Greetings from paradise

YakontheFly

New Member
Joined
Mar 14, 2017
Messages
5
Reaction score
0
Location
Visayas Philippines
Greetings,

Want to introduce myself, and give everyone a understanding of where I am coming from with regards my piscatorial plans.

I have spent the last 35 years, in a career that has allowed me to travel all over the world. Sadly, this constant moving and travel, has resulted in my not being able to ever have an aquarium of tropical fish, let alone something along the concept of my dream plan.

I am an avid diver and angler, and this combination has allowed me to appreciate the world of our piscatorial companions, on this big blue marble, from a variety of perspectives.

Luckily, my career influenced, vagabond ways, are coming to an end. I anticipate a couple of decades in retirement in my adopted tropical paradise homeland, the Philippines.

I am having a new house built to accommodate this, and have extensive plans for a Japanese Water Garden inspired yard, with two large ponds (I have 250 sq ft to work with), several waterfalls and lots of colorful tropical plants, including water plants of all types (floating, bog, marginal and submerged)

The sound of waterfalls and ocean waves is cathartic to me. Which is the main reason for several waterfalls.

I plan on the aquascape (I know, a new word.) to be a diverse mix of rock, sand, gravel, caves and submerged logs.

I love the diversity and vibrant colors of tropical reef fishes, but am a realist, and know a salt water version of what I want, is too complex. Besides, I am close enough to the ocean to visit those on my frequent dives.

So, I have decided to populate the pond with lots of brightly colored freshwater fishes. I originally wanted to populate with South American Cichlids, especially Peacock Bass, because I find them so beautiful, and have fond memories of catching them on a flyrod, and returning them back. But they tend to get too large for smaller ponds, have a tendency to jump out of their tanks, and are super aggressive to other species in the tank. I want diversity, not just a couple species.

I then looked at the various Malawan Cichlids (Haplochromis) varieties because of the vibrant coloration, decent size (4-8" range), and their ability to live peacefully together. But, they make having water plants all but impossible.

Now I am looking at varieties of Rainbowfish (Melanotaeniidae), and although they are smaller, they do not destroy water plants.

My pond design, will be partially above and partially below ground, with natural lava rock (Another problem for Haplochromis), and a depth of up to 4 feet total (2' above and 2' below ground). I plan on having viewing panes in places where it is above ground, to give a aquarium type view, as well as top down.

Imagine this with a more natural rock frame.

b8212cb23a72720338677633989cc0dd.jpg


The water intake for filtering and re-circulation to the waterfalls will be at the base of waterfalls from each pond to a intake under the Japanese style bridge (Which will be built to easily remove for access to clean filters, and conduct repairs.)

I know this is overly ambitious for a beginner, but what else will I have to do in retirement.

My questions are this:

1) Are there any other species I should look at that would do well in such an environment, and meet my desire for color?

2) Should I stick with the Haps, and remove all but bog and hardier floating plants?

3) Since the pond will be fairly large, is it possible I could have a few Mbuna Cichlids in the pond too, provided I build lots of cave and structure for them to populate, to leave the Haps alone?

4) Is it possible, due to the bog areas, underwater rock and plant cover, to have several species of food fish and freshwater shrimp, naturally living within the pond at the same time. An eco-balance per se.

5) I am planning on using a combination of pond liners, and rock that are cemented together with epoxy grout for the pond, and using excavated dirt to build berms.

6) Any recommendations, cautionary and suggestive, from the collective knowledge of these forums is greatly appreciated. I learned long ago, to seek out subject matter experts when addressing any project. You are my collective SME's.

Oh, and any recommendations for tropical water plants or fish species I have not mentioned previously, to consider, are appreciated. Especially if the water plants are edible, and I can use them to supplement by diet. (Like Water Basil and Lotus)

Thank you,
 
Last edited:
Welcome to TFF!

Lovely little project :D

Some thoughts and starting points for you:
First you should do some research into water hardness (KH & GH). Different fish prefer different water. The parameters of your source water should determine what fish to keep. There are ways to change the hardness, but I am not sure if you want to do this with that size of a pond.

Lava rock are not suited for tanks or ponds as they got very sharp edges, which can injure your fish.

If you have a large pond it is possible to have some kind of an biological system including a food chain. But this requieres a pretty low fish density and rather smallish fish. Not sure if you want to go down that route. Also it is easier achieved outdoors, as then many things will come naturally to colonize your pond.
 
Hobby5,

Thanks for your input.

I was looking at as close to a closed chain biological system as possible, realizing that my filtering and waterfall system will remove excessive nitrogen and ammonia

I have done some research on the Malawan Cichlids, and see they like a higher Ph. And that I can use coral sand to increase it... Something that is plentiful here too.

Since my water source will be a combination of rain (Thank god for tropics and a designed rain harvesting system on the new house) I will have to do some preliminary testing to see what the natural Ph and Gh are. But adjusting the Ph, if needed is something I will accept.

This will be a completely outdoor pond, so I expect I will have to incorporate invaders. Which is why I was looking at Cichlids originally, as they are very hardy fish. Though from my readings, seems Rainbowfish are also pretty hardy.

I read that about lava rock, and though it was only precautionary for certain species. I can get other stone for the interior surface, or if needed, artificial concrete surfaces, made to look like natural rock, and leach it free of contaminants before introducing fish.

I have thought of doing this gradually, introducing plants first, and letting them get established, then adding minnows, crayfish, clams and possibly snails, and letting them get established for a few months, then adding fish a few at a time, until I get the end result, or die of old age, whichever comes first. :)

One of my side goals of this, is as an educational tool for local kids and families, on the need for a clean environment, and the interaction of species in a healthy pond system. The colorful fish just for the visual appeal.

Thanks again,
 
I have done some research on the Malawan Cichlids, and see they like a higher Ph. And that I can use coral sand to increase it... Something that is plentiful here too.

Coral sand is calcium carbonate. It will not put the PH above 7. The reason for this is that it's solubility in water effect is dependent on the initial PH of the source water. If the source water is acidic the carbonate will react with the acid, dissolve, and neutralize it. However when the PH is neutral (7 or higher) calcium carbonate will not dissolve and will not push the PH higher.
 
If rain water will be one of your main water sources you will end up with pretty soft water, which is not suitable for rainbow fish or rift valley cichlids. Don't focus too much on pH. First you need to get KH and GH right.

What will be the pond size? What kind of temps do you expect?

Have a look at loaches and the genera Barbus and Puntius. They contain many colorful species. Some gourami or paradise fish should also fit well.
 
The ponds according to the calculators i have used, will be 1200 to 1500 gallons each. (I went high on the calculations)

Air Temperature will always be in the 80-94' F range, expect vegetation, waterfalls, and large surface area with the soil underneath helping to keep it cool.

I will look into your recommended fish species, and see what I can find that I like.

One thing with the Cichlids I like, is the vibrant blues and golds of several species. A quick perusal is not giving me the same with the above. But I have only begun to look at them.

Thanks again,
 
One thing with the Cichlids I like, is the vibrant blues and golds of several species. A quick perusal is not giving me the same with the above. But I have only begun to look at them.

You are welcome! To replicate those colors will be difficult, at least as far as I know. Did you see the clown loach?

African rift valley cichlids will also not like the high temps too much. It will be important to have enough shade for your ponds. On the other side fish are best observed in bright sunlight. So maybe plan a not too long time window in the afternoon (or whatever suits you best) with direct sunlight too.

If those are your favourites and it seems like your budget is not too small, it can be done. There are special salts available to replicate their native conditions, even though I think it's a rip off and you can do it yourself much cheaper. Be aware that those cichlids will kill nearly all underwater plants. Also there are different groups concerning diet and it is not wise to mix those in the same tank, as it is imossible to control feed accordingly. If in the end this is your choice I would recommend to go to a more specialized forum. Here not many people with deep experience in those cichlids seem to be around.

Hopefully somebody else comes up with some ideas too.
 
Yes, I saw the Clown Loach. Beautiful fish, I could see having a few of these in the pond as well, provided I get species that are compatible.

I am wondering if Water Hyacinth, a very hardy and rapidly producing water plant, could be used with the Mayans. They would provide lots of shade. I also suspect bog plants, being very shallow would also be usable.

So many questions, I will continue research, and look for Cichlid specialty sites for more guidance.

Thanks again,
 

Most reactions

Back
Top