Jerry Michels or Austin Braganza for ad information.

Milwaukee Aquarium SocietyGeneral Meeting Minutes

August 17, 2012

Membership (Jerry Michels): We currently have 57 paid members. This is a three year high - keep it up!

Treasury (Jerry Michels): Our current balance is $11,243.62, of which the library has $91.96.  The June mini auction sold 35 bags for $231, and the running total for this year’s mini auctions is 130 bags for $933.

Splash (Tim Pilat): The August issue will be printed with a colored cover and will mail late in the month.

Please send any articles or classified ads to tim.pilat@gmail.com.

Exchanges (Austin Braganza): nothing new

Webmaster (Ted Judy): We have a new forum platform to upgrade the speed and effectiveness. If you are having difficulty logging in, contact Ted at tedsfishroom.com for assistance. After the new website is stable, the webmaster role will be transferred to Rob McLure.

Library (Jim Everson): We are adding fifteen books to our inventory compliments of Andy Hudson - check them out!  Thanks Andy!

PAP (Ken King): All accounting is up to date. Make sure Ken is informed of all contributions (time and material) because it will increase your “auction money” for the Christmas Party on December 9th.

BAP (Andy Hudson): The member spawning list is up to date and is posted on the website.

HAP (Aaron Glass): Submissions are going well keep it up!

Store liaison (Don Hinske): Don is distributing copies of the Splash to each store in our area.

Manufacturer’s liaison (Bonnie King): We are sending the Splash to manufacturers.

Old Business: We are beginning to collect funds for the “Artwork by Austin” T-shirt. The price is $20 and there may be a slight refund if the order quantity is large enough to lower the cost. Turn your cash into Jerry.

New Business: MAS is beginning a Conservation Awards Program (CAP). The program will be described at the next meeting.

Speaker:Dr. Paul Loiselle gave a very interesting presentation on the many ways that the world population is eradicating certain fish species. These means include spraying pesticides on banana trees, drying up rivers via irrigation and even panning for gold. Aquarists are the only stewards of the vulnerable fish species. We are asked to become knowledgable of the CARES program, contribute financially, educate the general public, and especially dedicate a tank to the maintenance of an endangered species. Thank you Paul for enlightening us!

King’s Firewood & Tree ServiceIron Ridge, WI

Your home & camp fire wood distributor.Camp bundles $51 cord (hard) $2251 cord (soft) $200

1 cord (mixed) $175Face cord $90

To place an order call:Bonnie King @ 262-343-0218

Owner Kenny KingWe are privileged to support

The “Milwaukee Aquarium Society”and their aquatic hobbyists.

Visit our website:kingsfirewoodandtreeservice.com

THE SPLASH The Splash is the official publication of the Milwaukee Aquarium Society,

and is published six times per year under the direction of the Board of Directors.

Articles are always welcome. Please submit them to the editor (Tim Pilat)no later than the first day of even numbered months to be included in the nextissue. Articles should be submitted in digital format to tim.pilat@gmail.com.

We will gladly exchange our publication with all interested societies.Please mail exchanges to Exchange Editor, P.O. Box 250824, Milwaukee, WI53225. Reprints of articles published in the Splash are always permitted and encouraged, provided that credit is given in reprinting to The Splash, author and Society. It is also requested that a copy of the issue containing the article reprinted be sent to the address above to be shared with the author. This would be in addition to any exchange copies.

Please inform the editor of any address changes in forwarding of thispublication to members or other societies.

THE MILWAUKEE AQUARIUM SOCIETYThe Milwaukee Aquarium Society is an organization devoted to the

hobby of tropical fish, both freshwater and saltwater. Its membership consists of hobbyists gaining expertise in all phases of raising and breeding tropical fish, as well as area retailers. Our membership expertise covers a wide range, from beginners to expert breeders, but all members are interested in promoting the hobby and encouraging others to join in the fun.

General meetings are held monthly, the third Friday of the month, 7:30 p.m. at Hoffers’s Tropic Life Pets, 7323 N. 76th Street, Milwaukee.We thank them for their hospitality. Free parking is available, and guests are always welcome. No general meetings are held in July or December.

Annual membership dues are $20.00 for a Family and $15.00 for an individual. Membership dues provide for the Splash, monthly speakers, community support, annual events, and show support. A yearly subscription to the Splash is available for $15.00. New or renewal of membership dues should be sent to the treasurer: Jerry Michels 6333 W. Boehlke, Milwaukee, WI 53223