New Era with What?

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antonium98

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Feb 16, 2024
16
6
8
27
Greece
Good evening, everyone. There are some changes coming up in my life, and I’ll need to move. The new place I’ll be living in can’t support the weight of my aquarium when it’s full, along with the sump. I’ll be making some modifications. The tank is 220x80x80 cm, due to weight, it can be filled up to 40 cm in height. I’ll also install two internal sumps, each measuring 40x40 cm. The tank will be set up as a sort of paludarium-riparium. I’ve been thinking about lots of roots, some plants, large and small rocks, I want dry leaves and fruits, and plants that grow and emerge out of the water, like papyrus, for example. In recent years, I’ve kept stingrays, Asian arowanas, and cichlas. Unfortunately, that’s no longer possible. I’ve also had biotope tankwith wild discus, which, sadly, can’t be kept int this tank either. I’m stuck and don’t know what live fish to add. I would appreciate your help. Thank you very much for your time, and I apologize for the lengthy message.
 
It's probably against the rules of MFK to even suggest this, but...there is life beyond monsters. A set-up like yours would look great with a school of some small species of tetra or barb, and/or possibly some livebearers. Sounds perfect for most gouramis as well. You have a decent water depth, much better than some of these set-ups we see with only a couple inches of water, so you have a huge assortment of fish available to you.

Or, there are some "specialty" fish that would be perfect in this specialized environment, such as African Butterfly Fish or one of the Archer Fish species.

One thing I'd suggest is that you consider the possibility of an overhead wet/dry filter or "trickle" filter. It could be designed and mounted along the back wall of the tank behind the lighting. These filters are not filled with water and can be made quite light in weight, and the return to the tank could be used to create some sort of waterfall or stream feature that would add significant aeration to your tank. It would also free up a lot of space that your proposed two internal filters will otherwise occupy. The tank itself would only contain the pump, equipped with some small prefilter, rather than a couple of 40x40cm boxes.

Good luck with this project, hopefully you keep us updated. :thumbsup:
 
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Hello; I have had several episodes in which my tank keeping had to change. Had to adapt. Back in my graduate school days, (late 1970's) I took a limnology course. Part of the course included what were called emergent plants. The sort which can live in water and also normally have parts that emerge from the water into the air. Often found around the perimeter of a pond and in shallow wetlands. I may still have some of the text and reference books around and will look. Best I recall the best was specifically for North Carolina. May be most plants will not apply to Greece.

Amphibians such as turtles & frogs could be used. Salamanders also. Maybe small fish. I went thru a phase of keeping large fish back in the 60's &70's. I now like the smaller species. I do not know if you are restricted from keeping small stream fish native to your area. I never tried to do so here mainly because most native fish here do not tolerate the warmer temperatures inside a home. Cooling a tank is more expensive that heating.

Anyway good luck. Hope the new chapter is a good experience.
 
Shallow tanks with emergent vegetation such as papyrus and mangrove trees can be quite striking, and there are fish species that work well, in these limited gallon tanks..
I collect earth eaters such as Geophagines and Darienheros in shallow streams and some would work in a half filled tank of that size tank,
9a363f90-85a7-49e8-ba47-abe8eab213bb.jpeg
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and although the species above are hard water, there are plenty of soft water, and neutral water species from S America that would fit the bill, depending on your tap water parameters.
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Another option might be archerfish, that would cruise around a grove of mangrove trees to create an intersting scenario, easpecially if your new place has harder water parameters.
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The pics above were taken at the Baltimore aAquarium.
Below mangrove trees in my current tanksIMG_0581.jpegIMG_9252.jpegtrees and beyond visuals, these trees and other plants helpfilter the water.
i have also used emergent Papyarus to aid in nutrient removal and water filtratioin.
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With these types of plants, and trees feeding on, and sucking up nutrients, my nitrates remain undetectable.
 
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