Shallow forest lake near the igarapé Prosperitate, Brazil

14th place in Biotope Aquarium Design Contest 2017

belgium Belgium. Vern Van de Weyer

Volume: 200L
Dimensions: 125 length 48.5 depth 35 high
List of fishes: Apistogramma gibbiceps, Apistogramma Paucisquamis, Nannostomus marginatus, Paracheirodon axelrodi, Dicrossus filamentosus
List of plants: None
Description of decorations: I used leafs from the Quercus and fagus, they replace the ficus leaf from the biotope discription. Also branches I used are Quercus. Jbl sansibar river sand. And Driftwood to replicate the three trunks en flooded trees. Also dry palm sticks. And different seed pods.
Description of equipment: Eheim 2213 external pump with spray bar 120cm for creating low flow of water. Easyled 50cm on a hight of almost 30cm above aquarium. On the top glass there are towels to create a shady look.
Water parameters: Gh4, Kh4, Ph6. 5, Temperature 24.5, The tea colored water is filtered over peat.

Description of the area surrounding the biotope: The igarapé prosperitate is a tributary of the lower Rio Preto, a northern affluent of the Rio Negro. The final 30 meters of the igarapé prosperitate forms a lagoon from 5meter wide during low water. The maximum depth is 1,2meter, with only 40 centimeters of water above a layer of leaflitter from several decimeters thick. The lagoon is exposed to direct sunlight. Water temperature can get up to 29,5°C. Upstream the creek splits into two branches, one falls dry during low water. The other maintains a width of 1.5 meter and a depth of at least 20 centimeters during dry season. Temperature is approximately 24°C. Almost the entire creek is fully shaded by the surrounding vegetation, that mostly exists out of ficus trees. The trees have a hight of 8meters. The actual streambed is flanked by broadbelt of floodplains. The water hight can reach up to 6meter during high water. The tree trunk are completely under water only the crowns are visible.

Description of the underwater landscape of the biotope: There are no aquatic plants and the bottom is covered under a ficus leaflitter from a couple decimeters thick. The upper third of the layer is very loose and interspersed with a multitude of branches. The entire water course where scattered with tree stumps..

Description of the parameters of the habitat: The tea colored water is acidic (pH 4.1 – 5), Gh 2-5°dH, 10-70ys/cm, Temperature 22 – 24°c in the shades, Up to 29.5 °C in sunny parts.

List of fishes: Apistogramma gibbiceps, Apistogramma Paucisquamis, Dicrossus filamentosus, Dicrossus foirni, Paracheirodon axelrodi, Nannostomus marginatus, Apistogramma pertensis, Apistogramma diplotenia, Crencichla inpa, Crencichla notopthalmus, Aequidens sp., Taeniacara candidi, Laetacara sp. orangeflossen.

List of plants: None

Threats to the ecology: Aquarium was set up round the dicrossus foirni. This rare cichlide lives in the igarapé prosperitate. But because is have the last breeding couple known in Belgium and the Netherlands, I removed them into a breeding tank. They are very hard fishes to keep an breed so I trying everything to make sure the nummer in the aquarium world rise again.

Sources of information:

All aquaria of BADC 2017
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