Fish bowl is a miniature aquarium tank. Though bowls with half gallon or lesser capacity are available, these small bowls are pretty cramped for the pet you love.
It is preferable to go in for a two gallon capacity bowl so that it is roomy for the aquarium pet. Though some fishkeepers do not aerate or filter the water in the bowl tank, an undergravel filter will help in the cycling of the container as well as keeping the water clear and aerated. In the small environment, the water quality may deteriorate easily, and one cardinal rule is not to overfeed the pets.
Similar to an aquarium tank, water temperature, pH, alkalinity, dissolved oxygen and ammonia must be monitored regularly. About 20% of the water may be exchanged at least two or three times in a week. The pets may contract diseases and timely identification and treatment will save the lives. Consider covering the bowl tank with a custom cover, a glass sheet having perforations or a fine mesh to stop the pet from jumping out. The suitable pet must be hardy enough to withstand stress, must tolerate temperature fluctuations and be small enough for the bowl. Betta, dwarf gourami, guppy, molly, white cloud minnow, mystery snail, ghost shrimp, platy and African dwarf frog are some of the pets that can be raised in the bowl.
For setting up fish bowl aquarium, you will require a round two gallon glass bowl tank, decorative materials and bottom stones. The bowl tank must be thoroughly cleaned with dry clean cloth to remove grease and dust. Then using hot water, the tank must be cleaned thoroughly with mild liquid soap.
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Then the bowl must be rinsed several times to remove all traces of liquid soap. Rinsing with hot water will also remove traces of oil or grease, if any. Do not use any product containing chlorine, disinfectant or any other harmful chemical as any remnant after rinsing will seriously harm the aquarium tank pet. The cleaning process is very similar to setting up an aquatic pet tank.
Ghost shrimp are ideal for keeping in bowl fish tank as they are small and grow slowly. A two gallon bowl will provide sufficient space for four or five ghost shrimp. The tank must have rockwood and live or decorative plants for the shrimp to cling on to. A layer of small stones may be spread on the bottom of the tank. The shrimp may be fed with small quantities of pellet or flake food. The female shrimp may be seen carrying pink/green eggs on the underside of the carapace. They may even hatch and release the babies(nauplii) in the tank. Rearing the babies is very difficult as they feed on rotifers and brine shrimp nauplii. The adult ghost shrimp may devour the babies.
Guppies are ideal for rearing in fish bowl aquarium. It is better to go in for fancy guppies as they are colorful with a variety of tails. In a two gallon tank two or three pairs can be accommodated. Provide plants and decorations as hiding places. Some males may be aggressive and nibble and damage the fantails of other guppies. The female guppies are dull colored with smaller tails. Normally the traders do not part with females. If you can convince and get a pair of females, you can have guppies breeding in the bowl tank. Guppies are livebearers and the babies may start accepting finely powdered feed. You have to separate the babies to another tank as the adults may devour them.
For cleaning fish bowl aquarium, you have to have a hand net for removing the aquatic pet to a container/tank. The mesh size should be such that the pet does not pass through it or get caught in it. A container will be required for holding the decorations, gravel stones and filter. The container tank for keeping the pet temporarily must be clean and have a broad mouth for scooping it out. After transferring the pet and the ornamental decorations, scrub the bowl tank for removing algal growth. You may have to scrub with a razor to remove water evaporation marks on the sides of the aquarium. Use paper towels to remove greasy marks and fingerprints.
Betta, also known as Siamese fighters, are ideal for bowl aquarium. They are very aggressive and do not tolerate the presence of other aquatic pets. Hence they cannot be kept in tanks along with other species. A two gallon bowl tank is sufficient to keep a full grown betta. As it is an air breather, aeration is not required. With very successful selective breeding a number of breeds are available for fishkeepers. It is always better to have the bowl tank covered with a mesh as betta have the tendency to jump out. Though in nature they feed on live food, in confined aquarium tanks they adapt feeding flakes and freeze dried bloodworms.
A small sized fantail can be raised in a two gallon bowl aquarium. As goldfish varieties grow big, other varieties like Bubble-eye, Celestial, Dragon-Eye,Moor, Veil-tail or Oranda are not suitable for raising in a bowl tank. The container should have small size air-driven gravel filter, as goldfish are messy and churn up the water. The gravel used should be of bigger size as the goldfish may swallow the stones. The decorations in the aquarium must be well rooted as the goldfish have the tendency to nibble and uproot everything. Goldfish have the frequent problem of bloated stomach. Feeding them with cooked pea after removing the shell will function as a laxative and decrease episodes of bloated stomach.
White cloud mountain minnow, also known as White Cloud, White Cloud Mountain fish or White Cloud minnow, are suitable for raising in a bowl aquarium. They are very hardy fish and were first discovered at White Cloud Mountain in 1930s. In 1980 they had become extinct in the native habitat. However a thriving population is found in Hainan Island. They belong to carp family. Though they are from temperate region, they can withstand temperature fluctuations. Meteor Minnow and white Golden Cloud are the two popular variants. They are shoaling fish and in a two gallon bowl tank, two to three pairs can be kept. They readily accept formulated feed and do not require heating. The bowl tank may be covered with mesh as they are known to jump out.
Mystery snails can be kept in a fish bowl aquarium. A number of species of snails are clubbed under the name of mystery snail or apple snail and sold by the aquarium trade. Some snail varieties grow big and are more suitable for a tank. The most popular true mystery snail, Pomacea bridgesii belonging to the family Ampullariidae, is native to the South American countries of Brazil, Peru, Bolivia and Paraguay. It is a hardy snail having bright brown and yellow coloration. If the container is fitted with an aerator, a pair of guppies may also be kept along. The bowl aquarium must be covered with a mesh as the snail may crawl out.
African dwarf frogs are ideal aquatic pets for keeping in a fish bowl aquarium. They are small in size and the female frogs are larger than males. A pair of dwarf frogs may be kept in a two gallon bowl tank. While buying the pet, please note that the specimen has webbing on all four feet to distinguish from African clawed frog, which has webbing only on the hind feet. As African clawed frog grows big in size, it can only be kept in a larger aquarium tank. The dwarf frogs surface to breathe atmospheric air. The bowl tank must be covered with mesh as the dwarf frogs can jump out. They can fed with pellet or flake food. They cannot survive out water for long durations.
Blue dwarf gourami is a very popular aquarium pet which can be raised in a fish bowl aquarium. It is native to South Asia. A pair a dwarf gourami can be kept in a two gallon bowl aquarium. Keep a undergravel air-lift filter to maintain the water clear. Keep some plants to provide hiding places. The fish can be fed with pellet or flake feed. Feeding them with live or freeze-dried bloodworms and tubifex worms enhances the color and patterns. The mature male can be seen building bubble nest at the surface among the plants. These aquarium fish are quite hardy and thrive well in warmer climates. In colder climates heating the bowl aquarium may become necessary.
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