Underwater News September 2014 - Pioneer Valley Aquarium Society

PIONEER VALLEY AQUARIUM SOCIETY
NEWSLETTER September 2, 2014
THIS MONTH’S SPEAKER IS RIT FORCIER - LIVEBEARERS
TABLE OF CONTENTS
OFFICERS
PRESIDENT Martha Morris
martha_morris@hotmail.com
SEPTEMBER 2014
VICE PRESIDENT Jacob Guinasso
SECRETARY Open
TREASURER Tina Guinasso
IMMEDIATE PAST PRESIDENT Scott Craig
BOARD MEMBERS
IN THIS ISSUE
COMMITTEE CHAIRPERSONS
3 PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
Jeff Slade
Bill Maier
AUCTION CHAIR Jim Cormier
MEMBERSHIP Don Hennemann
PROGRAMS
MUSEUM LIASON
LIBRARY Bill Maier
REFRESHMENTS William Maier
SUNSHINE
NEWSLETTER Jerine Blissett
BYLAWS
EXCHANGE EDITOR
NEC DELEGATE
NEC ALT. DELEGATE Martha Morris
The Underwater News is the official
publication of the Pioneer Valley Aquarium
Society, Inc. and is published either monthly
or bimonthly except for July and August.
The views and opinions printed herein are
those of the individual authors, and are not
necessarily those of PVAS. The Underwater
News is provided free to our members as
part of their membership. Unless otherwise
indicated, original articles and drawings may
be re-printed in other non-profit publications,
as long as credit is given to the author and
The Underwater News. Two copies of the
publication in which the reprint appears
should be sent to PVAS. Address all exchange
bulletins and correspondence to the Pioneer
Valley Aquarium Society, Inc. c/o Michael Liu,
14 Indian Hill, Florence, MA 01062.
4
WHAT’S HAPPENING IN THE CLUB
Minutes from our General & BOD Meeting, Treasurer’s Report &
Up Coming Events
6
SAVING LIVEBEARERS’ FRY THE NATURAL WAY
by Bob Berdoulay
From Gravel Gossip, Diamond State Aquarium Society,
Delaware City - Aquarticles
7
BREEDING THE NOT-SO-COMMON GUPPY
By Rich Serva
First published in “Tank Topics”, Greater Akron Aquarium Society,
January 2001 - Aquarticles
9 PVAS PROGRAMS, CONTEST & TRADING POST
VISIT PVAS.NET FOR UPDATES AND MEMBERSHIPS 2
Secondly, Don Henneman has organized an exciting grow-out contest with some pretty hefty prize money. The fish
is Skiffia multipunctata, an endangered C.A.R.E.S. fish. We will be distributing the fish at the September meeting
and the competition promises to be challenging! Yup, yours truly is in!
PVAS is officially becoming a C.A.R.E.S. club member. C.A.R.E.S provides education, awareness, hands-on conservation
and the distribution of at-risk species to aquarists for their preservation. I will have some information sheets at the
meeting, and I encourage everyone to devote a tank or two for fish that may one day disappear in the wild.
SEPTEMBER 2014
Well, the summer is winding down and for many of you, that means the start of your favorite season – fall! It also
means the PVAS meetings return, and we can catch up on the latest with all our good friends. There is a lot of
exciting things happening with the club. First of all, we are moving! General meetings, including the September
2nd meeting, will now be held at First Congregational Church, 20 Lathrop St., West Springfield. A lot of our hardearned money was being spent on rent at the Science Museum, but now our rent will be less than half, and we will
be getting more bang for our buck! You will find plenty of parking by the entrance, in the back (to the left of the
entrance), on the street and on Park St. Finally, behind our entrance is a small historical cemetery. Behind the
cemetery is a senior center. Behind the senior center is a parking lot that we are able to utilize. The lot is about a
two-minute walk via Park St.
PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
Ken Purcaro is organizing a group buy from Imperial Tropicals, and he has managed to finagle a 10% discount for
us. Check out their site and let Ken know what you would like to order. He will have a list at the September meeting
and will be taking orders then. This is a great opportunity to get some really nice fish at a great price.
We will have new tee shirts available at the September meeting. This batch will have the PVAS logo on the back
and promises to look really sharp.
Beginning in September the club is offering to members frozen bloodworms at $5 a pound flat from Oregon Desert
Brine Shrimp. This is the wholesale price and the club is making NO money on sales – it is, pure and simple, a benefit
of being a PVAS member. Jeff will bring a few extra pounds to the meeting, but please e-mail me in advance and
let me know how many you would like. I, personally, am getting ten pounds. I’ve used this company’s bloodworms
before, and my discus can not tell them from Hikari. If they could, they wouldn’t eat them so readily.
Rit Forcier will be the first speaker at our new meeting place in September, and I believe he will be speaking about
livebearers.
Finally, on Saturday, October 4, the Pioneer Valley Aquarium Society will be taking in the central Mass. trilogy! We
will be visiting Central Mass Aquatics, Tropic Isle and finally, Uncle Ned’s Fish Factory. We will stop at an inexpensive
restaurant for lunch after a visit to Tropic Isle, but people are also welcome to brown bag it. Members will meet
at the Anchor House (2589 Boston Rd., Wilbraham) at 9:00am for pre-arranged carpooling. If people would like to
create their own carpool, the club will reimburse gas for cars carrying at least four club members from whatever
point they picked up the fourth person. Non-members pay $15.
Please note that the trip takes the place of our regularly scheduled October meeting. There will be no meeting on
Tuesday, October 7th.
So, lots happening, and I look forward to seeing everyone on Tuesday, September 2nd!
Martha Morris
VISIT PVAS.NET FOR UPDATES AND MEMBERSHIPS 3
This month’s speaker is Rit Forcier. He will be conducting
a program about Livebearers.
First Congregational Church
20 Lathrop St.
West Springfield, MA
SEPTEMBER 2014
This months meeting is September 2nd at
WHAT’S HAPPENING IN THE CLUB
WHAT’S HAPPENING IN THE CLUB
TREASURER’S REPORT
Please see treasure for more information
MINUTES FROM OUR BOD MEETING
No Minutes
VISIT PVAS.NET FOR UPDATES AND MEMBERSHIPS 4
OCTOBER STORE TRIP!
On Saturday, October 4, the Pioneer Valley Aquarium Society will be
taking in the central Mass. trilogy!
We will be visiting Central Mass Aquatics, Tropic Isle and finally, Uncle Ned’s
Fish Factory.
We will stop at an inexpensive restaurant for lunch after a visit to Tropic Isle, but
people are also welcome to brown bag it.
Members will meet at the Anchor House (2589 Boston Rd., Wilbraham) at 9:00am
for pre-arranged carpooling. If people would like to create their own carpool, the
club will reimburse gas for cars carrying at least four club members from whatever
point they picked up the fourth person. Non-members pay $15.
Please note that the trip takes the place of our regularly scheduled October
meeting. There will be no meeting on Tuesday, October 7th.
FEATURED ARTICLE
SEPTEMBER 2014
Saving Livebearers’ Fry
the Natural Way
by Bob Berdoulay
From Gravel Gossip, Diamond State Aquarium Society, Delaware City
Aquarticles
Need a place for all those baby livebearers to hide? Instead
of using breeding traps I load the tank with a variety of
plants that enable the fry to avoid being food for mom and
dad. A combination of bottom plants and floating plants
gives the babies places to hang out until they are big
enough to not be considered food by the parents.
A few of the most common floating plants are riccia (Riccia
fluitans), duckweed (Lemna minor) and the fine leaved (a
misnomer since this is a fern, this term should be fronds)
water sprite (Ceratopteris thalictroides). The first two
are found worldwide, while water sprite is to be found in
the tropics. All of these plants are easy to maintain. They
seem to do best in water that is slightly acidic (pH 6.8),
temperatures of 75-80° F, and like the water soft. The
lighting requirements are modest since they do not need
a lot of light. The riccia and water sprite are members of
the fern group and will grow best if not under constant
agitation. Duckweed likewise prefers quiet waters and will
grow rapidly.
The water sprite produces long trailing roots along with
wide-spreading fronds that will provide your fry with places
to hide. This plant grows rapidly and sends out daughter
plantlets on its fronds. Your tank surface can become
quite overgrown in a short period of time and pruning
will be necessary. The riccia is also a fern and grows in a
tangled mass at the surface, thus also providing shelter for
the fry. The shading that is produced lowers the amount
of light reaching the substrate of the tank; therefore you
need to think about shade tolerant plants for the bottom
plantings. Three choices come to mind. The water sprite
can be planted in the substrate and will grow in an upright
position. Java fern (Microsorium pteropus), and/or Java
moss (Vesicularia dubyana), both from Southeast Asia,
can be used in the tank by attaching them to rocks or
wood. I use Java moss in large clumps lying loose on the
bottom of a bare tank. This provides adequate shelter for
fry on the bottom with the water sprite doing the same at
the surface.
A major drawback to using these floating plants is their
rapid growth and thus covering the entire surface of the
water. This makes it difficult to feed your fish as they find
it hard to locate the flakes among the plants, or the flakes
land on top of the plants and rot. It is necessary to keep
some area of the surface clear of plants. I read about a
solution to the problem years ago, but I can’t remember
where (that’s age!). It is fairly simple and will control the
plants, especially the duckweed. This device is the “plant
barrier.” The barrier is anything that will contain the plants
and prevent them from spreading over the entire surface
of the tank. I believe the original device I read about was
made of soda straws, bent, and connected end to end
in various shapes and used to surround the plants. The
problem was that the straws would eventually fill with
water and sink, thus freeing the plants. I made my barrier
from airline tubing and connected the ends with small
pieces of hard plastic tubing. The only shape I formed was
a ring but it worked and never sank.
Try this natural way to provide hiding places for fry, I have
found that I usually wind up with plenty of young without
having the trauma of moving the females in and out of
breeding traps.
VISIT PVAS.NET FOR UPDATES AND MEMBERSHIPS 6
SEPTEMBER 2014
http://fishstockphotos.blogspot.com/2011_02_01_archive.html
FEATURED ARTICLE
Breeding the Not-so-Common Guppy
By Rich Serva
First published in “Tank Topics”, Greater Akron Aquarium Society, January 2001
Aquarticles
I know you are thinking what does he know about guppies.
He is an “oddball” livebearer keeper. Actually this is an
old, old article of mine that I picked up and dusted off and
shined up a little. Believe it or not I was a dyed in the wool
guppy fanatic. I started keeping guppies back when I was a
pre-teen. I used to show on the International Fancy Guppy
Association circuit before the “wild” livebearer bug bit
me. Anyway Bill Allen (editor of the American Livebearer
Association’s magazine) was looking for someone to write
a few beginner articles on guppies for the magazine and
no volunteers came forward so...he asked that “older
than dirt” (I mean wise elder from Detroit) tech editor for
suggestions of someone to approach. Anyway we will see
if this is any help to beginners.
When people talk about common livebearers, the guppy
is usually the first fish mentioned. Granted the pet store
guppy is normally quite common, but guppies that win
consistently at fish shows are not.
The “wild” male guppy was 3/4 inch long with a few color
spots. After many generations of selective breeding, the
“old time” guppy breeders developed what we now call the
“fancy guppy”.
Although guppies are easy to breed, improving a strain
of guppies takes hard work. If you adhere to the following
principles (like they say - “do as I say, not as I do”), you
can maintain and even improve a prize winning strain of
guppies.
1) Here’s where I get in trouble with some pet stores. Start
with a good stock of fish from a breeder. Many pairs of
pet store fish are not really matched pairs; the males and
females come from totally unrelated strains of fish. You
can start with a poor strain of fish and go from there but
why on earth do you want to reinvent the wheel? There
are plenty of good strains of guppies at local auction or
available mail order that you can start with as your basic
stock.
VISIT PVAS.NET FOR UPDATES AND MEMBERSHIPS 7
3) Breed your fish and collect a batch or two of young then
move on to the next generation. Your improvements to
your strain of guppies will not come in quantum leaps but
small improvements. Also have a plan and keep with it (for
example, if your guppies are too small and lack color, plan
to breed x generations to improve size then work on color
afterward). Many a strain was lost by indecisive breeding
programs that bounced around instead of staying focused.
8) Keep a related strain. Two related strains (preferably
the same color) can be occasionally crossed. Otherwise,
you could lose your strain from too much inbreeding. The
first signs of too much inbreeding are low fertility or a high
percentage of deformities such as bent spines or hernias.
4) Don’t crowd your fish. For most people crowding fish
stunts growth. Eight to twelve guppies in a ten gallon
tank are plenty. The best way to get down to a workable
number of fish is to cull. Why raise 20 mediocre fish when
you can raise 10 good fish. If you give the fish the space,
they can reach their full potential. Decide ahead of time
what you are working on and follow your program. If you
are working on shape, use the fish with the best shape - do
not suddenly change to using a fish that has better color.
If you have to, then set up a second tank and start working
on color with a separate line of fish.
5) Don’t harem breed. (Harem breeding is allowing a tank
of males to breed with a tank of females randomly. It is
breeding pot-luck style.) Select only your best males and
females for breeding.
6) Don’t use the first male that matures. That first male
rarely reaches the size that the slower maturing males
reach.
7) Select your best females for breeding. Here I am talking
about the best female for growing the best males, not
the best looking female. Selecting the best male is easy;
selecting the best female requires becoming familiar
with your strain. It is really not hard to find out which
type of females drop the best males. Breed each of your
9) Feed young fish often. If you want your guppies to grow
as large as possible, feed them often during the period of
rapid growth in their first few months of life. Feed 3 or 4
times a day. Feed the babies newly hatched brine shrimp
or microworms if possible. Feed the juveniles frozen brine
shrimp and live foods as often as possible.
SEPTEMBER 2014
different types of females to a single good male. Raise the
different batches of babies and compare the males when
they mature. Use your female type that produces the best
males.
FEATURED ARTICLE
2) Purchase a young pair of fish. Old males have trouble
breeding. Big tails are not easy to drag around. There is a
greater incidence of deformities that comes from breeding
older, past their prime fish.
10) Do small daily water changes. If not, then at least do
weekly water changes. Decaying food and fish wastes will
quickly foul the water.
II) Keep the fish warm. Although guppies can be kept from
65 to 85 degrees F, the optimum temperature for raising
guppies is 74 to 78 degrees F. If you keep your tanks in
racks like I do, then place the babies in the top rows where
the temperature will be naturally warmer (that is if you
heat the room rather than each tank individually). Your
bottom rows will be cooler and this is where you can keep
the mature fish. The guppies’ metabolism will be slower
due to the cooler water and they will stay around a little
longer for you to enjoy.
12) Be patient. Only 5-10 percent of each drop has the
potential of being better than their parents; however, that
is more than enough fish to improve the strain.
VISIT PVAS.NET FOR UPDATES AND MEMBERSHIPS 8
BREEDERS AWARD & BOWL SHOW PROGRAM
BREEDER AWARDS
STANDINGS
BOWL SHOW CONTEST RESULTS
April Bowl Show:
1. Michael Liu - Aulonoacara sp.
2. Jeff Slade - Aulonacara jacobfreibergi
3. Dan McKercher - Blue Eyed Rainbow
2014 BOWL SHOW STANDINGS
27 points-Jeff Slade
13 points-Michael Liu
5 points-Rich DiGeorge
5 points-Dan McKercher
Michael Liu 8 Points
Joe Coleman 2 Points
Dave Giza 1 Point
2014 PHOTO SHOW STANDINGS
11 points-Jim Cormier
8 points-Jacob Guinasso
7 points-Jeff Curran
5 points-Chuck Pixley
5 points-Elva Hughes
PHOTO SHOW CONTEST RESULTS
Updated Results in next Issue
PHOTO SHOW CONTEST RULES
1. The photo show is open to all members. Members must
take the photograph and bring the entry to the show at
each meeting.
2. Members may bring up to two photos, unframed, each
meeting. Photos can be any size up to 8 x 10 inches.
3. Photos will be judged by the membership in attendance
and winners will be determined based on popular vote.
Points will be awarded as follows: First Place-3 Points,
Second Place-2 Points, Third Place-1 Point. Point totals will
be kept by the Photo Show Chair. Winning photos will be
published in the next newsletter.
4. The first place photo cannot be re-entered for the
current year. Second and third place photos may be reentered in future photo shows during the same calendar
year.
5. Point totals will accumulate through the December
general meeting. Awards will be presented in January, and
are as follows: First Place-$50, Second Place-$25, Third
Place-Free Annual Membership.
6. Winners need to submit their entries digitally if they
wish to have them published in the newsletter.
VISIT PVAS.NET FOR UPDATES AND MEMBERSHIPS 9
SEPTEMBER 2014
Jim Cormier 605 points Master Breeder Award
Tony & Denise Panetta 580points Master Breeder Award
Mike Liu 430 points Senior Breeder Award
Jim White 380 pointsSenior Breeder Award
Chuck & Charlene Pixley 370 points Master Breeder Award
Dan Balser 225 points Senior Breeder Award
Joe Coleman 170 points Breeder Award
Elva Hughes 170 points Breeder Award
Tom Stevens 30 points
Seth Harris 25 points
Rit Forcier 15 points
Dave Giza 5 points
PVAS PROGRAMS & CONTEST
PVAS PROGRAMS & CONTEST
Looking for parts for Whisper filter pictured, mainly the knob that
goes on top. Please contact Ken Purcaro at Kjpurcaro@gmail.com
SEPTEMBER 2014
WTB: Part for Whisper Power Filter
BUSINESS DIRECTORY
TRADING POST
Please send ads to the Jerine Blissett , via email at icegriller@hotmail.com. Lists may also be dropped off to me at the monthly meetings. Please
send an accurate description along with your contact information. It is not necessary to list a specific price. PVAS is not responsible for ensuring
the quantity or quality of the items being sold through this listing service. All sales and trades are to be negotiated between the buyer and seller.
VISIT PVAS.NET FOR UPDATES AND MEMBERSHIPS 10
COME JOIN US!
COME JOIN US!
DIRECTIONS TO THE SPRINGFIELD SCIENCE MUSEUM:
From the North - Take Interstate 91 South to Exit 7. Turn left onto State Street, proceed for three blocks and you
will see the large, white marble Springfield City Library building on your left. Take the first left past the library onto
Elliot Street and then the next left onto Edwards Street.
SEPTEMBER 2014
DIRECTIONS & MEMBERSHIPS
From the South - Take Interstate 91 North to Exit 6. Stay on Columbus Avenue to State Street. Turn right, proceed
for three blocks and you will see the large, white marble Springfield City Library building on your left. Take the first
left past the library onto Elliot Street and then the next left onto Edwards Street.
From the East - Take the Massachusetts Turnpike to Exit 6 (I-291). Exit at Dwight Street (Exit 2B), turn left. Follow
Dwight to State Street. Turn left at the light, go through another light and you will see the large, white marble
Springfield City Library building on your left. Take the first left past the library onto Elliot Street and then the next
left onto Edwards Street.
From the West - Take the Massachusetts Turnpike to Interstate 91 South and follow I-91 South to Exit 7. Turn left
on State Street, proceed for three blocks and you will see the large, white marble Springfield City Library building
on your left. Take the first left past the library onto Elliot Street and then the next left onto Edwards Street.
Parking: Free parking is available in the lots on Edwards Street.
To Download Printable Directions go to http://www.springfieldmuseums.org/about/hours.php
NOT A MEMBER YET ?
The Pioneer Valley Aquarium Society, Inc. is a not for profit educational group. We meet the first
Tuesday of each month, except July and August, at the Springfield Science Museum. Meetings start
at 7:00 PM and include refreshments. Club news and activities are discussed and planned, and an
educational program or speaker is presented, followed by a mini-auction. The general public is
welcome at our meetings and is encouraged to see what fish-keeping is all about. The Pioneer Valley
Aquarium Society, Inc. is affiliated with the Northeast Council of Aquarium Societies, Inc.
PIONEER VALLEY AQUARIUM SOCIETY, INC. - MEMBERSHIP FORM
To join the Pioneer Valley Aquarium Society, please contact Don Hennemann modelrrbug@aol.com.
Rates are $15.00 for a single membership and $20.00 for a family membership
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