This Is How They Live In The Wild

[Akasha72]

watch this and then we can discuss why we spend so much of our time trying to give them 'perfect conditions'!!
 
 
 
 
http/www.youtube.com/watch?v=duvFEPwabng

 

[gmc1]

Excellent video.

 

[Akasha72]

it makes you think though "why am I fussing so much about my tank?" 
 
It does me anyway. I have seen another similar clip where the water is even filthier and just pure 'sludge' but I'm struggling to find that clip 

Part 2
 
https/www.youtube.com/watch?v=MTAbuTYGk0M

 

[eaglesaquarium]

watch this and then we can discuss why we spend so much of our time trying to give them 'perfect conditions'!!
 
 
 
 
http/www.youtube.com/watch?v=duvFEPwabng

 
Well, with altums, they are almost exclusively wild caught, so you want your water to match their water as best you can...
 
 
But, in general I believe, the goal of the aquarist is to have 'clear water' to increase the allure of the display.   Green water (or nearly any algae), for example, is actually a very healthy environment for the fish, but is an eye sore to the aquarist.  

 

[fluttermoth]

The thing to remember is, there are two sorts of 'clean'.

In the wild, the water might be full of sludge and silt and 'bits', but the water is 'clean', in that it won't contain any ammonia, nitrite and no, or very little, nitrate.

Then you can have 'clean' water that's sparkling clear, but is full of ammonia/nitrite/nitrate.

The main reason we keep our tanks clear of silt and bits is, as eagles rightly points out, purely for aesthetic reasons. It's the unseen ammonia/nitrite/nitrate that causes problems for our fish, not the 'bits'.

 

[Akasha72]

Just want to be clear ... I didn't post this to suggest we stop maintenance ... it was a little bit 'tongue in cheek' but also a tiny poke at how obcessive we get sometimes about everything being 'perfect'.
 
I'd never try to suggest that we allow fish to live in 'unclean' conditions when that 'unclean' is ammonia/nitrite etc. Anyone who's seen my posts on the forum will know by now that keeping our fish in a toxic free enviroment is of paramount importance to me.
 
But when you see how they live in the wild - and not just altum angels but the caracins, other cichlids and the plecs ... well that just makes me think "why am I cleaning up your poop from the substrate and removing that leaf from that plant because it's dying". As some of you have said ... it's pure asthetics for us. The fish don't care! All they care about is having water that's toxins free and food pumped in!

 

[eaglesaquarium]

it's pure asthetics for us. The fish don't care! All they care about is having water that's toxins free and food pumped in!

 
 
You said it well...

 

[Byron]

But when you see how they live in the wild - and not just altum angels but the caracins, other cichlids and the plecs ... well that just makes me think "why am I cleaning up your poop from the substrate and removing that leaf from that plant because it's dying". As some of you have said ... it's pure asthetics for us. The fish don't care! All they care about is having water that's toxins free and food pumped in!
 

 
There are two aspects to this, the visual for the aquarist but also the state of the water for the fish.  It sounds as if you are mixing them together, though you may not intend to suggest it.
 
The "clarity" of the water is as you and others have mentioned simply for our benefit.  If the water is biologically "clean," as most all of the habitat waters are unless polluted by human factors, the appearance matters not in most cases.
 
But when it comes to the state of the water chemistry and the biological aspects, we should first realize that it is basically impossible for any of us to create an exact replica in an aquarium.  As soon as you have a closed system, no matter how large the space, you are doing something that almost never occurs in the habitat, and this has consequences for the biological system and thus the fish.  We place considerably more fish per water volume in our tanks than would ever occur in their habitat, and this increases the impact further.  Then to somehow "fix" this we start adding various substances which actually can make things even worse because of the osmotic functions in the gills that rapidly cause these substances to enter the fish's bloodstream.
 
The natural habitat in most cases is infinitely "cleaner" than we can ever hope to match.

Byron.

 

[Akasha72]

I think some of my words have been, yet again, been taken out of context. 
 
This was meant to be a bit of fun whilst being interesting at the same time. How many of us have seen the video (or something similar) before. We constantly talk of 'the wild' but most of us have never seen what it looks like. I thought I'd show those that have never seen what it looks like how it looks. I'd seen the video before on another forum and I was fascinated with how their natural enviroment looked. I just thought I'd share that. 

 

[fluttermoth]

One of the first things I do, if I'm contemplating buying a new fish species, is Google the fish and "in the wild" and see what comes up.

You can get some really good insights into the best set up by finding out what conditions are like in their natural habitat

 

[eaglesaquarium]

I think some of my words have been, yet again, been taken out of context. 
 
This was meant to be a bit of fun whilst being interesting at the same time. How many of us have seen the video (or something similar) before. We constantly talk of 'the wild' but most of us have never seen what it looks like. I thought I'd show those that have never seen what it looks like how it looks. I'd seen the video before on another forum and I was fascinated with how their natural enviroment looked. I just thought I'd share that. 

 

 
 
Anyone ever seen 'green water'?  
 
https/www.youtube.com/watch?v=ilnitMs1LRk

 

[Byron]

I think some of my words have been, yet again, been taken out of context. 
 
This was meant to be a bit of fun whilst being interesting at the same time. How many of us have seen the video (or something similar) before. We constantly talk of 'the wild' but most of us have never seen what it looks like. I thought I'd show those that have never seen what it looks like how it looks. I'd seen the video before on another forum and I was fascinated with how their natural enviroment looked. I just thought I'd share that. 

 
I certainly apologize for any misunderstanding.  One must keep in mind that those of us so far in this discussion thread each have more experience than many other members much newer in the hobby, and when they come across this thread they may well run off with very different conclusions.  I've seen this so many times on other forums in the past, so I try to put things in perspective if I can.  That's all.

 
Byron.

 

[Akasha72]

that's fantastic Eagles! I've not seen that before! 

 

[TallTree01]

I really like the look of fish swimming around in tea water. I used to have a tank set up like that but I took it down cos I was sick of mates telling me how utterly disgusting my tank looked.

 

[Akasha72]

I really like the look of fish swimming around in tea water. I used to have a tank set up like that but I took it down cos I was sick of mates telling me how utterly disgusting my tank looked.

 

 that would only make me more stubborn and make me want to keep it even more! One day I'll have a black water tank ... that much is certain