The Underwater News - Pioneer Valley Aquarium Society

The Underwater News
The Publication of the
Pioneer Valley Aquarium Society
IN THIS ISSUE:
How to Write an Article
by Ed Katuska
Xenotilapia ornatipinnis from
Lake Tanganyika by Michael Liu
Member Focus on Chuck Pixley
by Martha Morris
This Month’s Speaker: Al Sabatta
March 2010 Issue
Meeting Date: March 2, 2010
Pioneer Valley Aquarium Society, Inc.
James White
11 Barry Lane
Windsor, CT 06095
Directions to The Meeting: Until Further Notice The Pioneer Valley Aquarium Society will be
meeting at the Springfield Science Museum in Springfield, Mass. Directions to the meeting are
printed in this newsletter and are on the PVAS web-site at http://www.pvas.net.
The Underwater News is the official publication of the Pioneer Valley Aquarium Society, Inc. and is published either monthly or
bi-monthly 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 James White, 11 Barry Lane, Windsor, CT 06095.
BOARD MEMBERS
OFFICERS
President: David Giza, PO Box 201, Palmer, MA 01069
(413) 283-8680 E-mail: davegiza@comcast.net
V. President: Jim White, 11 Barry Lane, Windsor, CT 06095
(860) 683-2109 E-mail: whitejmsj@aol.com
Secretary: Martha Morris
E-mail: martha_morris@hotmail.com
Treasurer: Linda Giza E-mail: lindagiza@comcast.net
COMMITTEE CHAIRPERSONS
Bowl Show, NEC Delegate: James White
Library: Bill Maier
E-mail: dreammaker2623@yahoo.com
Refreshments, Mike Lucey
BAP: Chuck Pixley E-mail: cpixley3@verizon.net
Alt. Editor: Linda Giza
Alt. Delegate:Will Fontaine, Sr.
Programs: Mike Liu
Past President : Will Fontaine Sr.
E-mail: mrniceguyinwmass@aol.com
Editor: Jim White
Mike Lucey E-mail: hummingbird7515@comcast.net
Chuck Pixley E-mail: cpixley3@verizon.net
Mike Liu E-mail: mike@bershiredesign.com
The Pioneer Valley Aquarium Society, Inc. is a not for
profit educational group. We meet the first Tuesday of
every month except for 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 education program or slide show is presented followed by an auction. The general public is welcome at our meetings and is encouraged to see what fish
keeping is all about. PVAS is affiliated with the Northeast
Council of Aquarium Societies, Inc.
PVAS, Inc. Membership Form
Name ___________________________________________________________________________________________
Address ________________________________________________________________________________________
City ______________________________________ State ___________ Zip Code ____________________________
Telephone __________________________________E-mail address _______________________________________
Interests ________________________________________________________________________________________
To Join The Pioneer Valley Aquarium Society, annual dues can be mailed to:
Linda Giza, P.O. Box 201, Palmer, MA 01069
Rates are $15.00 for a single membership and $20.00 per family
MARCH PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
Whew!!!! PVAS made it through another successful auction. Let me first give a big thank you to all the members who worked long hours for this year’s success. I would like to give a shout out to Kevin White and his crew for all
the great food and hard work in the kitchen and to Jim White for being our auctioneer and getting the bidder cards ready.
Many thanks go to Chuck Pixley, Mike Liu, Mike Lucey and auction chair Will Fontaine for the incredible job they did
on getting store donations, vendor donations and lot pre-registrations. Thanks to Joe Masi, Rich Litsky and all the runners who worked hard with the fish all day, as well as Bob McCarthy and his crew who did the thankless job of running
the checkout desk. The participation by our sister NEC clubs, and the Betta and Guppy clubs was also greatly appreciated, as was the presence of the vendors that set up for the day; Ken’s Fish, Fish Frenzy, Harris in Wonderland, Kimmy
Koi Art, PetStar, and Creative Sensations. And last but not least, thank you to my wife for the phone calls, promotion on
face book, and for getting the word out about PVAS to the other clubs, and anyone else who would listen to her. Before
the end of the day, we set the date for next year’s auction at February 20, 2011. The Hall is already booked and paid for.
How’s that for advanced planning?
March will bring us Al Sabatta from Connecticut who will give a presentation on Discus. For all the Discus
keepers out there this is a must see program. Linda and I saw him at a Danbury Area A.S. meeting and enjoyed the presentation immensely. And speaking of Danbury, as the spring auction season heats up, I would really like to see as many
PVAS members as possible attend, and support our sister clubs. Danbury, Jersey Shore and Rhode Island are all having
auctions in March and support is the key word.
See you soon,
David Giza, PVAS President
PVAS Minutes of the General Meeting held at Springfield Science Museum February 2, 2010
7:12 PM Meeting called to order by Dave Giza who made the following announcements:
Sign-up sheets are out for two trips; people are requested to sign up and talk to Chuck and Mike. What happened
to the apistogrammas and who is breeding them? The Bronx Zoo trip is filled and there is already a waiting list. Dues are
definitely due. Complaint of the night: Dave received two e-mails complaining about excessive talking during the
speaker’s presentation. People are invited to talk outside if they want to talk. Secondly, people rush to leave but please
be patient when paying for mini-auction items.
There will be no grow-out because due to lack of response. Only one person signed up. Mike Liu offered to donate South American cichlids for a grow-out. It is being tabled for now.
This Saturday NECA presents Ted Judy. The NEC convention is the 26th – 28th of this month. People can register on-line. The Norwalk Aquarium Society moved their auction to March 14. Jersey Shore will be on the 21st. Rhode
Island’s will be the 28th.
Jim requested articles for the newsletter. He initiated an article exchange with other clubs.
We have bags for people to buy for the auction. 30 different companies have donated to the auction. The Red
Sox donated an autographed picture of Tim Wakefield. Will reported that we need help with refreshments. He asked that
people get there early to help out. There is a free meal for helpers. Raffles will include a 38 gallon tank set-up, 20 gallon
vivarium with dart frog, and Dave expects to raffle off ten different kinds of plecos. Each winning ticket will get one
pleco. We hope for good weather. Dave thanked Ed for helping secure the Hagen and Seagrass donations.
We need a new place for the board meeting.
Martha Morris Gave a presentation on her trip to England and the BIDKA discus show.
Bowl Show: First place, people’s choice was Dan’s Blue Gularis. Second place to Joe, and third place to Bill
Jim White conducted the mini-auction.
Meeting adjourned 9:23 pm.
The February Board Meeting was cancelled due to bad weather.
Letter From The Editor by James White
In the midst of the winter months it will probably
come as no surprise that the roofing industry experiences a
bit of a lull. As such, I’ve found myself with quite a bit of
free time on my hands, and it occurred to me that I should
devote some time to improving our newsletter exchanges
with fish clubs around the country. Since many clubs are
going digital with their newsletters, I was hoping to get a
lot of responses, and as it turns out I did.
There are several web-sites that list clubs across
the country, so I went to those first and started collecting
e-mail addresses. I decided to start by asking only for digital exchanges and contacted about 40 different clubs. Sixteen of those clubs responded positively and I have already received exchanges from 12 of them. While I still
haven’t finished going through them all, it is clear that
there are some very impressive publications out there, and
it makes me feel that “The Underwater News” can and
should continue to try to improve.
For at least a year now, the newsletter has been a
one man show, with the lion’s share of the articles being
provided by Mike Liu, who also produced the meeting and
BOD minutes last year. There has been help this year from
Martha Morris and Linda Giza, who have provided me
with Member Focus and Pet Corner articles, but we NEED
more participation from other members. Every meeting I
hear stories about recent fish acquisitions and recent
spawning, but it been very difficult to get folks to put pen
to paper, or fingers to keyboard, whichever is easier. I
know that some of you are probably intimidated about the
thought of writing, but it’s really not that hard, and I’d like
folks to commit to writing one article a year. Martha and I
are willing to help out anyone who feels unsure about
what they’ve written. I will accept articles as e-mails, that
are hand written, or if you prefer, send me an audio recording and I’ll write it for you. If possible, I’d like to see
our newsletter become one of the best in the country. It’s a
lot to ask, but I figure why not?
How to Write an Article By Ed Katuska
from Wet Pet Gazette, Norwalk Aquarium
Society and Aquarticles.com
Writing articles for your club publication is easier
than you may think. Most people who write articles on a
regular basis do it to share their experiences with others so
they also can be successful. Where would this hobby be
right now if the pioneers had not shared their aquarium
knowledge? For some, putting thoughts into print is an
easy task. Unfortunately this is not the case for everyone.
There are a few misconceptions about article writing. The
main one being that an article does not have to be multiple
pages in length. You are writing an article not a book.
Most club publications are not of size to handle very long
articles without breaking them up into monthly segments.
A lot of good information can be written from one to two
pages. Second, It does not have to be written in scientific
format. Unless you are writing a college thesis keep it
simple. Most of your readers are going to be fellow hobbyists, some being beginners. Third, do not worry about
spelling, or mistakes with grammar. A good editor should
proof read your material and make the proper corrections.
When I wrote my first few articles it took me forever. I was concerned about all the things mentioned
above. After you write a few you'll be surprised how easy
it becomes. I find that making a few notes before I begin
is a great help. The hardest part seems to be where to start.
I usually break the article up into small parts and then
paste it all together when it seems all the bases have been
covered. With the help of modern day computers and word
processing software this is a very easy task. There are
many different topics to write about, but most of the articles that I see in our publication talk about recent spawning success so we'll use this as our example. Using a step
by step formula like the one below can make anyone a
successful author. Let's begin here:
1: The Fish
You should list both the common and Latin name of the
fish if applicable. Tell how you came across this specie,
what family of fishes it derives from, or any other infor-
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mation you may have, such as how long it has been in the
hobby, who discovered it and when, etc. This information
is available on most species that have been in the hobby
for a while.
2: Description
What does the fish look like? Note shape, finnage type,
coloration(s) and size it obtains. List any noticeable differences between the sexes. It is also good to describe the
temperament and deportment. Are they aggressive or
community fish? Are they shy or not so skittish? Are they
bottom dwellers or mid-water swimmers? These are just a
few examples.
3: Natural Habitat
Where are the fish found in nature? What country? What
part of that country? Are they river fish or lake fish? Do
you know anything about their natural diet, natural enemies? Is the climate seasonal or tropical? Are there flood
seasons?, and so on. This is one of the harder paragraphs
in most articles because most of the information requires
research. I find it interested to look up this sort of information so I usually include it in my writings.
4: Diet
List the foods that you are feeding. Tell how many times
a day you are feeding. Are they specialty feeders? Are
there any type of food(s) you would advise the reader not
to feed this fish and why? Did a certain food promote
color or maybe a growth spurt?
5: The Tank
What is the size of the tank that houses these fish? What
are the parameters of the water? List all other tank inhabitants. Tell what percentage and how often water
changes are made. Give a good description of the tank
interior. For example, heavily planted, lots of rockwork
and caves, etc. How is the tank being filtered? What type
of lighting system is in use and how long is the environment being illuminated each day? What is the normal
temperature of the tank?
6: Spawning Tank and Conditioning
Tell if the fish spawned in their regular tank or if a separate spawning tank was used. If the latter applies list the
size, water quality, lighting and filtration type of the tank.
List all conditioning foods. Let us know if the male and
female were separated for a while and then joined for
breeding purposes. If a breeding group was used list the
ratios of the sexes.
7: The Spawn
Note the coloration of the fish during spawning, did they
intensify in color? What was used as a spawning site?
Did breeding take place in the morning or evening? If
they were egg layers were they open spawners, cave
dwellers, mouth brooders, or were the eggs scattered?
Approximately how many eggs were produced? How
about size and color?
8: Rearing the Fry
How many days did it take for the eggs to hatch? When
did they become free swimming? Was there parental care,
by one parent or both? How long after the free-swimming
stage were the parents with the fry? List their first food,
amount and frequency of water changes and ratio of fry
survival.
9: Conclusion
Note any recommendations you may have about
your adventure. Were they difficult or a good beginners'
fish? Are there any unusual characteristics or behavioral
patters that you noticed? Was your experience here a
good one or are your ready to find a tall bridge?
As you can see, breaking down the article in this
format allowed us to cover all the necessary information
about the fish and the spawn. Using this formula would
give you nine or ten paragraphs (1 to 2 pages) of good
informative writing to share with others. Just place the
different paragraphs in order and presto, instant article. If
you go down the list you will notice that most of the information needed for a successful spawning article is already in your head since you are the one that raised and
spawned the fish. It is just a matter of organizing your
thoughts on paper. When your article is complete, check
for spelling and grammar errors. I find it is a good idea to
put the article aside for a week or so before handing it in
for print and read it over one more time. There may be a
thought or two that will come to mind, which you may
like to add. Give it a try.
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Xenotilapia ornatipinnis from Lake Tanganyika
By Michael Liu
Text and photos by the author (unless noted otherwise)
Xenotilapia ornatipinnis is a
sand dwelling cichlid from Lake
Tanganyika. It is a fish that is seen
rarely in the hobby. The color of the
male is silver with two whitish-sky
blue streaks that may intensify depending on his mood. The lower blue
streak extends from behind the operculum to the base of the caudal fin.
The upper streak starts behind the
operculum and is parallel to the
lower streak but is about half as long.
The female has the same coloration,
but usually without the light blue
streak. The male shows light yellow
banding in the caudal fin, but this
color also comes and goes depending
on the fish’s mood. He also has yellow bands and streaks in the dorsal
fin, and a white sub-margin along the
anal fin. The female has a series of
small black spots in the dorsal fin.
They have a long silvery body with a
long dorsal fin, the ventral fins are
short and triangular in shape, and the
tail fin is forked. They have really
large oval eyes, a low slung mouth
and a steep head profile. These traits
indicate that they come from deep
waters and feed on the bottom. Overall, this Xenotilapia is not all that
colorful, but has a pearly appearance.
There are several species of Xenotilapia that sport more color in the
fins, and this may be the primary
reason why X. ornatipinnis is not
imported more often. If you like the
subtle and translucent beauty of Lake
Tanganyika cichlids, you should
check this fish out. When I first read
about this fish many years ago in
Cichlid Yearbook 2, I was stunned by
the photos that accompanied the article. To me, X. ornatipinnis was alien,
resembling something that might have
come from another planet.
I obtained 7 juvenile Xenotilapia ornatipinnis from Atlantis Fish
Hatchery in January 2009. They were
between 1-1/2” to 2-1/4” in size.
When I got home, I realized I did not
have a good tank to house them.
These fish are pretty passive and I did
not want to mix them with more feisty cichlids. Since they were still
rather small, I put them in a 10 gallon
fry tank for a few days while I went
about moving some fish and preparing their new home. They would be
placed in a 55 gallon tank with a
school of 9 juvenile Cyprichromis
leptosoma ‘Jumbo Katete’. The Cyprichromis occupied the mid to upper
level of the tank and the Xenos spent
the majority of the time on the bottom, so the two species worked great
together. The tank was decorated with
a thick layer of Rift Lake sand and
some scattered pieces of stone. From
what I had read, X. ornatipinnis live
on the deep, open bottom of the lake
Male Xenotilapia ornatipinnis
Photo by Thomas Andersen
and forage in large shoals, so I did not
use many stones. I did find out after
moving them to a larger tank that they
seem to enjoy large stones to swim
behind, but still spend most of their
time out in the open. After keeping
them for a few weeks and experimenting with different foods, I found that
they accepted all foods offered. They
even swam into the mid-level of the
tank to feed. One of the fish did not
survive but the other six did well and
grew at a good rate. I made sure to do
regular partial water changes and kept
feeding them. From time to time, I put
other African cichlid fry in the tank to
grow out and no one seemed to mind.
By August 2009, the six fish
were about 3” total length. The Cyprichromis were also quite healthy and
had produced some fry. In September,
I decided to move both groups of
Xenos and Cyps into a 75 gallon tank.
This would be their permanent home
and quite roomy for all of them as well
as fry from the Cyps. Well, after moving all the fish, the Xenos began to
stress out. I lost three of them over the
course of 14 days, and a fourth did not
look too happy. I did water changes
every day, and added salt to the tank in
an effort to reduce their stress level. I
watched the three remaining Xenos
carefully as they began to eat and get
used to their new home. Some fish do
Female mouthbrooding Xenotilapia ornatipinnis
Photo by Thomas Andersen
not like to be moved once they have
established themselves, even if it is
the same water, temperature, pH, etc.
I guess this fish was one of those that
don’t like to be moved.
It seemed I had two males
and one female. From time to time,
the two males would chase each
other around the tank, but no damage
was ever done. The three fish ate and
seemed happy even though the
school was now a threesome. I had
no breeding experience with this
fish, so I just kept up with water
changes and feeding a variety of
foods. One day, as I was feeding the
tank, I noticed the female was not
eating. When I looked closer, she
seemed to be swimming around with
a mouthful of eggs. It is hard to determine if females are holding eggs,
Their mouths barely change shape,
unlike some of the Lake Malawi
mouthbrooders that seem like they
are choking. I inspected the female
every day and after 18 days, I decided
to strip the fry. I had heard this fish
does not produce large numbers of fry.
But when I stripped her, out came a
total of 19 fry a little over ½” in length.
I thought 19 fry was pretty good for her
first time. I put the fry in a hanging basket in the parent tank with an air stone.
I started feeding them powdered
Golden Pearls from Ken’s Fish. Soon,
they were also fed the dust from other
pellet foods.
When they were about ¾” I
ended up shipping 7 fry to a guy in
Georgia who really wanted some. We
agreed to do a fish swap but it was midDecember and it had gotten quite cold.
It wasn’t bad in Georgia, and he really
wanted to swap, so I warned him about
the weather and we made the exchange
anyway. Well, most of my fish did not
make it, probably because the overnight
service to me turned into 2 days. The
Cyprichromis and Xenotilapia fry I sent
to him all made it. I’m happy to say this
guy sent me more fish as he felt bad
that I received dead and dying fish. I
now still have eleven or twelve 11/2” Xenotilapia fry. I plan to keep 4
or 5 to grow out and add them to the
parent’s tank. The rest, I will be
bringing to a mini-auction for BAP
points. Since the first spawning, the
female has held eggs twice, but both
times, they were lost. I had thrown in
some other fry in the tank to grow
out, and maybe there was enough
stress that the female was harassed
and swallowed her eggs. I have since
removed all fish other than the
Xeno’s and Cyps. Hopefully, the
Xeno’s will be successful in producing more fry. Although Xenotilapia
ornatipinnis may appear to be a delicate fish, I found them to be quite
hardy and good eaters, just take care
when moving adults or semi-adult
fish. It is a fish I have wanted to try,
and luckily, I had success breeding
this subtly attractive and interesting
fish.
Juvenile Xenotilapia ornatipinnis in a community aquarium
your fish?
A: I have a fish room downstairs. It
makes it easier to have everything in
one place. I finished it off 100 years
ago to make it into a bar but that lost
its way when I got into fish. There’s
not much reason for a bar now.
Q: What is your favorite fish and why?
Member Focus on Chuck Pixley by Martha Morris
I am pleased to have interviewed for this issue’s ‘Member
Spotlight’ Chuck Pixley, a long-time
tropical fish enthusiast and active
member of the PVAS board.
to help me. We got a 15-gallon with
cardinal tetras and others. My wife
bought a couple of Oscars so we got
another tank or fish bowl to separate
them out. This is how it starts.
Q: How long have you been keeping
tropical fish?
Q: How many tanks do you have?
What sizes?
A: Officially since around 1970, although I had a tank as a kid. It was a
joint effort with my mother. We
threw in some guppies and dried
plants we bought at a department
store that no longer exists. We ended
up giving the guppies away because
there were so many of them. It angers some people because they can’t
breed like that. I change the water for
the guppies and plecos once a month.
I don’t pay much attention to them
and they thrive. That’s not true for
all fish, but it seems the less you do
the better off they are.
A: Oh my – in operation? I have 23
running right now. I have 2 x 15’s, 3
x 55’s, 3 x 20 highs, 1 x 20 long…
that I can think of… 2 x 30’s, 1 x 37,
7 x 29’s, 5 x 30 breeders, 1 x 90, 2 x
5’s…[That’s 27 Chuck.] OK then!
It’s hard to keep track when you don’t
keep track.
Q: How did you start keeping tropical fish?
A: I started in Hawaii when I was in
the military. Fish aren’t considered a
pet when you are in the military and
they provide you housing. So you
can get a fish tank or a bird. So I
probably started keeping fish because of a lack of being able to keep
anything else. They seemed to grow.
I also remembered having that fish
tank when I was a kid. My wife tried
Q: Do you have an area set aside for
A: Africans are my favorite type but I
don’t know that I have a favorite fish.
There’s too many to have a favorite. I
used to have a favorite. I used to always have an oscar because everybody
says an oscar has personality. But they
don’t think. I don’t agree with people
who say fish think. Certain fish are
more easily conditioned and Oscars are
one of those.
Q: Do you breed tropical fish? If so,
what species?
A: I provide the conditions for which
tropical fish will breed – or I attempt to
anyway. I currently have probably a
half dozen Africans that are breeding.
My usual thought when I obtain fish at
auction is to have them breed. I have a
couple of shell dwellers and a gold
ocellatus.
Q: What was the first fish you
spawned?
A: The guppies! Since you don’t have
to do anything they pretty much take
care of it themselves.
Q: Do you keep aquarium plants?
A: Yes, a few – primarily easy stuff
because I’m not into growing plants.
I keep Anubias.
Q: Do you attend the PVAS annual
auction? Other fish club auctions?
A: Absolutely. For the last couple of
years I’ve been in charge of checking
the fish in and making sure they are
what they are supposed to be and
making sure there is nothing wrong
with them. I go to as many other auctions as I can.
Q: Do you keep any outdoor ponds?
What kinds of fish?
A: No, I’ve never dealt with an outdoor pond. Space is limited and in
summer I prefer to do other things
than worry about the birds eating the
fish.
Q: How do you balance your hobby
and your other commitments?
A: I am retired so I don’t have a
great deal of balancing to do but I
find after a long Saturday in the fish
room cleaning, it’s good to get out
and do something else. Then, I can
really appreciate it.
Q: Is there any aspect of fish keeping
you have not tried but want to try?
A: It might be nice to do a pond but I
don’t know if I have the ambition or
knowledge. I wouldn’t
mind doing salt water
again. I’d like to breed
discus but I don’t have
the patience for it.
Q: What other hobbies
do you have?
A: I used to collect
stamps. I don’t do that
actively now but I still
have an interest. I play
golf. I do some fishing. We go to
Lake Champlain for fishing trips. We
usually go once a year for a week.
Q: Have you tried salt water?
A: I did salt water in Hawaii but it
was a lot easier there. We used to go
down to the ocean with a 30-gallon
trash can and bring it home and dump
it in the tank and filter it. We collected fish at low tide so we didn’t
have to buy them. There was no great
variety but they were free.
Q: What advice do you have for beginners to the hobby?
A: If you decide that you want to get
involved in the hobby, do the research
first. Most people buy that standard
10 gallon tank and don’t get enough
information. There’s plenty of information on the internet that will help
you be successful at it. Go to a store
that specializes in fish and not one
with birds and dogs and cats and half
of their store is in pet food.
Q: Any major fish disasters you would
like to tell us about?
A: I’ve lost my fair share of fish over
the years for one reason or another but
it’s usually equipment failures. I had a
nice 55 gallon tank break on me when
we were out for the evening. We were
living in Hawaii in a fifth floor apartment and when we returned, water was
pouring down the walls into the parking lot below. I jokingly said I hope
that’s not my tank. Back then they
weren’t regulation tanks. I lost a few
fish but a lot were still gasping so I
threw them into other tanks.
Q: Tell us about what you do for the
club.
I’m currently on the board. I’m also in
charge of the Breeders’ Awards Program which we are in the process of
rejuvenating. I’ve been vice-president
a couple of times. I was secretary a few
years myself.
Thank you, Chuck!
BOWL SHOW
First things first, I need to correct an error. Last month I gave the final tally for the 2009 bowl show competition
and later realized that I had added incorrectly. First place for the year went to Mike Liu and second place went to Bill
Maier instead of the other way around. Dan McKercher still came in third. My apologies for the confusion.
There were four entries for the February bowl show. First place and the People’s choice ribbon went to Dan
McKercher for his Fundulopanchax sjoestedi, second place went to Joe Coleman for his Copidochromis borelyi, and
third place went to Bill Maier for his Poecilia endlers. Also in the show was Tom Steven’s Aulonocara stuartgranti. This
year’s results to date:
Bill Maier - 6 Points,
Joe Coleman - 3 Points, Dan Mckercher - 4 Points, Tom Stevens - 1 Point
THIS MONTH’S MEETING - MARCH 2, 2010
Our Speaker this month is Al Sabatta. Mr. Sabatta was born in 1968 in Connecticut, USA. He was educated as a Biologist and worked in Pharmaceuticals and Biotechnology. In 1992 he co-founded SimplyDiscus.com, an online web community and forum dedicated to all aspects of Discus. He has kept and bred many
Cichlids, but has focused on Discus for the last 15 years. Founder of the North East Discus “Association”, Al
also operates a hobby hatchery, Ctdiscus.com and online store, Aquaticsuppliers.com . Al gives lectures to
area organizations on various discus related topics.
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.
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 directions go to http://www.springfieldmuseums.org/about/hours.php
BREEDERS AWARD REPORT
Tony & Denise Panetta
Mike McKinney
Mike Duffy
Jim White
Chuck Pixley
Dan Balser
Joe Coleman
Elva Hughes
John Frappier
Ed DeRocher
Tom Stevens & Kim Reynolds
Dan Moquin
Mark Reisner & Robin Cooley
Dick Doucette
Dave Giza
Seth Harris
Updated 1/28/2009
555 points
550 points
390 points
380 points
370 points
225 points
170 points
160 points
80 points
40 points
30 points
25 points
25 points
15 points
5 points
5 points
Master Breeder Award
Master Breeder Award
Breeder Award
Senior Breeder Award
Master Breeder Award
Senior Breeder Award
Breeder Award
Breeder Award
The North Jersey Aquarium Society
AQUARIUM SWAP MEET & VENDOR EXPO
Saturday March 13, 2010 (From 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.)
Lyndhurst Elks Club, 251 Park Avenue, Lyndhurst, NJ 07071
See www.njas.net for directions
Come spend the day with New Jersey’s largest Tropical Fish Club and get some great buys on live
tropical fish, aquatic plants, tanks, food, books and many other new and used aquatic related items.
Vendors
Only $30.00 per 8 foot table
(Second table $15.00)
No club split – keep 100% of profit
Access to hobbyists & “walk-in” public
Buyers
Free parking & door prize ticket
Admission $5.00 per person (kids free)
Access to vendors, breeders, etc.
Browse, barter & make deals
Open to the public - gift for joining NJAS at Swap Meet - Breakfast & Lunch available
For more information, please visit us on the web at www.njas.net or on our hotline at
732-541-1392; or contact Kevin Carr at 201-724-9460 or deadhead_kc@yahoo.com
The Norwalk Aquarium Society
32nd Annual Tropical Fish &
Aquarium Equipment Benefit Auction
for
Earthplace - the Nature Discovery Center
10 Woodside Lane,
Westport, Connecticut
Sunday March 14, 2010
Setup and viewing 9:30 to 11:30
Auction starts at Noon
For more info visit www.norwalkas.org or www.earthplace.org
Phone: toll free (866)219 4627 or (203)227-7253 ext 110
Jersey Shore Aquarium Society presents its 18th Annual
Tropical Fish and Dry Goods Auction!
Featuring rare and exotic tropical fish, a
wide selection of aquatic plants, and free
goodies and door prizes all day long!
Refreshments will be available.
Open to public – free admission
($2 bidder fee)
Sunday, March 21, 2010
Knights of Columbus
70 E. Main St., Freehold, NJ.
Registration: 9 to 11 a.m. No guarantee
that items registered after 11 a.m. will be
auctioned. No used dry goods.
Viewing of items: 10 a.m. – 11:45 p.m.
Auction starts at noon sharp!
Any person may bring quality live fish
and aquatic plants to enter into auction.
60/40 split when preregistered by March
19th or 50/50 split when registered at the
auction. Auction rules available upon request.
For information or to pre-register,
e-mail mws71@yahoo.com,
call (732) 859-5595, or visit
www.jerseyshoreas.org
The Tropical Fish Society of Rhode Island presents
Triple Crown Fish Auction - Sunday, March 28, 2010
St. Joseph’s Parish Center
1303 Mendon Road (Rte. 122)
Cumberland, RI
Free Admission!
All are welcome!
Doors will be open at 10:30 AM.
The auction starts promptly at 12:00 PM
Pre-register by March 22nd and get a red
dot sticker to bump one bag to the start of
the auction. Lots not selling for the minimum bid of $3 are returned to the seller.
Vendor Fee: $2
Bidder Card: $2 (Waived for Vendors)
Visit www.tfsri.net for directions to the
auction, complete rules and auction forms.
BRING YOUR BEST FISH!
TFSRI’s split is $3 per bag sold,
all the rest goes to the vendor.
No limit on the number of lots submitted.
All lots must be live fish, plants or aquarium related items. See rules for details.
FOR INFORMATION CONTACT:
Al Wagonblott (401) 847-3364 or at
mr_wiggles_sr@hotmail.com
The Pioneer Valley Aquarium Society would like to thank these companies
for their kind donations to the 2010 Annual Auction.
Please visit these stores and businesses whenever you can!
Animal City
Animal Crackers
Aquatic Life, LLC
Aquatic Wildlife
Atlantis Fish Hatchery
A.W. Brown & Wet Pets
Boston Red Sox Baseball
Boyd Enterprises
Bowtie, Inc/Aquarium Fish Magazine
Central Avian & Small Animal
Coastal Pet Products
Current USA
Danner Manufacturing
Dave’s Pet City
Drs. Foster & Smith, Inc.
Eastern Aquatics
Exotic Fish & Pet World
Fish Frenzy Tropical Fish
Hagen Corporation
Harris In Wonderland
HBH Enterprise
Heavenly Fish
Hikari Sales USA
Interpet
Jayes Tropical Fish & More
Kaye Tee
Ken’s Fish Supplies
Kimmy Koi
Koller Craft
Kordon/Novalek
Magic Wings Butterfly Conservatory
Marine Enterprises International
Merrick Pet Care
Mystic Aquarium
New England Aquarium
Northeast ProAqua
Omega Sea
Pet Starr, LLC
Portland Maine Baseball
Reef Geeks, Inc.
San Francisco Bay Brand Foods
Seachem Labs
Sojourner Farms
Stackpole Books
Tetra Holding USA
TFH Publications
Tropical Science Labs
Uncle Neds’ Fish Factory
West Hartford Puppy Center & Aquarium
ZooMed Laboratories