Right or Wrong? A Multiple Choice Article
Written by Monday, 08 October 2001 01:00
It's really impressive. Up to now, the only things that came in my mind when I heard the word "aquarium" were water spills (most often on the floor), buckets, hoses, sponges and filter floss. I can still remember (while I was still on the other side of the river) myself complaining all the time : "A Water change? Again? I am sick and tired of all these things drooling on my carpets ! Can't you do something with all this mess of cables? Every time I pass over them I risk falling !".. These are among the very few I remember ... amongst many I try to forget. What I don't forget is my eyes always falling on that "family" aquarium. I was watching these little creatures, trying to understand if they liked being with us. And you know something ? They did like it ! They could even tell us apart. When a visitor came by they simply ignored him, if they didn't like him they wouldn't even come out of their hiding spots. I will not say that I was happy about it, but I was ! You see I am possessive in nature and I wanted to be the center of their universe.
I can still remember when we had to empty the tank in order to net the zillions of fry which were hiding among the rocks. I can still remember my feelings when I watched those cute little things being packed in small bags for a big journey with unknown destination.
One morning I decided to cross the river. To join the "good" guys. The truth is that many things had happened which made me think about fish and aquariums all the time. The strange thing is that nobody forced me to change my mind. It was my own decision and I take full responsibility for this. How did I get trapped ? Trapped in an 84 liter trap with water, sand, two Anubias and four beautiful Pseudotropheus socolofi. Four fantastic, hyper mobile, nervous and a bit shy fishes, which become more revealing by the day. My only problem is that I don't know their sexes. Let me introduce them to you. From ground floor till the second flood, it is Goliath. Apart from his magnificent blue colour he has a very strong personality. He is aggressive, territorial and very proud. And he must like me a lot. I don't know how I look in his fishy eyes but surely I must sound very rhythmic to his fishy ears ! Since the first days he came in our house, I used to knock on his glass with my hand and he would always come close to say "Hello" ! He must probably be a bit jealous. And he occupies too much space. He has declared possession over the half of his tank and usually does not allow any other fish to come by. Apart from a small exception. Very small. His small Dulcinea!!
The smallest of my four Pseudotropheus socolofi. Dulcinea is the only fish permitted to enter Goliath's kingdom. I must confess that in the beginning I was pissed off with this fish. The only thing she seemed to care about is where to hide. She didn't come out even during feeding time. Her growth was so much stunted that I decided to hand feed her. Ok, not literally, but I used to place pellets on top of her stone hoping that the other fish wil not eat them before she did. Lately she decided to become more intelligent. She simply started to behave like a real woman trying to seduce Goliath. And she is really good at it. Goliath has already declared her as his official fiancée and does everything possible to keep her happy. She is the only one allowed to search for food, clean her gills with sand or dive here and there. I suspect - not sure yet - this is a male and female Pseudotropheus socolofi flirting with each other and getting ready for their debut. I am sure Goliath is trying to bring Dulcinea closer to him as a investment for the near future.
This Ps. Socolofi in the penthouse is Samson. Very dynamic and risky personality, often fights with Goliath questioning his "Kingdom". Since he came home he chose the best place to make it his own territory. The observatory of the aquarium, a "room with a view". I think that he has some plans in his mind. He is not very happy being the second male in the tank. Sometimes I have even seen him looking at Dulcinea.. He even spelled something in her ear some days ago, in the dark corner of the tank. His behavior makes me think he is also a male, which means that sooner or later one of the two males will have to leave.
The fourth Ps. Socolofi - I call him Don Quixote - he is the lonely rider of my aquarium. He is so intelligent that he has managed to trespass Goliath's territory unnoticed. Only I can see him digging in the sand, creating tunnels and hiding places which allow him to watch what is happening in his tank. He even adds his personal touch in the decoration of the aquarium. Finally, it seems that Don Quixote is the only fish which does it its own way. Perhaps his small size is what makes it possible for him. The others don't see him as a true competitor. However, I suspect that Don Quixote sees them as his competitors. This must be the case since lately he is spending less time hiding. I am sure he has a plan in his mind.. I can't tell you what it is but he is definitely working on it. What I know is that, despite the presence of the King, you can find him anywhere. Anywhere except a good point to take a picture of him.
My fish being still very young, are normally fed twice daily. I feed them Tetra Phyll and a food I made with my own hands with beans, shrimps and spirulina following the instructions of Ad Konings and Andreas Iliopoulos. They eagerly take both foods. Although they are "just" fish they definitely prefer the food I prepared than the "commercial" one.
Sometimes they come out to salute me. However, I am sure that even when I am not looking at them, they are still looking at me ! They have come to trust me and I hope that in the near future we will become real buddies ! One thing now.. Sorry fishes, can you please tell me which of you is male or female ? I may have to change your names you know !!
Technical Specifications of my trap
Tank Dimensions (in cm) : 80 x 30 x 35 (LxWxH), total volume 84 liters.
Filter: The only filter is a water pump by Aquaclear (flow rate 540 l/h) with a sponge. It is enough for the volume of the tank if you couple it with regular water changes (about 1/3 every week).
Lighting: One fluorescent tube (40 W / 15W).
Plants: One Anubia barteri and an Anubia barteri var. nana.
Substrate: Very thin sea sand, and special "sand" for birds (actually consists of crushed shells) in a 3:1 ratio. It is very useful because (apart of its decorative value) is also buffering the water keeping the pH high enough.
Stones: The stones I used were collected from the seaside, washed and then dried in the sun. After that they were glued together with silicon to avoid any drops (caused by the ever digging cichlids).
Photos by the author.
| < Prev |
|---|