The aquarium/paludarium is a 35 gallon hex tank. It is filled with approximately 15 gallons of water (half-filled...plants, substrate, etc. causing displacement). I use a 150 watt metal halide pendant for lighting and laterite with peat as a substrate. There is no mechanical filtration, only plants, but a small air stone provides circulation. It also receives some (at times direct)sun, as it sits in a south facing window (mostly curtained).
It currently houses:
3 Apistogramma hogsloi
2 Mikrogeophagus ramirezi
8 Paracheirodon innesi
4 Hyphessobrycon megalopterus
2 Pristella maxillaris
4 Hyphessobrycon colombianus
5 Otocinclus affinis
1 Panaque maccus
Basically, I have gone against many standard fishkeeping rules...high bio load, nil mechanical filtration, some direct sunlight, and few water changes. I only remove water when mulm builds up to a point I feel it is unsightly...like every three months at most. I occasionally add distilled water to replace evaporation, but this is usually done through a mister bottle so it seeps through the live sphagnum. In the appropriate seasons, I leave the glass covering off for a few hours at night. The metal halide attracts hordes of insects that drop in the tank and become food for the fish and fertilizer for the plants. I also raise mosquito larvae, chironomus, etc. in a trash bucket filled with rabbit droppings and water. Excrement from live and prepared food is all the fertilization I use.
It currently houses:
3 Apistogramma hogsloi
2 Mikrogeophagus ramirezi
8 Paracheirodon innesi
4 Hyphessobrycon megalopterus
2 Pristella maxillaris
4 Hyphessobrycon colombianus
5 Otocinclus affinis
1 Panaque maccus
Basically, I have gone against many standard fishkeeping rules...high bio load, nil mechanical filtration, some direct sunlight, and few water changes. I only remove water when mulm builds up to a point I feel it is unsightly...like every three months at most. I occasionally add distilled water to replace evaporation, but this is usually done through a mister bottle so it seeps through the live sphagnum. In the appropriate seasons, I leave the glass covering off for a few hours at night. The metal halide attracts hordes of insects that drop in the tank and become food for the fish and fertilizer for the plants. I also raise mosquito larvae, chironomus, etc. in a trash bucket filled with rabbit droppings and water. Excrement from live and prepared food is all the fertilization I use.
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