BIOTOPE AQUARIUM DESIGN CONTEST 2016

We present to you the results of Biotope Aquarium Design Contest. Congratulations to all participants to excellent results, and thank you for your invaluable contribution to the development of the biotope aquaristic. On pages of some aquaria you can find comments by the jury members. Just click on thumbnail of an aquarium and you will go to its page with its detailed description, photos and video. Prize pool is EUR 3,000 and certificates + souvenir for top 50 participants. Enjoy viewing! After the contest a magazine with all contest aquariua was issued.

Sponsor of the contest:

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RESULTS

1st place. GOLDEN TROPHY - 988 points

Likoma Island’s rocky habitat, Southeast of Lake Malawi, Mozambique waters, 1100 L

turkey Turkey. Mert Aykuta

likoma_island_rocky_habitat_southeast_of_lake_malawi_mozambique_1
seim_river_coast_tetkino_site_chervona_sloboda_russia_1

2nd place. SILVER TROPHY - 936 points

Seim River coast, Tetkino site, Chervona Sloboda, Russia, 4800 L

russian_federation Russia. Evgeniya Moiseeva

Wugoushui_Stream_S​ub-basin_of_the_Donggang_River_Pingtung_Taiwan_1.jpg

3rd place. BRONZE TROPHY and ECO TROPHY - 918 points

Wugoushui Stream. Sub-basin of the Donggang River, Pingtung, Taiwan, 180 L

taiwan Taiwan. Wei-Cheng Jhuang

kopacki_rit_croatia_east_of_vilage_kopacevo_swamp_area_of_drava_branch_1

4th place. HONOR TROPHY and COOL TROPHY - 877 points

Kopački rit, Croatia, east of vilage Kopačevo, swamp area of Drava branch, 182 L

croatia Croatia. Stjepan Erdeljic

small_pond_shore_northern_outskirts_of_pantanal_mato_grosso_brazil_1

5th place. HONOR TROPHY - 876 points

Small pond shore, Northern outskirts of Pantanal, Mato Grosso, Brazil, 345 L

poland Poland. Kamil Hazy

habitat_profundulus_mixtlanensis_a_pool_of_the_stream_el_rosario_oaxaca_1

6th place. HONOR TROPHY - 849 points

Habitat Profundulus mixtlanensis, a pool of the stream “El Rosario”, Oaxaca, 70 L

mexico Mexico. Victor Manuel Ortiz Cruz

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

7th place. HONOR TROPHY - 835 points

Inundated area in the Indragiri Basin. Sumatra, 700 L

belgium Belgium. Jeroen Vanhooren

kigoma_area_a_rocky_sediment_rich_habitat_lake_tanganyika_africa_1

8th place. HONOR TROPHY - 822 points

Kigoma area, a rocky sediment rich habitat, Lake Tanganyika, Africa, 458 L

turkey Turkey. ‎Uğur Ruşen Doğan‎

nicaragua_canyon_de_somoto_near_guayabo_valley_1

8th place. HONOR TROPHY - 822 points

Nicaragua. Canyon de Somoto near Guayabo Valley, 480 L

ukraine Ukraine. Bogdan Oleynik

chituta_deep_lake_tanganyika_zambia_1

10th place. HONOR TROPHY - 818 points

Chituta deep, Lake Tanganyika, Zambia, 720 L

denmark Denmark. Carsten Thorleif Stabel

stream_el_arco_sub-basin_san_lucas_basin_atoyac_oaxaca_mexico_1

11th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 816 points

Stream El Arco, sub-basin San Lucas, Basin Atoyac, Oaxaca, Mexico, 100 L

mexico Mexico. Victor Manuel Ortiz Cruz

lake_tanganyika_congo_moliro_1

12th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 815 points

Lake Tanganyika. Congo, Moliro, 270 L

india India. Darpan Dhawan

quiet_dam_near_dikanka_garaganka_river_poltava_region_ukraine_1

12th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 815 points

Quiet dam near Dikanka, Garaganka River, Poltava region, Ukraine, 250 L

ukraine Ukraine. Anastasia Tytova

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

14th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 798 points

Tributary of Koyna river near confluence with Krishna river. India, 100 L

belgium Belgium. Jeroen Vanhooren

small_pool_in_sao_domingo_river_basin_brazil_1

15th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 787 points

Small pool in São Domingo River basin, Brazil, 20 L

russian_federation Russia. Svetlana Kirillova

clarity_branch_of_a_river_amazon_1

16th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 773 points

Clarity branch of a river – Amazon, 120 L

turkey Turkey. Muhammet Saylavci

mirinay_tributary_of_the_river_during_the_rainy_season_corrientes_argentina_1

17th place. SUCCESS TROPHY and WILD TROPHY - 746 points

Miriñay tributary of the river during the rainy season, Corrientes Argentina, 90 L

argentina Argentina. Ivan Martinez

rio_unini_igarape_agua_preta_brazil_1

18th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 741 points

Rio Unini Igarape Agua Preta, Brazil, 375 L

russian_federation Russia. Kirill Shaklein

lake_yenisehir_mossy_shallow_coast_of_hatay_turkey_1

19th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 704 points

Lake Yenişehir. Mossy shallow coast of Hatay, Turkey, 157 L

turkey Turkey. Tolga Eldurmaz

lake_tanganyika_south_of_kipili_sunset_in_tanzania_1

20th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 701 points

Lake Tanganyika. South of Kipili – sunset in Tanzania, 350 L

turkey Turkey. Gökay Yağar

lake_tanganyika_zambia_area_1

21th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 695 points

Lake Tanganyika. Zambia area, 480 L

turkey Turkey. Fatih Çetinkaya

atzala_river_by_paintla_de_los_reyes_taxco_guerrero_mexico_1

22th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 687 points

Atzala river in its course by Paintla de los Reyes, Taxco. Guerrero, Mexico, 72 L

mexico Mexico. Amadeo Hernández Pérez

wetland_backwater_near_the_mouth_of_the_yangtze_river_in_hunan_province_china_1

23th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 680 points

Wetland backwater near the mouth of the Yangtze River in Hunan Province, China, 35 L

russian_federation Russia. Lev Ponomaryov

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

24th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 672 points

Cenote of Dzibilchaltun. Yucatan – Mexico, 500 L

belgium Belgium. Jeroen Vanhooren

slow_stream_backwater_near_nadou_in_chinese_province_of_hainan_1

25th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 663 points

Slow stream backwater near Nadou in Chinese province of Hainan, 30 L

russian_federation Russia. Angelina Sporsheva

oyapock_river_french_guiana_1

26th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 651 points

Oyapock river, French Guiana, 280 L

turkey Turkey. Timur Tekbaş

shallow_waters_of_herbert_river_in_queensland_australia_1

27th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 636 points

Shallow waters of Herbert River in Queensland. Australia, 40 L

turkey Turkey. Tolga Eldurmaz

upper_bhavani_river_a_tributary_of_the_kaveri_river_india_1

28th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 618 points

Upper Bhavani River, a tributary of the Kaveri River, India, 70 L

ukraine Ukraine. Konstantin Rodoutskiy

miusik_river_in_the_luhansk_region_of_ukraine_1

29th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 615 points

Miusik River in the Luhansk region of Ukraine, 300 L

ukraine Ukraine. Oleg Sychov

middle_amazonas_at_the_area_around_manaus_1

30th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 606 points

Middel Amazonas, at the area around Manaus, 720 L

netherlands Netherlands. Gert Blank

moei_river_tributary_backwater_irrawaddy_basin_burma_1

31th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 593 points

Moei River tributary backwater, Irrawaddy basin, Burma, 60 L

russian_federation Russia. Natalia Sokolova

dry_pond_laguna_de_marica_rio_de_janeiro_brazil_1

32th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 592 points

Dry pond, Laguna de Marica, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 30L

russian_federation Russia. Svetlana Kirillova

rio_jufaris_near_the_community_caicubi_brazil_1

33th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 591 points

Rio Jufarís, near the community Caicubi, Brazil, 200 L

brazil Brazil. Bruno Garcia dos Santos

rio_tapajos_near_the_city_of_santarem_brazil_1

34th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 570 points

Rio Tapajos, near the city of Santarem, Brazil, 688 L

greece Greece. Theodoros Alexiou

borneo_hillstream_sarawak_1

35th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 562 points

Borneo hillstream, Sarawak, 160 L

belgium Belgium. Xavier Bourdet

slowly_moving_small_mountain_creek_xi_jiang_drainage_guangdong_china_1

35th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 562 points

Slowly moving small mountain creek, Xi Jiang drainage, Guangdong, China, 54 L

poland Poland. Kamil Hazy

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

37th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 560 points

Billabong in the Wenlock basin, Cape York Peninsula – Australia, 100 L

belgium Belgium. Jeroen Vanhooren

japura_river_at_dawn_colombia_1

38th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 556 points

Japurá River at dawn. Colombia, 180 L

russian_federation Russia. Artyom Filippov

vanished_habitat_fast-flowing_mountain_stream_in_guangzhou_province_south-eastern_china_1

39th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 550 points

Fast-flowing mountain stream in Guangzhou province, south-eastern China, 70 L

russian_federation Russia. Varvara Kozmenko

lake_amatitlan_near_guetemala_eastern_coast_of_central_america_1

40th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 543 points

Lake Amatitlan Near Guetemala Eastern Coast Of Central America, 140 L

turkey Turkey. Bilal Taha Tasdelen

tanganyika_lake_east_beach_bulu_point_cape_tanzania_1

40th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 543 points

Tanganyika Lake, East Beach, Bulu Point cape, Tanzania, 32 L

russian_federation Russia. Evgeniy Bendin

igarape_daracua_rio_negro_brazil_1

42th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 541 points

Igarapé Daracuá, Rio Negro, Brazil, 36 L

brazil Brazil. Flavio Henard Jorge de Freitas

upper_middle_orinoco_woody_habitat_1

43th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 539 points

Upper/Middle Orinoco Woody Habitat, 630 L

indonesia Indonesia. Andy Basuki

dibru_river_dibrugarh_assam_1

44th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 525 points

Dibru River – Dibrugarh, Assam, 250 L

greece Greece. Christos Nikolakoulis

lachua_lake_in_the_jungle_of_coban_guatemala_1

45th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 522 points

Lachuá Lake, in the jungle of Cobán, Guatemala, 240 L

brazil Brazil. Bruno Garcia dos Santos

small_backwater_in_alenquer_area_1

46th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 520 points

Small backwater in Alenquer area, 70 L

russian_federation Russia. Aleksandr Dergalyov

alto_rio_negro_1

47th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 507 points

Alto Rio Negro, 160 L

greece Greece. George Pantazopoulos

small_ditch_plain_rice_fields_north_of_phetchaburi_city_thailand_1

48th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 505 points

Small ditch. Plain rice fields, north of Phetchaburi city. Thailand, 60 L

italy Italy. Andrea Vannini

the_sandbar_of_tanganyika_lakeside_1

49th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 497 points

The Sandbar Of Tanganyika Lakeside, 430 L

turkey Turkey. Ömer Eliaçık

minos_reef_from_lake_malawi_1

50th place. SUCCESS TROPHY - 482 points

Minos reef from lake Malawi, 1000 L

france France. Lionel Adam

quebradas_small_stream_near_iquitos_1

51th place - 481 points

Quebradas- small stream near Iquitos, 60 L

hungary Hungary. Dániel Szabó

lake_tanganyika_ndole_bay_zambia_1

52th place - 476 points

Lake Tanganyika, Ndole Bay, Zambia, 200 L

argentina Argentina. Walter Vazquez

depth_water_of_congo_area_east_of_lake_tanganyika_africa_1

53th place - 475 points

Depth water of Congo area, East of Lake Tanganyika, Africa, 200 L

turkey Turkey. Fatih Bolat

dav

54th place - 460 points

Lagoon “El Remate” Campeche, Mexico, 200 L

mexico Mexico. Victor Manuel Ortiz Cruz

the_river_in_krabi_thailand_1

55th place - 458 points

The river in Krabi, Thailand, 54 L

belarus Belarus. Jury Shamkalovich

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

56th place - 455 points

Riverbank of a small stream in Nilwala basin. Sri Lanka, 100 L

belgium Belgium. Jeroen Vanhooren

niger_river_delta_nigeria_1

57th place - 453 points

Niger River Delta, Nigeria, 240 L

brazil Brazil. Bruno Garcia dos Santos

forest_streams_of_loango_national_park_1

58th place - 441 points

Forest streams of Loango National Park, 30 L

russian_federation Russia. Aleksandr Tkachuk

black_water_rio_negro_brasil_1

59th place - 436 points

Black Water, Rio Negro, Brasil, 160 L

poland Poland. Arkadiusz Skrzycki

bache_river_backwater_quang_ninh_province_vietnam_1

60th place - 435 points

Bache River backwater, Quang Ninh Province, Vietnam, 30 L

russian_federation Russia. Tamara Baranova

parana_river_backwater_near_the_city_of_goya_argentina_1

60th place - 435 points

Paraná River backwater near the city of Goya, Argentina, 324 L

russian_federation Aleksandr Polimonov

strelka_river_coastal_part_in_village_ropsha_leningrad_oblast_russia_1

60th place - 435 points

Strelka River coastal part in village Ropsha, Leningrad Oblast, Russia, 200 L

russian_federation Russia. Nil Filimonov

shores_of_kigoma_area_northeast_of_lake_tanganyika_east_africa_1

63th place - 427 points

Shores of Kigoma area, Northeast of Lake Tanganyika, East Africa, 200 L

turkey Turkey. Bilal Taha Tasdelen

rocky_shores_of_lake_malawi_mbamba_bay_tanzania_1

64th place - 400 points

Rocky shores of lake malawi – mbamba bay – Tanzania, 784 L

brazil Brazil. Jean Carlo de A. Castro

south_american_blackwater_stream_1

65th place - 398 points

South American Blackwater Stream, 60 L

india India. Stephen Dsouza

coastal_area_of_gulf_of_finland_in_st_petersburg_1

66th place - 391 points

Coastal area of Gulf of Finland in St. Petersburg, 160 L

russian_federation Russia. Mark Martynov

mountain_creek_near_lijiang_river_in_zhejiang_provinces_1

67th place - 361 points

Mountain creek near Lijiang river in Zhejiang provinces, 20 L

poland Poland. Dominik Woroch

biotop_creek_soumourou_french_guiana_1

68th place - 327 points

Biotop Creek Soumourou, French Guiana, 200 L

romania Romania. Emil Visan

betta_puddle_northern_chao_praya_river_thailand_1

69th place - 325 points

Betta puddle, northern Chao Praya river, Thailand, 10 L

bulgaria Bulgaria. Ivaylo Slavov

zhoujiang_river_china_1

70th place - 318 points

Zhoujiang river, China, 3 L

morocco Morocco. Mounir Elkholty

khorol_backwaters_ukraine_1

71th place - 314 points

Khorol backwaters, Ukraine, 70 L

ukraine Ukraine. Vladimir Korotin

cuvery_river_habitat_near_mysuru_town_kanataka_province_india_1

72th place - 304 points

Cuvery River Habitat, Near Mysuru Town, Kanataka Province, India, 340 L

india India. Bharadwaz Putta

lake_malawi_near_nkhata_bay_1

73th place - 296 points

Lake Malawi, near Nkhata Bay, 112 L

ukraine Ukraine. Konstantin Rodoutskiy

stream_kelani_river_sri_lanka_1

74th place - 276 points

Stream, Kelani River, Sri Lanka, 81 L

brazil Brazil. Bruno Garcia dos Santos

likoma_island_of_lake_malawi_1

75th place - 267 points

Likoma Island of Lake Malawi, 360 L

brazil Brazil. Rodrigo Vasconcelos

flooded_stream_near_coronel_bogado_paraguay_1

76th place - 254 points

Flooded stream near Coronel Bogado. Paraguay, 54 L

netherlands Netherlands. Jos Rollman

nkamba_bay_tanganyika_lake_zambia_1

77th place - 241 points

Nkamba Bay, Tanganyika Lake, Zambia, 715 L

portugal Portugal. Nelson Mangana

shallow-waters-in-orinoco-with-wild-guppies

78th place - 233 points

Shallow waters in Orinoco with wild guppies, 80 L

estonia Estonia. Eduard Dmitryev

backwater_of_st_johns_river_before_sunset_florida_north_america_1

79th place - 230 points

Backwater of St. Johns River before sunset, Florida, North America, 40 L

russian_federation Russia. Anna Romanchik

hainan_island_china_1

80th place - 207 points

Hainan island, China, 165 L

morocco Morocco. Mounir Elkholty

putumayo_river_biotope_ecuador_1

81th place - 187 points

Putumayo River biotope. Ecuador, 30 L

russian_federation Russia. Danila Brynetkin

amazon_river_basin_in_tributaries_of_the_ucayali_1

82th place - 146 points

Amazon River basin, in tributaries of the Ucayali, 60 L

turkey Turkey. Mehmet Kartal

congo_river_basin_west_africa_1

83th place - 97 points

Congo River Basin, West Africa, 180 L

japan Japan. Hideaki Matsubata

araguaia_river_brazil_1

84th place - 79 points

Araguaia River, Brazil, 240 L

russian_federation Russia. Andrey Kondrashov

amazon_biotope_lake_large_curuai_brazil_1

85th place - 35 points

Amazon biotope lake large Curuai, Brazil, 260 L

portugal Portugal. Hugo Jesus

TOP50 Biotope Aquarium Design Contest 2016

I still love biotope aquariums, because they can combine aquarium keeping with the natural beauty of the biotopes of this world. But unfortunately most biotope keepers just copy a natural biotope without trying to combine this with the art of scaping! Many biotopes do not really look beautiful: just leaves in the bottom, muddy water, no plants and some driftwood. But as a good biotoper you need to find a way to make this natural biotope look impressive and breathtaking. Another tip for the biotope description: it might be nice, if you explain lots of information about the geographical situation of the biotope but it would be much more important, if you tell us about the water parameters and the water temperature! This is missing quite often!

Heiko Blessin (Germany)

As usual, lots of very good works, and lots of too small tanks. However, the amount of very good and large enough tanks was sufficiently high to make the voting quite difficult. Congratulations to all the contestants – I’m really happy that the idea of biotope aquarium is so wide-spread around the world! I also like the new website of the contest – it is very easy and intuitive to navigate, and all informations are presented in a clear way.

Piotr Kierzkowski (Poland)

I wanted to tell all of you that entered this year’s Biotope Aquarium Design Contest 2016, “YOU ARE MY HEROES.” The biotope aquariums I have seen this year are super inspiring. I am sure that many contestants have understood and opened their eyes at the importance of what they learned about nature by researching and recreating it at home. With time you will all realize that sharing your knowledge in a positive way, as small as this knowledge can be, will change and influence many people to love nature, and that my friends makes you all heroes.

Ivan Mikolji (Venezuela)