Life as we know it evolved from water, it is an essential part of life. When we think about life, currently, we can only imagine them as carbon life forms with a certain percentage of water. All of the biochemical processes and biomolecular structures are made to comply with water molecules.
This is why there are so many different life forms in the vast waters of the world. It is the reason why these areas are so filled with life because life had more time to evolve there.
Many people are enthusiastic about life in both fresh and salt waters. This is why having an aquarium is so exciting, just imagine these completely different creatures living right next to you. It sure is attractive, but aquariums bring a certain level of responsibility with them.
There is no point in getting these fishes if you do not intend to take care of them in the long term. Luckily, with the power of the internet, you can find out everything you need to take care of freshwater aquatic life.
Optimal Aquarium
Aquariums are the homes of your fishes, you want them to live comfortably like you. Size matters here because that is the only space the fishes have. Not many people can afford those big aquariums like in sea worlds. But, if you want just a few fish, they can live perfectly in a 20-gallon fish tank that can fit on almost any desk. The benefit of having fewer fish is that you can dedicate yourself much better to them than a lot of them.
There is no need to go big if you do not have the time or the means to take care of them. Buying a huge aquarium that you can not maintain will come at the expense of the fishes’ comfort.
If you are just starting out, it is much better to start off small with aquariums so you can learn better. The general rule is that you should have one gallon of water per 1 inch of fish. With this in mind, you can see that you can still have a lot of fish friends that will not be lonely.
Compatible Animals
Water represents a very unique ecosystem where there are no isolated individuals. Everyone has an effect on everyone and everyone is affected by their surroundings. This is why you need to be careful with what type of fish and other freshwater aquatic life you have in that tank. Some fishes can be natural enemies that can and will fight if you put them in the same tank. One way of going around this problem is by starting with very young fish.
There are many reports of young fish growing together to live in perfect harmony, even though in nature they are enemies. The key to making fish feel safe is pairing them while they are young. Breeding patterns are also a key to making a healthy environment for the fish. Fish, especially male fish, can dramatically change when they start breeding. Luckily, there are many detailed guides online for any kind of fish that will give you more precise information.
Living conditions
Once you know that your fish can fit in the tank comfortably and are friendly, it is time to discuss more parameters. This includes optimal water conditions, in other words, temperature, pH, ionic strength, and others. How you need to set up these parameters depends highly on the fish that you chose. This again is something that you need to look up in detailed guides online or ask a professional. Whichever conditions they may be, you need to have a water filter and a regulator.
Water filters are essential for every type of fish so they can clean the water of other contaminants. In the vast oceans, there is no need for these filters because everything just spreads around. There are many other microbes in the water that regulate the levels of certain substances in the water. For this reason, you need something that can keep an eye out for these parameters for temperature, pH, or other substances.
Feeding
Feeding fish is simple in its nature, but it is not as simple as many people say it is. As with everything in life, balance is the key to feeding the fish the right way. By overfeeding them random fish food, they can become sick over time and not feel good. If you give them too little food, that is bad for them as well both physically and socially. How you will feed the fish will depend, again, entirely on the species that you have in your tank.
The best way to know how to feed them is, again, by looking up detailed guides and talking to others. It is important to make feeding routines a regular habit of yours, for fishes’ sake. If you can not remember, you should make an alarm to remind you when to feed them. If you can not remember if you gave them food or not, you should write down your feeding schedule as a checklist. If you have a lot of responsibilities and you can not always feed them, you can find automatic feeders.
Maintenance
Proper maintenance is the key to success for your small watery world. The more life you have in the tank, the more you need to take care of it and maintain it. The previous segment was mostly focused on fish, but there are many more other dwellers you can have in there. For example, many plants could be important for the fish to hide in or play in.
These are the core concepts of taking care of freshwater aquatic life in an ethical way. Everyone these days can enjoy a nice fish tank in their home. However, you do need to take care of that life in these if you want it to thrive and have fun there.Â
These are the core concepts you need to know before getting a fish tank, afterwards, you will still need to read and learn about them. It is important to be ready and confident before embarking on a journey in this fun hobby of taking care of freshwater aquatic life.
