For the want of an aquarium ornament ...

[Neptune, the Mystic]

.. a fish tank was borne, that's how I would describe what lead me to fish-keeping.

Hello folks, I'm Victor.

A causal day in April saw me walking past a small inconspicuous neighbourhood fish shop and I would have just continued my way indifferent to the existence of the shop had not an object on display within its premises caught my glance and I was compelled to retract my steps.

The unusually large 2-piece ornament gripped my imagination and rooted me to the spot. What immediately sprang to mind was the ill-fated Titanic and the month marked the 100th anniversary of her tragic sinking.

When I eventually torn myself away I started visualising an underwater world where an ancient vessel sits on the ocean floor alive with a community of fishes thriving on it like a reef - as seen in documentary television channels.

A home aquarium came to mind.

Oh, C'mon, what do you know about fish-keeping? Is my experience rearing two gold fish in my growing up years anything to go by?

(In early Singapore, they used to sell ornamental fish in a metal basin at the market and, one morning, mom brought home two black goldfish as a surprise. Now, hard as I tried to, I cannot recall what beginnings there were leading to the acquisition of a cement tank, an air-pump and a fibre-filled transparent filter. However, I do remember how, despite the plain set-up, the fish were hardy and fed voraciously on bread and the abundant growth of algae. When they started to grow to the size of a tennis ball, they underwent an astonishing transformation - their scale took on the lustre of gold and their bulging eyes became more prominent.

I believed then that I was the only person to have such a pair of fish and had planned to show off my pride and joy. Unfortunately, before I could get to that, disaster struck.

I awoke one morning, grieved to find them afloat - lifeless. The air pump had stopped working in the night. Following the loss, I would dream about them and awake with a start.)


I told myself not to buy the shipwreck on impulse. Wise decision because it turned out that I mulled for weeks taking the first step of buying a fish tank during which time voice in me kept budding me.

Being too lazy to visit an aquarium shop to deicide on the choice of a tank, (that neighbour shop did not have any sizable tanks), I turned to the internet. It would be better to source for a used one as that may mean that the tank is 'conditioned' for use. At the same time, I was reading up on the subject of fish-keeping, that's when I chanced upon AQ portal.

There is an avalanche of reading materials on the net, with one downside to reading up too much. The more I read, the more it is that fish-keeping has evolved to a field of science. What happened to the simple joy that I knew as a boyhood hobby? I was beginning to harbour second thoughts.

to be continued...

[Neptune, the Mystic]

I decided to stop reading. To worry about fish-stocking is like putting the cart before the horse when the priority should be to get the basic start-up equipment and adopt a trail and error approach from there.

It did take long to acquire not just a tank but a compete set at that. I was lucky to be at the right portal at the right time.

An eBayer was giving up a used tank with accessories. Said to be ready for use and easy to maintain - just add water and fish. What more could a beginner ask. Determined to win, I submitted my bid and won. (Not that there were no other bidders).

The product:
Model H-620 (no brand name, it could be Aqua One)
Capacity: 90 litres
Dimension: 62cm length x 40cm width x 53cm height
Height including cabinet: 121cm
Built-in biological filter
Power 24w x 3 florescent lights within cover of tank
Gravel: natural mix

The actual tank capacity may be lesser because the rear portion is taken up by the filtration system hidden from view. The filtration system comprises 4 canisters housing what look like black sponges and brown lava gravels bagged within washing nets. I do not know how long the tank was left dry and unused by the previous owner and whether that has any bearing in reviving the filtration system and so I used them as they were.

It underwent three or four complete change of water to achieve a reasonable degree of water clarity.

In the first, I did not wash the gravel (didn't the previous owner said it was already washed!) with the result that many Malaysian trumpet snails started to make their appearance the next day.

In the next water change, there were fewer snails emerging after the gravel had been meticulously washed in a sieve, (such a chore). The resultant water was still not to satisfaction.

In the third change, two snails were sighted and I decided to let them remain.

The day after the final water change, I decorated with some home furnishings - 3 plastic plants (the pathetic small-time shop had only plastics then, and, as they turned out, cost more than real plants)) and a barrel ornament of which I was extremely pleased by its authenticity of details. Much as I like the sunken galleon, its size is too big for the tank.

Five days following, the residents were introduced; I didn’t have the patience to really acclimate them longer than a one minute before I let them loose from the bag - 4 small honey gourami, not more than one inch length. Again, my choice of fish was limited by what the shop had.

They took to the habitat immediately, a luxury compared to the austerity of where they came from.

I waited for them to overcome the awe of their new surrounding before feeding them, careful not to overfeed. But on second thoughts, never mind - feed them more, they were starved at the shop.

At the end of the feeding session, they were seen huddled together, examining the gravel as though in unison in a dance - vertically, with the tails in the air and their heads down - acrobatic and surrealistic of a ballet performance. It was simply amusing to watch.

However, such serenity was shattered in the days to come by the introduction of newcomers. My fault at that.

to be continued.

[Cyberkinetic]

Wow.. it's like a story telling session.

Understand that the story will continue.. wanted to ask about what's next... oh well, as what I've learnt so far in this hobby in these few short months I've started.. PATIENCE...

[Neptune, the Mystic]

Looking at the four small fish in the tank, I felt the world they lived in could accommodate more and, accordingly, I acquired 2 zebras, 2 honey gourami (I could kick myself for this 'cos I didn't realise they're the same species as those already in the tank; they had looked so differently at the shop due to the dim lighting) and 2 neon blue dwarf gourami (Colisa lalia).

I also replaced the plastic plants with Java Fern and Anubias Berteri/Nana whose identities, including those of the fishes, I googled to find out.

With a stock of ten fish, the tank suddenly looked oddly congested with large plant leaves, pieces of stones randomly strewed and the barrel ornament taking centre stage, the overall picture lacked aesthetics.

The new arrivals were apprehensible when let into the tank but soon assimilated easily with the resident batch and the surrounding. There was harmony but a fragile one as I was to discover on the third day after their inception.

One of the once shy and reclusive Blues suddenly went berserk during a feeding session and reached out to nip every feeder. When big fish started nipping smaller fish, it sparked a chain reaction down the line and a pecking order was sorting itself out. What accounted for the bickering not witnessed before? Overcrowding? Competition for food? Or both?

The dynamics in the tank had changed, a change that was stressing out everyone, including myself. Something must be done and done fast.

In deciding who to keep or let go, it was a toss-up between the honeys on one hand versus all the rest on the other. My thoughts then were that the honeys could get along as a group, whereas the zebras needed to be a shoal of at least six, and having just 2 Blues to fill up the tank was a tad extravagant.

I was reluctant to forgo the Blues - their similarity in size, making them difficult to tell apart, may enable them to co-exist without either getting an upper hand dominating. However, what won them the day was their unusual colouration - a metallic sheen that glimmer against light. And the one honey that best matches them in size would remain. Thus, the decision was made.

The experience so far suggested a need for an unobstructed clearing for the fish to swim freely. To achieve that, I cut the barrel decoration into 2 two equal halves and make do with only one, placing it like an inverted Mongolian tent in the centre-back of the tank and fringed by plants at the top and both sides.

th_Photo0086.jpg

I thought the setting was now much improved and I was curious to see my the result of my experiment - overcrowding or competition for food?

to be continued.

[Neptune, the Mystic]

Ooops... the photo turns out so small. Need to learn how to re-size.

[Neptune, the Mystic]

Soon after reducing the fish population to five in the tank, I fed them tubifex worms for the first time. Their excitement on encountering live food could hardly be contained. It had looked like they had tasted blood and consequently their raw aggression surfaced. In the jostle, one of the Blues emerged as the most dominant fish and took to guarding the dispenser cup containing the worms. He was kept so busy chasing off any fish approaching the cup that he hardly had the chance to eat. As soon as his back was turned, one or more fish would quickly dart in to pick any worm wiggling out and the zebras were the swiftest in this respect.

The aftermath of feeding them live food was that the hitherto peaceful danio mock-charged or whacked each other with their bodies in parallel position. The gourami became markedly aggressive and harassed the danio. It used to be that danio were left alone. Clearly, tubifex changes the temperament of every fish.

A day or two after feeding on tubifex, one of the Blues developed a red sore under the eye that was impossible to escape notice.

Diagnosing fish diseases is extremely difficult and nothing matches the condition seen in the fish:

Photo0076.jpg

I subsequently came across a reference to Dwarf Gourami Iridovirus (DGIV) by Neale Monks, Ph.D. wherein Singapore is mentioned:

The quality of the dwarf gouramis in the trade has steadily declined for years, with batches of fish showing significantly higher levels of mortality than 10 years ago. Historically, retailers and aquarists have blamed bacterial infections, such as fish tuberculosis (Mycobacterium marinum). In recent years, though, attention has focused on a virus known as dwarf gourami iridovirus or DGIV.

Dwarf gourami iridovirus is apparently specific to the dwarf gourami (Colisa lalia), including the various fancy varieties of the species, such as neon gouramis and sunset gouramis. Infected fish develop a variety of symptoms, including loss of color, decrease in activity and appetite, the appearance of sores and lesions on the body, abdominal swelling and finally death. This fish disease is highly contagious, completely untreatable and invariably fatal.

Dwarf gourami iridovirus is apparently very common. One recent study of fish exported from Singapore found that 22 percent of all dwarf gouramis carried the virus. Aquarists should never purchase dwarf gouramis from fish aquariums containing fish exhibiting symptoms consistent with the dwarf gourami iridovirus, and all new fish should be quarantined for at least six weeks prior to being placed in the main fish aquarium.

For most aquarists, my best advice is to keep the hardier alternatives to dwarf gouramis. The thick-lipped gourami (Colisa labiosa) and the banded gourami (Colisa fasciatus) are both similar in size, temperament and coloration and make excellent alternatives.

[Neptune, the Mystic]

DGIV is a death sentence for which there is no cure. In desperation, I dosed with anti-white spot medication and one week after the sore lost its alarming colour and turned into a cyst.

What is note-worthy is that none of the fish appears to be infected based on the absence of symptoms described by the writer. In fact, each and every fish is extremely vigorous and never let up on eating.

Perhaps two weeks since the infection was spotted is too short a time to really tell. It may take as long as six months for GHIV to take its toll. Until then, I'll enjoy my observation of them and their presence while it lasts, with these random notes:

It is feasible to keep more than one male gourami in the same tank if they are similar in size. In my tank, there are not clear winners or losers when they face-off each other. For this reason, it is amusing and entertaining to watch them sizing up each other very now and then. They chase and counter-chase; they nip and counter-nip; they go into a 'courtship' display with out-flanged fins and fan their bodies vigorously like peacocks with opened feathers. Despite their combatant encounters where blows are traded like in a boxing ring, I am unable to detect any wounds or broken fins. There is never a dull moment watching them.

1. Unlike the top feeders, grouami are good house-keepers. They keep the tank clean by searching meticulously for food pellets that sank.
2. All the fish in the tank are trainable to respond on cue or by association. For example, a gentle tap anywhere on the edge of the tank will send them rushing to that spot. Change the location of the tapping and they will respond accordingly. Sometimes I teased them that way and it sent them into a frenzy.
3. The community are not in the least stressed by disturbances within the tank and may nibble at my finger during water change. Their curiosity got in the way and have to be pushed aside by the siphon.
4. The gourami, especially the Blues, may go into suspended animation and just gazed ahead of them. All gourami are innately full of curiosity and never tired of inspecting their habitat over and over again. Hiding places are of little use to them since they see no reason to seek refuge.
5. They are never satiated no matter how much they're fed.
6. The danio are a lively lot. Whenever I hear splashes at the water surface, it is they dodging the attacks of honey who will charge at them viciously. Thanks to the danio, an incident caused honey to lose all fear of the Blues who before then had been harassing him no end. He was charging at the danio to vent his frustration and missed his target. But the momentum caused the attacker to plough straight into the path of the Blues who scattered in fright. From then on, the playing field for all the gourami was levelled and 3-way fights are common.
7. Every fish has its unique character. One of the danio went on hunger strike for two feeding sessions, sampling a flake and then spitting it out because it wasn't tubifex. Honey's style of combat is not to fan out her fins like the Blues. It simply nips without warning or hesitation. Both Blues blow a copious amount of air bubbles underwater but the DGIV-infected fish is the only to shoot jets of water into the air and on the side of the glass.
8. I tested their taste buds with lettuce, spinach and celery - only the danio recognise them as food. None will go for chopped ham.
9. As a species, honey is hardier as suggested by it's torpedo-shaped body, in contrast to the flattened dish-like Blue. None is as swift as the danio.
10. Danio are 'condemned' to a pent-house view. Nature hasn’t designed them to live at mid-level let alone the depths of the bottom. It would be great if they ever surfaced below.
11. The touch-sensitive pelvic fins of the gourami serve a purpose I have yet to fully understand other than their extending one or both fiddlers to 'feel the air' or outstretching both before combat.
12. The gourami are able to back-paddle without re-directing or turning their heads around. It is fun and a rare sight to watch.
13. There was an episode of ICH. I was puzzled that there were symptoms without the tell-tale sign of white spots that I kept looking out for. It was days before I reasoned that it could not be parasitic in origin. It was brought on by too much and too sudden water change, untreated water and difference in water temperatures between new and tank water. One learns through trail and errors and ICH has not recurred. The danio were not affected. Are they immune to ICH or simply made of sterner stuff?
14. Something is missing in the tank - the sight of air bubbles ascending. To make up for that, I use a 10-hole spray bar to shoot water into the air before breaking the water surface like a water fall. The sound of it means different things to different people.
15. The gourami struggled against fast moving water which the danio prefer. As a compromise, I adjusted the flow to middle strength and the danio remain at where the flow is strongest. Everyone's happy.
16. Keeping plants healthy is more challenging than the fish themselves. The black algae on the leaves is getting uncontrollable and I may resort to plastic plants to be hassle-free.
17. In not feeding the fish tubifex worms anymore, their aggression appears to have waned.
18. A surprising outcome from re-arranging the plants is that the 'healthy' Blue has formed an attachment with one of the plants by remaining atop the leaves and guarding against trespassers. He hardly moves away or venture far. An amazing transition from his former self in wandering all over the tank.

Cheerio!
Victor