# Amazon biotope Lnumber/Aphisto tank, not really planted (Pic heavy)



## Mowze (Nov 12, 2008)

After months and months of planning I finally have my new aquarium up and running!

Equipment:

140x50x35cm (around 200L until I sort out the overflows) Custom made open top aquarium by seashell aquariums with 2x 1" side drilled bulkheads.
100x40x40cm (180L approx) Ehiem Scuba aquarium (as a sump/refugium)

Total system volume approx 380-400L

Fluval 405 external filter with matured ceramic biorings, ehiem biological media (Coco puffs!), Fine filter floss, peat and the biological/mechanical sponges which come with the filter

2x 300w RENA smartheat heaters

Arcadia 3 series over tank light (over the 180L sump/freshwater planted refugium)

DIY stand using 50x50mm wood and 8mm MDF topped with 10mm polystyrene and a butyl pond liner (to protect MDF from spillages)

Lighting is 2x ceiling lights incorporating 4x 1.2w GU10 white LEDs and 2x 35w GU10 halogens affixed to the bookshelf installed above the aquarium.

Aquascaped using dark rounded slate pebbles and boulders, Senegal sand and vine wood

Water parameters currently stand at:
NH3 0ppm
NO2 0ppm
NO3 10ppm
PO4 0ppm
Ph 7
GH 40d
KH 30d

(tested almost daily)

Current stocking is:
200L:
2x L066 (Male + Female)
3x Apistogramma viejita (Male + Female breeding pair + another female)
Leporacanthicus galaxias (Adult 10inch female)
20x Cardinal tetra
7x Unknown species of gobies (not biotope specific but they were a spur of the moment purchase and suit the style of aquarium very well!)

A few Cryptocoryne crispatula var. balansae not really biotope specific but as a big planted aquarium guy I could never set up a tank devoid of flora, I opted for this plant because apart from being my 3rd favorite plant! It really suits this type of environment, low light, low nutrient (Liquid, substrate AND CO2) as well as tolerating high flow and a wide range of parameters&#8230; It also looks really really cool!

180L:
Currently empty and completely undecided as to how to aquascape or stock! I will probably re-build the ebb flow planters I once had in this exact aquarium for growing Hemianthus callitrichoides, Pogostemon helferi, Utricularia graminifolia, Eleocharis acicular is for use in other aquariums as well as reducing nitrates and phosphates within the system and use the rest of the aquarium as a fry refugium.

I like to keep records of all my aquariums at home, college and work that I have set up over the years in the hopes that one day I might get around to putting a bit of a portfolio together and using it to somewhat further my career. Anyway without further addo some pictures for your enjoyment!

Firstly the DIY stand, I'm sure some of you will cringe at the thought of something so flimsy holding so much weight in an upstairs room but unfortunately I am not a carpenter and chose to do food tech (Home economics) instead of resistant materials (Shop class/woodwork)!! However I was present when this room was being constructed and know for a fact that it was constructed using VERY oversized joists the largest of which runs directly underneath. Its also pretty ugly for something that is located in my bedroom (at the end of my bed to be exact) but considering the usual state of the rest of my room which is constantly covered in aquatics equipment, buckets, empty aquariums, sand and gravel, fishing rods, clothes, tools, guns and various other junk I decided do save my budget and just create something functional which does what it needs to do and makes the most of what little available space was available rather than being a pretty piece of furniture! At some point along the line I may use some plain white contiboard to match the rest of the room across the front and left side with a little window and door to access the sump and equipment but in my eyes this isn't exactly necessary right now!



























































Here is the aquarium installed pre-filling:


























Its location:










The Sump:










Filling the main aquarium:










After it had been running for a month and lighting was finally installed:


















































Stock:

L066 Hypancistrus sp. King tigers drip acclimatising:


































My pride and joy Apistogramma viejita pair in their planted previous aquarium:


















With fry in the soft water system at work whilst I was building this aquarium! Male and female both guarding and showing VERY vibrant breeding colours, especially in the case of the female! Unfortunately despite numerous spawns in various aquariums I have yet to raise the eggs or fry past 10 days.


































Leporacanthicus galaxias:


























Photos from feeding time!

Male L066 Feeding on prawn "kebab":


































Female L066:


















Male + Female L066 feeding on live bloodworm:










Male L066 + Male Apistogramma viejita eating live bloodworm together:


















Apistogramma viejita male + female posing together:










Gobies I introduced, not sure what species these actually are&#8230; Anyone got any idea?!


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## bratyboy2 (Feb 5, 2008)

very cool!


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## Natalia (Sep 15, 2008)

What a nice tank you have there! I like that all hardscape is natural, stones are really noce. I am courious how can you tell a male from a female pleco?


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## gonathan85 (Sep 12, 2009)

I really like the rock scape! This makes me want to do a minimal planted tank with mostly rock. Excellent job.


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## Mowze (Nov 12, 2008)

Natalia said:


> What a nice tank you have there! I like that all hardscape is natural, stones are really noce. I am courious how can you tell a male from a female pleco?


It depends a lot on the species but on most generally males tend to develop odontodes around the head and pectoral fins, these are kinda like thick hairs or small teeth which differ in size depending on species, maturity, overall size of the fish and dominance of the male in question. You can just about see it here in this picture along the edges of his pectorals:










Females also tend to be a lot larger and wider at the head than the males:









Female on the left, male on the right









Female









Male

This applies to most Hypancistrus species and quite a few others groups but in such a large familly there are many exceptions to this rule!


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## chadly (Dec 19, 2005)

I absolutely love that style of tank! The river affect, the fish, the minimal number of plants. Very well done. 

I used to have a blackwater amazon tank that was 1/3 full of nothing but driftwood, no plants and sand. Wish I still had the tank. 

That stand will be fine, you put the diagonal supports on the ends and you're golden.


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## gonathan85 (Sep 12, 2009)

Did you do any extra reinforcing of the tank to account for the weight of the rocks?


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## fishlover (Jan 2, 2007)

I find this tank absolutely amazing! I am a big fan of biotope and biotope-like tanks and this is one of the few great whitewater amazon tanks I've seen! 
I think the gobie is a stiphodon sp, but I can't be sure. In any case, i doubt it's amazonian, most likely Australia/PNG, but since this tank also depicts the type of habitat they live in, he's still a great addition to the tank!
I can also see that your fish are well-cared for, judging by their health, color (especially the Apistos) and varied diet.


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## bratyboy2 (Feb 5, 2008)

are these what i have seen them called gypsy king plecos? also if they breed i want first dibs on babies!!!! i freaking love these fish and so badly want a small group like 3


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## crisis (Apr 9, 2007)

Wow, great biotope. I love the apisto females when they're in full breeding color.


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## Mowze (Nov 12, 2008)

fishlover said:


> I think the gobie is a stiphodon sp, but I can't be sure. In any case, i doubt it's amazonian, most likely Australia/PNG, but since this tank also depicts the type of habitat they live in, he's still a great addition to the tank!


 They are! They were a spur of the moment purchace which kind of ruins the biotope effect but they totally suit this type of environment and are very happy in there. At some point I will probably move them on to another tank but catching them may be a problem! I was considering also adding some Steatocranus tinanti to breed which are west african cichlids again from a totally different continent ruining the biotope but completely suited to the environment created. However I decided against this in favor of more L066 so that I can get an effective breeding group going. I may keep a pair in the sump when it has been aquascaped and would consider setting it up at a west african tank if I actually liked any other african fish!



fishlover said:


> I can also see that your fish are well-cared for, judging by their health, color (especially the Apistos) and varied diet.


They get a very balanced diet of algae wafers, JBL Gala flake, bloodworm, JMC catfish pellets, fresh king prawn (Whole and finely chopped) and courgette, definetly reflected in the fish's health, colours and behaviours!



bratyboy2 said:


> are these what i have seen them called gypsy king plecos? also if they breed i want first dibs on babies!!!! i freaking love these fish and so badly want a small group like 3


I have never heard of that name, they are L066 Hypancistrus sp. King tiger pleco also known as Network Pleco or Scribbled Pleco. Hypancistrus species are currently on the banned fish list for export from South America in the same way as zebra plecs thanks to their increacingly endangered status. As a result they are extremely difficult to obtain and becoming very expensive.



crisis said:


> Wow, great biotope. I love the apisto females when they're in full breeding color.


The females are totally different in breeding colours, amazing looking fish and seriously under appreciated!


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## bratyboy2 (Feb 5, 2008)

Mowze said:


> I have never heard of that name, they are L066 Hypancistrus sp. King tiger pleco also known as Network Pleco or Scribbled Pleco. Hypancistrus species are currently on the banned fish list for export from South America in the same way as zebra plecs thanks to their increacingly endangered status. As a result they are extremely difficult to obtain and becoming very expensive.
> !


well when you breed them thats when i will buy them lol i dont want to deal with wild caught plecos. i like tank raised stuff. i feel good when i buy one.


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## Mowze (Nov 12, 2008)

Introduced 2 pairs of young Steatocranus tinanti a week ago which means this is most certainally not a biotope aquarium anymore but I love them so much and they suit the environment perfectly! Also hoping to get 5 or 6 more L066 at the end of the week after discovering I had actually got 2 males  These fish are extremely difficult to obtain and very expensive since the import ban.


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## Knotty Bitz (Mar 11, 2009)

Awsome tank and fish. I am afraid that your gobies may jump out of the tank though. They have a tendency to do that.


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## Garon (Mar 22, 2005)

Love the apistos!!!


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## Kaws (Jan 23, 2010)

Very nice setup, where did you get the rocks?


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## jocky (Jun 24, 2008)

WOW!! Very nice, I especially like the lights you are using. Kinda allows you to "highlight" the good spots. NICE.

I think I may just use your tank ideas for my 75 gallon.


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## Mowze (Nov 12, 2008)

Knotty Bitz said:


> Awsome tank and fish. I am afraid that your gobies may jump out of the tank though. They have a tendency to do that.


There is a 5cm gap between the water level and the top of the aquarium, as yet I have not seen any signs of the gobies even investigating the upper levels of the aquarium let alone attempting to leap from the water. Guess il take my chances and if I get woken up in the middle of the night by a wet goby landing on my face il eat my words! Talking of which I was actually woken up last week when my Leporacanthicus decided to stick her tail out of the water and splash me in the middle of the night!



Kaws said:


> Very nice setup, where did you get the rocks?


I got them from the beach, unfortunately I cant divulge the location.

A few new photos now I have a half decent camera!


























Some full tank shots

I now have a few house plants on the shelf above, Variegated English ivy and devils ivy hanging down and also a low growing creeper in a planter on the windowsill to the right. My plan eventually is to attach planters to the wall behind the tank and on the floor to the left combined with the plants growing from the shelf should give a much more natural 3D effect almost like my own terrarium/pond in my bedroom!










Another shot to the left of my aquarium to emphasise its location and the fact that the rest of my life outside of my aquariums is totally disorganised and in disarray!


























Another shot of an Aphisto female, I am totally fixated by this formation of 5 rocks, notably the front 3 rocks and have probably taken more photos of this than anything else in the tank! It also makes a great backdrop to take photos of fish against!










Some very greedy cardinals!










One of the 5 Steatocranus tinanti I introduced last week, they still spend a lot of time hiding in the rocks but like the L066 they are starting to get a little more confident with my presence especially at feeding time. The Leporacanthicus galaxias is still yet to leave her cave whilst the lights are on but is more than happy to explore once the tank and room are completely dark.










Lastly the smaller of the two L066, very fat, greedy and much more confident than the larger L066.


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## Mowze (Nov 12, 2008)

A few more pics and videos:




























































/\ Aphisto spitting his food at a blockhead, kinda funny! /\






/\ Feeding time! /\


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## Natalia (Sep 15, 2008)

Awsome fish and videos. 
Please post more pics if you get any female plecos. The reason I am asking: I have two common plecos (George and Laura), both are 2.5 years old. I tried to sex them as you suggested and what we call George appears to be a female and what we call Laura apears to be male. But I want to be sure because I want to move them together in a biger tank.


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## Tex Gal (Nov 1, 2007)

Love the plecos. I have a couple of King plecos. I see them every once and a while. They mostly stay hidden in the rocks and plants. The white against the black is so pretty.


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## Mowze (Nov 12, 2008)

I am debating re-building the stand, it should be ok but there is just that niggling lack of confidence in its integrety that leaves me wary. I intend to do a big re-scape very soon to add a few more caves which leaves me the chance to strip the entire thing down and swap the stands over. Storing the water and rock during this is obviously the main issue here!

The Leporacanthicus needs a VERY big cave, the one she currently lives in is 4inch PVC pipe which she never leaves during daylight hours and I would have difficulty finding room amongst the rocks for a further 2-3 4inch caves (I would use slate caves if I was actually trying to breed them) as it is currently scaped as well as still allowing space for the 6-8 slate/pvc caves I need for the blockheads and L066. At the moment I feel as she is such a large fish she deserves a choice of caves rather than the single cave she is FORCED to use slap bang in the centre of the tank, hopefully with a few more caves and a blacked out backing on the tank she may feel more confident and venture out into the open more often.

Also recent good news is that L066 may be allowed for export from Brazil again! Meaning I should finally be able to get a few females in the tank as they are proving difficult to source! Again the friction may between a breeding group of L066 and the 5 Blockheads would probably prove to be too much especially with the added strain of a pair of LARGE Leporacanthicus!

Either way a re-scape to add more caves will be coming soon!


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## bratyboy2 (Feb 5, 2008)

where did u find the block heads? i think they are neat. are they really from the amazon?

this tank has got me reeling with ideas for a amazon tank setup. the only difference would be for a more planted look but hey i can always do with a low tech lol

Good news for me too. i just won 3 yellow L-333's on aquabid for 41 bucks! they are 1.5-2 inches each but hey given a few months they will be full grown. and they are tank raised!!!

they have some plecos on there for good prices. u might just find what your looking for


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## bratyboy2 (Feb 5, 2008)

http://www.aquabid.com/cgi-bin/auction/auction.cgi?fwcatfishp&1266513005

i dont think thats 2 bad


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## Mowze (Nov 12, 2008)

bratyboy2 said:


> where did u find the block heads? i think they are neat. are they really from the amazon?
> 
> this tank has got me reeling with ideas for a amazon tank setup. the only difference would be for a more planted look but hey i can always do with a low tech lol
> 
> ...


 Blockheads are a west african cichlid so this isnt strictly an amazon biotope anymore, the gobies are also asian so that throws the biotope idea out of the window really but all the species have very similar environmental requirements despite coming from different continents.

Aquabid is not really much use to me buying fish as I live in the UK and those few sellers who do ship to me charge sky high prices to do so.


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## bratyboy2 (Feb 5, 2008)

oh thats no fair!!! well lets hope you can get some more!


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## PeterE (Feb 9, 2010)

I like your tank a lot. Those minimally planted tanks are always so simple and beautiful, but I don't have the willpower to do anything like that. I bet your cichlids love all the caves the rockwork provides. Smooth stones like the ones you have are so hard to aquascape with, in my opinion, and I think you have done a really good job with that. All the lakes where I live have shores exclusively covered with stones like that, sand, and crayfish. Maybe I'll do something similar. That layout kinda inspires me.


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## ddavila06 (Jan 31, 2009)

the tank looks awesome, i would add a few more plants though. maybe a few floaters and some vallisnerias to make the plecos less scare during the day (shadow). congrats!!!


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## bratyboy2 (Feb 5, 2008)

kinda gave me an idea...


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## Mowze (Nov 12, 2008)

PeterE said:


> I like your tank a lot. Those minimally planted tanks are always so simple and beautiful, but I don't have the willpower to do anything like that. I bet your cichlids love all the caves the rockwork provides. Smooth stones like the ones you have are so hard to aquascape with, in my opinion, and I think you have done a really good job with that. All the lakes where I live have shores exclusively covered with stones like that, sand, and crayfish. Maybe I'll do something similar. That layout kinda inspires me.


 They werent actually that hard to work with, I have absolutely tonnes of them and when I collected them I actually marked out an area the size of the tank on the beach so that I could work out where the bigger ones would fit. They stack pretty well once you get the gaps right and I tried my best to scape it in a way that nothing would get stuck behind the rocks... Absolutely back breaking work getting the buckets of rocks up the cliff path back to my car, good thing the beach was deserted or I would have got some pretty funny looks!



ddavila06 said:


> the tank looks awesome, i would add a few more plants though. maybe a few floaters and some vallisnerias to make the plecos less scare during the day (shadow). congrats!!!


I will get some frogbit at some point for cover and to make it look more like the tropical pond effect I am going for but I cant really get any more rooted plants in there, I dont think vallis would get enough light from the halogens and LEDs and they would get dug up very quickly!



bratyboy2 said:


> kinda gave me an idea...


Those Pterophyllum altum are STUNNING! I know what I want next in my tank! How do they get on with the cardinals?


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## bratyboy2 (Feb 5, 2008)

i have heard they dont really bother them. but i would guess as long as the tank is big. dont know but im willing to try lol


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