Creating a Tank for Natives (Part 1 in a 3-part series)

Part 1: Still- or Slackwater Species Tank

By Brian Torreano
First published in Splash, Milwaukee Aquarium Society
and on Brian's website about North American native fish: www.btdarters.com
Aquarticles

Intro: In this installment I will be describing how to create a tank for our native species that live in lakes or low-current areas of streams and rivers. I will be discussing fish that occupy all levels of the tank: the top, the middle of the tank, and the bottom. Although I will only be discussing natives, the setups described here can also apply to non-native fish that live in similar environments. Also, all of the fish I will be describing here are community fish, so they can be kept with just about any other community fish. The tank setups in this article will be good for a combination of any or all of the following fish: Johnny Darters, Blackside Darters, Iowa Darters, Sand Shiners, Common Shiners, Bluntnose Minnows, Spottail Shiners, Spotfin Shiners, and Blackstripe Topminnows.

Tank size and shape: To construct a tank for these natives, you can use just about any size and shape of tank. You will want to choose a tank size and shape based on the swimming level of the fish that you want to specialize in. If you want to tailor a tank for bottom-dwelling fish, you will want a low-slung tank, such as a 30 long. If you want to specialize in mid-water fish, you might want a 10, a 20 high, a 25 or a 55. Higher tanks will be good if you want to specialize in top-water fish. For just a general still- or slackwater tank, a 10, a 25, or a 55 could be used. No matter what size you choose, construction of the inside of the tank will be basically the same. Let’s get started talking about that.

Tank substrate: For the base substrate, you want to start with a gravel that is pea-sized or smaller. (Aqua Exhibits on 3rd Street has the perfect gravel in this size. They call it "Natural Gravel" and it is 20˘ a pound.) An undergravel filter can be used if you want, but should be avoided if you are going to put live plants in your tank. If you are going to use live plants, TurfaceŽ can be used (talk to Aaron Glass if you want to know more about Turface). To make your bottom-of-the-tank inhabitants feel comfortable, you will want to supply 3 things in particular: some rockwork, low-lying plants, and driftwood or similar bottom debris (sticks, twigs). Johnny Darters spawn in and like to hang-around caves, so the rockwork should have large enough spaces that the Johnnys can fit between them. Blackside Darters like to roam around bottom debris, so the driftwood or other bottom debris is for them. Driftwood with Java moss or Java fern attached would be especially good as the Iowa darters like to roam around vegetation. For the Iowas you will also want to have low-lying vegetation such as Cryptocorene sp., Pygmy Chain Sword (Echinodorus sp.), or Dwarf Broad-Leaf Chain Sword (Echinodorus quadricostatus) (Aaron, forgive me if I didn’t get the type names right). If you don’t have low-lying vegetation, the bases of plants such as Amazon Swords will suffice, as long as there is a cluster of bases to make the Iowas feel comfortable.

Mid-water zone: For the mid-water fish, the main thing is that you want to keep an unobstructed area in the center and front of the tank for them to school in. If you keep a number of different species, as described here, the fish will generally school together. They will also school with non-native mid-water fish such as tetras, barbs, and rasboras, if kept together. You may also want to make sure that you have some plants along the back and sides of the tank that reach the mid-water level, so that the fish have some place to hide if they become startled. Some mid-water natives include: Sand Shiners, Common Shiners, Bluntnose Minnows, Spottail Shiners, and Spotfin Shiners.

Top-water zone: The top-water fish are probably the easiest to accommodate. Generally, all they need to feel comfortable are some plants that either float, or reach the top of the tank and spread across the surface. Many plants accomplish this task, such as: Amazon Swords, Vallisneria, Riccia, Amazon frogbit, and Water Lettuce. The Blackstripe Topminnnow is a top-water fish.

Life support: Filtration of the tank is simple. You can filter the tank just as you would for any standard aquarium fish. The only important thing to consider is that the darters have higher oxygen requirements than most fish, so you will need to have increased aeration through the use of extra airstones or a powerhead with a Venturi adapter. Also note that as your natives are temperate fish, you do not need a heater to keep any of your natives!

Lighting: Lighting of the tank will depend on your tastes. If you want to have live plants, you may need some higher-end bulbs (compact flourescents and the like). However, I have had good luck with standard aquarium lighting with plants such as Naias grass, Cryptocorene sp., Pygmy Chain Swords, Amazon Swords, Java moss, Java Fern, and Elodea (or Anacharis, or whatever you want to call it).

Conclusion: In all, constructing a tank for natives is relatively easy. You just have to know what fish you want to keep and what their general requirements are. I hope that I have covered everything well in this article. For more info, or to see pictures of the fish described here, please visit my website at: http://www.btdarters.com. If you have any questions, feel free to email me at info@btdarters.com. The next installment in this series will cover setting up a tank for species that inhabit medium- to high-current waters. Until then, happy fishkeeping!

Go to: Part 2, Medium to High-Current Species Tank