by Bill “Pegasus NZ” of New Zealand

Many of us.. not only here in New Zealand, but it seems throughout the world, are having problems with Guppies wasting away and developing bent spines along with other problems. This is more prevalent today that in earlier years… which leads me to believe it is not what we seem to believe. The scaremongers and those that could not define an explanation for this were soon to attach various names to the problem, including Guppy AIDS.. and Wasting Disease.

Like many, I don’t have a one-hundred percent qualified answer to this problem, and can only tell others about my own situation. Read the rest of this entry »

Contributed by the Calypso Fish & Aquaria Club, London, England “Although we are uncertain as to the exact source of this article it is to be credited to Anthony Evans, who was the original publisher (PetFish) and probably the author. It is over quarant years old but as applicable today as the day on which it was written.” Aquarticles.com

“An ounce of prevention” - how the old adage applies to the keeping of healthy stock for both professional and amateur today

Undoubtedly the best method of keeping the aquarium disease and trouble free is to avoid introducing troubles into it. An obvious remark, you might think, but the practical details involved in conforming to this rule are all too seldom observed sufficiently rigorously by fish-keepers. Read the rest of this entry »

by Lisa Norris (”Lilli”) added Wednesday 12, July 2006

About Betta splendens

Bettas (pronounced bet-tahs) originated in Thailand. They are tropical fish and require a water temperature of around 28 C to thrive.

Their native habitats are large still bodies of water, like rice paddies. As there is not a lot of dissolved oxygen in these waterways, bettas have a “labyrinth organ” which allows them to breathe atmospheric air, rather than being solely reliant on dissolved oxygen like most other fish.

Bettas are insectivores and are incredibly territorial – hence their common name “Siamese fighting fish”. Please note that fighting bettas in Australia is illegal. Read the rest of this entry »

by Andy Gordon of England, and Michelle Stuart of Ontario Canada.
Reprinted, with permission, from their web site Fishtanksandponds.net Aquarticles

There are a good number of fish that have become established as good fish to keep in a community aquarium and with most of them that is the case. But there are some that a lot of books and dealers recommend as being fine but in fact they are poor subjects for the general community tank for varying reasons. Here is a “rogues list” of fish that should be treated with caution. This does not mean that all the following fishes can’t be kept, because in the proper sized aquarium with suitable tank mates and conditions they all still have something to offer. Read the rest of this entry »