Microsorum pteropus ‘Windelov’ also known as Leptochilus pteropus is one of the many varieties of Java fern. I picked up a pot from Pro Shrimp in an order that also included Alternanthera reineckii ‘Mini’. Developed by Tropica, the ‘Windelov’ version I received was grown by Aquadip. The ‘Windelov’ arrived totally overgrown and just a touch […]
Read more →Category: Shrimphaus
Low-tech shrimp+snails aquarium; no CO2 injection; project-specific notes, observations, and maintenance.
The original Shrimphaus was crusted over with black beard algae which did not respond to systemic treatment, so I took down Shrimphaus, did a thorough clean and rebuilt Shrimphaus with a modified, more maintenance-friendly design. In the original Shrimphaus concept, I was going for an all-slate hardscape with mainly epiphyte plants like Anubias and Bucephalandra. […]
Read more →After an unsuccessful go with Alternanthera reineckii (didn’t thrive) and another with Alternanthera reineckii ‘Rosanervig’ (eaten by Amano shrimp), I’m giving it try with Alternanthera reineckii ‘Mini’. This AR ‘Mini’ came from Pro Shrimp, and was grown by Tropica. I have had mixed results purchasing aquatic plant tissue culture cups before, but this AR ‘Mini’ cup […]
Read more →After three weeks of treating the Shrimphaus with Tetra AlguMin in an attempt at chemical control of black beard algae, I can confidently report that monolinuron, the active ingredient in AlguMin, has absolutely no effect whatsoever on black beard algae (BBA, black brush algae). The algae is as healthy and bushy as ever, does not […]
Read more →Black beard algae (BBA, brush algae) used to be a bit of a nuisance in the Fireplace Aquarium, but since switching to a high phosphate, estimative index dosing regimen, BBA and really all forms of algae have been pretty much a non-issue. Tanks need to sort their own equilibrium, and what works for the high-tech CO2-injected […]
Read more →After repeated struggles to grow emersed plants on the Shrimphaus river using a variety of substrate set-ups, I’ve switched over to actual LECA – lightweight expanded clay aggregate. For this experiment, I’m going with two reputedly robust to low(er) humidity emersed growth anubias: Anubias coffeefolia, and Anubias gracilis. This is the second attempt with Anubias […]
Read more →There’s an interesting new inhabitant in the Shrimphaus, what looks like a spontaneous mutation in the bloody mary shrimp lineage. Bloody mary shrimp are generally a solid translucent red throughout but this little fella (I think it’s a boy) is mostly clear and colourless, except for a red head, red stripe just above the tail, […]
Read more →It’s been difficult with the emersed plants on the Shrimphaus shelf. Some descriptions of the tribulations below. Growing on the slate surface directly (doesn’t work) First I tried simply tying Chirstmas moss down in the flow on the riverbed to see if they would grab onto the river bottom, but that didn’t really work – […]
Read more →The airstone does a great job of keeping the surface of Shrimphaus clear from biofilm, but how it does that exactly isn’t clear. One idea is that when the bubbles break on the surface they fling water and biofilm in random directions, including over the side of the open topped tank. For sure this flinging […]
Read more →shrimp on the riverbank Particularly after a water change, the shrimp like to collect on the river run shelf. I’m not sure what they’re after here, but this is a consistent behaviour of theirs. This is the kind of thing you’re not going to be able to observe without a shallow flowing water component to […]
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