Understanding Biotope Aquariums

       Firstly and most importantly - Biotopes are not difficult to make or maintain !

Every fish keepers wants to provide the best conditions for their fish/livestock and also provide an aquarium that is aesthetically pleasing to the eye. Obviously the conditions provided depends on the species of fish that you wish to care for, for example do they prefer soft, acidic water or hard, alkaline water etc.

       A certain percentage of fish keepers take this one step further and try to re-create the species natural living conditions, duplicating their natural habitat as closely as is possible bearing in mind the limits that the aquarium does give you but often the replications prove to be very successful and well worth the effort.

This is what an aquarium biotope is all about, researching and replicating the natural waters of the fish, this includes adding suitable plant species if there are any, providing water of the correct hardness and pH taking into account the required water flow as well. Even replicating the lighting provided should be taken into account as some fish originate from murky waters where the lighting is generally subdued whereas other species originate from waterways where the lighting reaches bright levels during the sunlit hours.

      Biotopes are not too difficult to replicate to an acceptable degree as long as you research where your fish originate from, which species of fish would normally share there natural waterways, and the general scaping of the area, when you start your research you will quickly realise that there are several areas that have similar conditions making it easier to decide which biotope is the best for the fish that you wish to house in your aquarium and also if your planned aquarium has the space to house these fish and add the biotope still leaving room for the inhabitants, a classic example of this is the Malawi biotope where lots of rocks are added to re-create the rocky slopes, using a smaller aquarium for this biotope is impracticable so for this biotope and certainly for the fish a larger aquarium would need to be used.

        Sourcing the resources to create your biotope is part of the fun and nowadays is a lot easier than it used to be a few years ago. There are more aquatic outlets and even general garden centres that can meet your needs with items such as hard-scaping i.e. rocks and gravel or sand, aquatic plants are also imported at a higher rate nowadays giving you more choice as to which plants you can add to give the overall effect that you are searching for. One word of warning about plants, always make sure that they are fully aquatic as some species are grown emersed and when fully submerged in the aquarium will have a limited life and can decay causing water quality issues.

Now that we have understood the basics- Lets get Started !