Aquarium Care Guides
2881 articles- Aquaponics: A Guide to Integrated Fish and Plant ProductionHow aquaponics combines fish farming with hydroponics: fish waste is nitrified into plant nutrients, plants clean the water, plus components
- Biofloc Technology (BFT) Aquaculture: A GuideHow biofloc technology works: heterotrophic bacteria turn waste nitrogen into microbial protein, C:N ratio control, near-zero water exchange
- Raceway and Flow-Through Aquaculture: A GuideHow flow-through raceways work: linear tanks fed by continuous cold clean water, design and slope, oxygen and self-cleaning, carrying capaci
- Salt (Sodium Chloride) in Freshwater Fish TreatmentHow non-iodized salt (NaCl) is used in freshwater fish to ease osmoregulatory stress, control some external parasites, and counter nitrite t
- Oxytetracycline in Fish: Uses, Dosing and WithdrawalOxytetracycline is a tetracycline antibiotic used against gram-negative bacterial fish diseases such as columnaris, with FDA- and Merck-base
- Formalin in Fish Treatment: Uses, Dosing and SafetyHow formalin (a ~37% formaldehyde solution) is used against external protozoan and monogenean parasites in fish, with FDA- and UF/IFAS-based
- Sea Lice in Farmed Salmon: Biology, Impact and ControlSea lice (Lepeophtheirus salmonis, Caligus spp.) are parasitic copepods that damage farmed salmon skin. Control combines cleaner fish, mecha
- White Spot Syndrome Virus (WSSV) in Farmed Shrimp: A GuideWhite spot syndrome virus (genus Whispovirus) causes near-total mortality in farmed shrimp within days. No treatment exists; control depends
- Tilapia Lake Virus (TiLV): A Guide to a Global Aquaculture ThreatTilapia lake virus (Tilapinevirus tilapiae) causes high mortality in farmed tilapia. There is no treatment; control relies on biosecurity an
- Cage and Net-Pen Aquaculture: A GuideHow cage and net-pen fish farming works: cage types, site selection, stocking and feeding, net maintenance, environmental considerations, an
- Recirculating Aquaculture Systems (RAS): A GuideHow recirculating aquaculture systems work: closed-loop water reuse, filtration and biofiltration, the nitrogen cycle, oxygenation, and the
- Pond Aquaculture: A Guide to Earthen Pond Fish FarmingHow earthen-pond fish farming works: construction, fertilization and liming, stocking, polyculture, water-quality and oxygen management, and
- Majano Anemone: Reef Pest Identification, Control & RemovalMajano anemones sting and overgrow corals, spreading fast by pedal laceration. Learn to identify, control, and safely remove this reef pest.
- Bubble Algae (Valonia): Reef ID & Removal GuideIdentify green bubble algae (Valonia/Ventricaria), learn why you must never pop bubbles in the tank, and remove them intact with twisting, s
- Acoel Flatworms (Red Planaria): Reef ID & ControlIdentify rust-brown acoel flatworms, understand why a population crash can poison the tank, and use the safe siphon-first plus Flatworm eXit
- Vermetid Snails: Reef Tank ID & Control GuideIdentify vermetid tube snails by their cemented shells and mucus feeding nets, learn how they irritate corals, and apply proven cut-and-glue
- Bristleworms (Polychaeta): Identification and ControlMost bristleworms are beneficial reef-tank scavengers, not pests. Learn to identify them, why their bristles sting, and when to control only
- Aiptasia (Glass Anemone): Identification and ControlAiptasia is a fast-spreading stinging anemone that stresses corals. Learn to identify it, why cutting backfires, and how injection plus natu
- Malaysian Trumpet Snail Control: Managing a Beneficial BurrowerMelanoides tuberculata burrows and aerates substrate but breeds explosively as a livebearer. Mostly beneficial — manage numbers with feeding
- Pest Snail Outbreaks: Controlling Bladder, Pond & Ramshorn SnailsBladder and ramshorn snails ride in on plants and explode in numbers, but they harm neither plants nor fish. Control them by cutting feeding
- Rhabdocoela (Detritus) Flatworms: Harmless Glass-Gliders, Not PlanariaTiny white worms on your glass are usually harmless rhabdocoela detritivores, not predatory planaria. Learn to tell them apart and cut numbe
- Scuds (Gammarus Amphipods): ID & Control GuideSide-swimming amphipods with laterally flattened bodies that scud through the tank. Mostly harmless detritivores and fish food, but big popu
- Cyclops & Copepods: ID & Control GuideTiny single-eyed crustaceans that dart with a jerky motion, often carrying twin egg sacs. Harmless live food for fry that blooms on overfeed
- Seed Shrimp (Ostracods): ID & Control GuideTiny bean-shaped crustaceans in a hinged bivalve shell that zip across glass and substrate. Harmless detritivores that bloom on overfeeding
- Freshwater Limpets (Ferrissia / Acroloxus): Identification and ControlFreshwater limpets (Ferrissia, Acroloxus) are tiny cap-shaped snails grazing on glass and leaves. They are harmless algae-eaters whose numbe
- Anchor Worm (Lernaea): Identification and TreatmentAnchor worm (Lernaea) is a parasitic copepod that embeds an anchor-shaped head in fish skin, leaving a white thread. Learn to identify it an
- Leeches in the Aquarium: Identification and ControlLeeches (Hirudinea) are segmented worms that hitchhike on plants. Most are harmless detritivores, but some feed on fish blood. Learn to tell
- Detritus Worms in Aquariums: Identification & ControlIdentify thin white detritus worms, learn why they are usually harmless, what their bloom says about feeding, and how to control them with g
- Hydra in Aquariums: Identification & ControlSpot hydra by their stalk and stinging tentacles, understand how they hitchhike in and bloom on overfeeding, and control them without harmin
- Planaria in Aquariums: Identification & ControlIdentify planaria flatworms by their arrow-shaped head, learn how they hitchhike in on plants, why they bloom, and how to control them safel
- Aquatic Caecilian (Typhlonectes natans) "Rubber Eel" Care GuideCare guide for the aquatic caecilian Typhlonectes natans, often mis-sold as a 'rubber eel': it is a legless live-bearing amphibian needing s
- Oriental Fire-Bellied Toad (Bombina orientalis) Care GuideCare guide for the semi-aquatic Oriental fire-bellied toad (Bombina orientalis): land-and-water setup, cool temperatures, diet, and safe han
- African Clawed Frog (Xenopus laevis) Care GuideCare guide for the fully aquatic African clawed frog (Xenopus laevis): tank setup, diet, water needs, plus its invasive risk and chytrid-car
- Spanish Ribbed Newt Care GuideCare for the large, hardy, mostly aquatic Spanish ribbed newt (Pleurodeles waltl): cool clean water, a tight lid, and respect for its unique
- Paddletail Newt Care GuideCare for the fully aquatic paddletail newt (Pachytriton labiatus): cold, clean, fast-flowing water, a tight lid, and solitary housing for th
- Chinese Fire-Belly Newt Care GuideHow to keep the semi-aquatic Chinese fire-belly newt (Cynops orientalis): cool water 16-22C, a land haul-out, a tight lid, and its toxic war
- Mississippi Map Turtle Care Guide (Graptemys pseudogeographica kohnii)The Mississippi map turtle is a river species needing pristine, highly oxygenated water plus strong basking and UVB — strikingly marked with
- Mata Mata Turtle Care Guide (Chelus fimbriata)The bizarre mata mata is a blackwater ambush piscivore that suction-feeds on live fish, barely basks and needs warm, soft, acidic water — a
- Pig-Nosed Turtle Care Guide (Carettochelys insculpta)The fully aquatic pig-nosed turtle grows huge, turns aggressive in captivity and is CITES-protected — a long-lived species strictly for adva
- Spiny Softshell Turtle Care GuideCaring for Apalone spinifera: a fully aquatic, soft-shelled turtle that buries in fine sand, needs pristine cool-to-moderate water and is pr
- African Sideneck Turtle Care Guide (West African Mud Turtle)Caring for Pelusios castaneus: a subtropical side-necked turtle that folds its head sideways, needs warm water, basking, UVB and can live se
- Reeves' Turtle Care Guide (Chinese Pond Turtle)How to keep Mauremys reevesii: a hardy semi-aquatic Chinese pond turtle that basks, needs UVB, warm clean water and lives 20+ years in good
- Common Map Turtle Care GuideCare guide for the common (northern) map turtle, Graptemys geographica: a strong-flow river species that demands pristine, highly-oxygenated
- Razorback Musk Turtle Care GuideCare guide for the razorback musk turtle (Sternotherus carinatus): a keeled, keen-basking musk turtle from the US Southeast needing clean, s
- Common Musk Turtle (Stinkpot) Care GuideA practical care guide for the common musk turtle (Sternotherus odoratus): a small, mostly aquatic bottom-walker needing shallow water, easy
- Painted Turtle (Chrysemys picta) Care GuideCare for a painted turtle: a spacious heated aquatic tank, a dry basking spot with UVB and heat, strong filtration, and a commitment that ca
- Yellow-Bellied Slider (Trachemys scripta scripta) Care GuideCare for a yellow-bellied slider: a roomy heated aquatic tank, a dry basking platform under UVB and heat, strong filtration, and a 30-plus y
- Red-Eared Slider (Trachemys scripta elegans) Care GuideHow to keep a red-eared slider: a large heated aquatic tank, dry basking platform with UVB and heat, strong filtration, and a decades-long c
- Propagating Ottelia mesenterium (Sulawesi Ottelia)How to propagate Ottelia mesenterium, a rare bullate-leaf Sulawesi rosette grown from seeds and division, with the slow growth and stable co
- Propagating Ottelia alismoides (Duck Lettuce)How to propagate Ottelia alismoides, a submersed rosette that relies almost entirely on seeds since it lacks vegetative-reproduction organs