Practical Fishkeeping的July 2025目录

AT THE BEGINNING of February, some of the hobby’s favourite L-Numbers were finally given a scientific name, and it couldn’t have been chosen any better. The German Ingo Seidel, donor of one of the species’ epithets, has done so much for the aquarium hobby in general, and for plecos in particular, that any attempt to list them would be beyond the attempt itself. Hypancistrus seideli In honour of Ingo Seidel, all the ‘worm-line Hypancistrus’ have now been correctly scientifically named Hypancistrus seideli by Sousa et al (2025). Ingo Seidel made a name for himself, particularly in the IG BSSW e.V. (International Society for Barbs, Tetras, Loaches and Catfish), as editor of the association’s magazine and as head of the catfish section there, as well as author of numerous articles in…

MOST AQUARISTS START with a community aquarium. They let you keep a variety of species all in the same tank creating an active and attractive display. However, they have a reputation for being difficult to get right due to compatibility issues. That doesn’t have to be the case, with a little bit of planning a beautiful community can be created with relative ease. When it comes to communities, water chemistry is generally the key! Get this right and everything else falls into place. Yes, behaviour and diet are important, but for the most part, the species sold as community fish are peaceful fish that’ll thrive on flakes and pellets. However, if you ignore water chemistry the species that should be ‘easy to keep’ can cause endless frustration. In this article…

HYPANCISTRUS ARE POPULAR amongst aquarists because of their small size, relative ease of care and their striking patterns. Most fish of this genus are characterized by a dark base colour and light dots or a light base colour with black lines. While many have been scientifically described -including Hypancistrus zebra, H. debilittera and the two newly described species we just learnt about on the previous page - in the hobby we often just use their specific L-Numbers. The genus name ‘Hypancistrus’ translates to ‘less than Ancistrus’, which is a reference to the fishes of this genus having less teeth than many of the other suckermouth catfish. This difference gives us some indication on what these fishes may eat in the wild, and it is this that I will begin my…

“DAMSELFISH” IS A common name used for a group of small, colourful marine fish that inhabit coral reefs around the world. It’s not a scientific term, but rather a way of grouping together similar-looking fish within a taxonomic family known as the Pomacentridae. All damselfish are Pomacentridae, but not all Pomacentridae are damselfish: this group of fishes contains one nondamsel genus, namely Amphiprion, which you might know as clownfish! Although their clown cousins reign supreme when it comes to popularity outside the aquarium hobby, damselfish steal aquarists’ hearts with their beautiful colours. You can find instantly recognizable damsel genera like Dascyllus, Chromis, and Chrysiptera for sale in any aquarium store, their small size and hardy nature make them endlessly attractive. The species you’ll come across most frequently is a gorgeous…

IT’S A FISH beloved by aquarists around the globe: its sleek, jet-black body and vibrant crimson tail make it a striking presence in any home aquarium. The red-tailed black shark, or red tail sharkminnow (Epalzeorhynchos bicolor), is one of the freshwater trade’s most iconic species. Yet few hobbyists realise that this staple of the pet fish world is on the brink of vanishing from its natural home in the rivers of Thailand. Listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, the red-tailed black shark is believed to persist in the wild in only a single known location, with its historical range across the Mae Khlong, Chao Phraya and Bangpakong river basins now largely lost to pollution, habitat degradation and urban development. Once common – even as far south as…

During my visit to Cambridge to see my good friend, and regular contributor, Tai Strietman, we found ourself with a free afternoon. So, what are two fishkeeping fanatics going to do with a couple of spare hours on a Sunday? Well of course, we immediately headed to a store to take a look around. Tai obviously knows the area better than I do, so it made sense for him to pick which store we headed to. He suggested visiting Maidenhead Aquatics Scotsdale as there were some interesting species last time he visited and he felt it would be the best use of our time. Entering the store Like many Maidenheads, the store is located within a garden centre. As you enter the fish section, you walk straight into the sales…

TO FOLLOW ON from my article in the previous issue, this time I will continue with two dwarf catfishes from the Auchenipteridae family. Although these two species are closely related there are still important differences worth knowing about if you plan to keep them in aquaria. But who are they exactly? The family Auchenipteridae - or to use their collective nametag: driftwood catfishes - currently contains 127 species with at least a dozen more currently undescribed species circulating in the aquarium trade. Some of the driftwood cats are giants, like Ageneiosus inermis that can grow over 50cm (20”) long, but most of them are within a more (aquarium) manageable 5-10cm (2-4”) size range. In nature you can find them along all major South American basins, so basically there is a…

SUMMER IS ARGUABLY the best time of year for pond keepers. The plants are looking beautiful and thriving, the fish are at their most active, and the warmer weather and lighter evenings allow us to spend more time in our gardens enjoying it all. Despite these positives, there are situations that we, as pond keepers, need to be aware of to ensure our ponds and fish remain healthy throughout the summer. Summer Prep Prevention is better than a cure, and this saying rings true for preparing our ponds for the warmer weather. There are one or two tasks I would suggest that it is important to complete before summer arrives. Firstly, give your filter a clean to make sure it is performing at its best and replace any mechanical media…

IN THE SUMMER of 2023, I had the great privilege of giving talks about my adventures in Brazil to the Missouri Aquarium Society (MASI) and the Chicago Aquatic Plant Society (CAPS), in the USA. They invited me back in May, so I thought it would be a good time to write about the previous trip and some of the beautiful habitats and fishes I encountered! I knew that North America had a far more diverse, abundant and frankly interesting freshwater fish selection than Europe (and especially the UK), but I didn’t realise just how charming many of their more ‘common’ species were. The practice of keeping native species in aquaria has recently become increasingly popular among North American fish keepers and rightly so, they have a fantastic selection of small,…

With the ever-increasing energy prices and the ongoing push for using renewables, utilising free solar power to run pond equipment sounds like a great idea to start with. The panels absorb light coming from the sun and convert it to electricity, providing enough power to operate fountain, or even waterfall, pond pumps. Solar-powered equipment may cost more than their wired counterparts, but running costs will be very low. Plus, as there is no need for hard-wiring you could install them yourself, saving money on electrician’s fee. It also means that you can easily move the solar pumps wherever you fancy. The only thing to worry about is placing the solar panels where they face the full sun for as long as possible during the day. Among the sun-powered pond equipment,…