30g Lake Inle Aquaponic Biotope

[WhistlingBadger]

@MattW One weird thing I've noticed about these Sawbwa barbs: They only eat from the water column; they won't take food from the surface and very rarely off the bottom. That means there is a very narrow window of time for them to eat. I wonder if this contributes to their fragility. It is surprisingly difficult to get them enough food. They need something that sinks very, very slowly. So far frozen daphnia are the best bet for mine.

I got eight more of them, which I think takes my total number up to 12. I also got eight rosy loaches, which are extremely cute. Pics soon.

 

[Innesfan]

So far frozen daphnia are the best bet for mine.

Have you tried frozen BBS and frozen Cyclops? My mid-column feeders devour the stuff.

 

[MattW]

@MattW One weird thing I've noticed about these Sawbwa barbs: They only eat from the water column; they won't take food from the surface and very rarely off the bottom. That means there is a very narrow window of time for them to eat. I wonder if this contributes to their fragility. It is surprisingly difficult to get them enough food. They need something that sinks very, very slowly. So far frozen daphnia are the best bet for mine.

I got eight more of them, which I think takes my total number up to 12. I also got eight rosy loaches, which are extremely cute. Pics soon.

Weirdly enough, since the big loss to the group, my Sawbwa have been acting the same. They prefer to remain in plant cover and only dart out when the food is at their level. I do occasionally see females go to the surface, as bug bites do get stuck on the water lettuce, but that is a rare sighting nowadays. My male always waits now for food to sink.

Video - Jan 2025 from my old scape. Clearly a difference in behaviour..


Hopefully, the bigger numbers will make them more comfortable . I need to add some more as well.

 

[MuddyWaters]

I have chili rasboras that won't go to the bottom at all to get food. They will zip to the top a little bit, but 90% of what they eat is as it falls.

 

[WhistlingBadger]

Recent goings on in the Inle aquarium. I am enjoying this tank a lot more since I rescaped it, got the algae under control with the help of a bunch of hornword, and added some new fish. Much more pleasing to the eye now, and much more activity.

These rosy loaches are really cute. They forage actively and all together. But they don't stay still long enough to get a decent picture.

The Sawbwa barbs aren't coloring up yet, but they seem to be doing OK. I only lost one of the eight new ones, as far as I know.

Snorri is fat.

 

[WhistlingBadger]

Here's the island. Mosses, liverworts, Corsican mint, dwarf basil and oregano, a few chives (hopefully more on the way) and red-leaf sorrel that is just starting to sprout. Some fawna going on the island too. Once in a while I see a dwarf land snail, and I briefly saw a rather terrifying looking critter of the isopod type the other day.

 

[SammyTargo]

How does the tank recieve light?

Also, if you are comfortable with the concept of a completely harmless and unbothering creature in your home that has the "option" to leave the aquarium, add springtails. They are the ultimate cleanup crew for terrariums and land enclosures as a whole. You can buy a culture from any local tropical pet store that sells reptiles and terrestrial plants/exotic pets.

P.S. What I meant by "option" is they won't leave as there is nothing for them in the rest of your home, they just have the free will to. They also float on water so fish can use them as a meal (as they do worldwide naturally in their wild habitats).

 

[WhistlingBadger]

How does the tank recieve light?

Also, if you are comfortable with the concept of a completely harmless and unbothering creature in your home that has the "option" to leave the aquarium, add springtails. They are the ultimate cleanup crew for terrariums and land enclosures as a whole. You can buy a culture from any local tropical pet store that sells reptiles and terrestrial plants/exotic pets.

P.S. What I meant by "option" is they won't leave as there is nothing for them in the rest of your home, they just have the free will to. They also float on water so fish can use them as a meal (as they do worldwide naturally in their wild habitats).

There is an LED light fixture hanging just above the island. And I didn't have to add springtails; they moved right in on their own.

 

[anewbie]

These rosy loaches are really cute. They forage actively and all together. But they don't stay still long enough to get a decent picture.

Not sure how many you have or how large your aquarium is but in my 10 i've noticed they are very timid and a definite schooling fish but will break into multiple groups - perhaps htey are not as timid as i think. They definitely know when feeding time is and pile up waiting for me to put the food in and eager little beavers when it comes to food. The tank they are in is a ball of plants and they definitely like 'playing' or foraging in the ground litter (moss and such).

 

[WhistlingBadger]

Some new S. resplendens coming in today from Aquahuna. I've had mixed results with this company. Hopefully these arrive in good shape. 10 new Amano shrimp too, which will be split between the Inle and Himalayan tank.

The hornwort has been struggling as the plants on the island grow out and create more shade. I put a small, hidden LED fixture inside the front rim to illuminate the depths and help out the plants.

 

[WhistlingBadger]

I have to admit, I'm not loving this tank. The sawbwa barbs are mostly staying out of sight and they aren't coloring up (a consequence of ordering from aquahuna--they ship tiny fish). The rosy Loaches are colored up and they're a lot of fun. Ecologically, this thing is a roaring success--floating island crowded with culinary herbs and terrestrial mosses, inhabited by apparently self-sustaining populations of isopods, springtails, and land snails; the tank itself is about as true to the biotope as I can get.

But the overall scape and look of the tank just isn't pleasing to the eye. I think part of the problem is the biotope itself: The real Lake Inle is a shallow, silty, heavily choked marshland. A biotope recreating it is going to be a chaotic jungle of hornwort and terrestrial plant roots with really pretty fish that are visible only occasionally.

And that's exactly what I've got. Victim of my own success?

I think I'm going to give it another month or three. If I'm not loving it by the end of hunting season, I might put the Gourami into the foothill tank, re-home the others, and tear this down.

 

[anewbie]

You have to give the rasbora a year to grow out - doesn't mean you will like it any better but that is the nature of aquahuna.

On the bright side they were cheap and will live a long time if your environment is suitable.

 

[MattW]

My experience with Sawbwa has been interesting over the last 3-4 years. I've had them in 3 renditions of a 90L tank, with the first only being the one where I truly saw the fish thrive as a group. The one difference with that tank was that there was little swim room and nothing but plants. They are a very skittish fish, sadly.