Fishes are kept at home in aquariums and ponds. The hobby
of fish keeping is divided into brackish, saltwater, and
freshwater fish keeping, out of which freshwater fish keeping is
the favorite. The fishes which are popular for fish keeping are
angelfish, goldfish and guppies. Different species of fishes can
be kept together and sometimes fishes of the same species are
kept together for breeding purpose. With breeders, the popular
fish species are guppies, mollies, catfish, killifish, cichlid,
and characin.
Fish keeping was started centuries ago. At that time fishes were
bred for food. Also, due to religious reasons, fish was eaten on
days when meat wasn’t allowed. The Chinese and Japanese
traditions included fish keeping for food purposes. But later
the kings began keeping goldfishes and koi, because of their
attractive colors. They were kept in ponds and when guests used
to arrive, the fishes were shifted indoors in fish bowls. Romans
were also known to keep lampreys in pools with salt water.
Ancient Egyptians kept fishes from Oxyrhynchus in temple pools.
Saltwater or marine fish keeping is more difficult and
expensive. Usually experienced fish keepers or aquarists are
into this hobby. This is certainly not for beginners. But it
sure is very attractive with colorful and attractive fishes
along with different types of corals. Brackish fish keeping
involves both freshwater and saltwater fish keeping, because the
salinity of the water is in between that of seawater and
freshwater.
Fish keepers which are into this hobby also focus on the aquatic
plants. Some hardcore aquarists even attempt to grow coral reef
with the help of living rock, worms, and calcareous rocks with
algae growth, sponges, and worms. When the corals begin to grow
echinoderms, crabs, mollusks, and shrimps are also added to the
aquariums, which are also called as reef tanks.
The aquarium should have ecology which is similar to the natural
habitat of the occupant fishes. This is an extremely difficult
task. Also, it is important to maintain the predator prey
relationship balance. Also more than the volume of the water,
the surface volume is important. This is because, more the
surface volume, more the oxygen levels in the water. Air pumps
also are used to increase the dissolved oxygen in the water.
This is part of the nutrient cycle, which should be maintained
and controlled for the well-fare of the fishes. Larger aquariums
are more preferable and they make things easier, for example the
event effects are diluted easily and the systemic shock is
absorbed well.
Other factors to be controlled are nitrogen cycle, dissolved
gases and balanced food supply. The salinity of the water should
be checked regularly depending of the aquaria being maintained.
The pH level should be checked to test the acidic nature of the
water. For freshwater aquarium, most of the aquarist use tap
water, which is a mistake as it contains chlorine. Chloramines
should be used in tap water to make it chlorine free.
Depending on temperature, the aquarium can be differentiated to
have tropical and cold water. For tropical aquarium, the water
should be warm and the temperature should be nearly
seventy-seven degree Fahrenheit. For cold water aquarium, the
water temperature should be less than room temperature. For this
purpose, a refrigeration device called chiller can be used.
Plants and certain organisms can be introduced in the aquarium
which metabolizes the waste, especially nitrogen. But more the
number of organisms added to the fish tank, the more difficult
it is to maintain. The needs of all the aquatic organisms must
be considered. Introducing many types of species in an aquarium
is known as biological loading. Two important factors should be
considered which include filtration process and oxygen levels.
Aquarists interested in fish breeding should be more careful.
Firstly, they shouldn’t mix many types of fishes together. They
should also develop special conditions called spawning triggers
for proper breeding.
Artificial ponds can be also made in the garden. It is very
similar to freshwater keeping, except that they are big and out
in natural conditions. Tropical fishes are a good choice for
such garden ponds. But where the temperatures are cold,
goldfishes, orfe and koi are good options.