NathanB
New Member
Hello everyone!
This is my first post on here, so here's a little about me before we get to the good stuff! My name is Nathan Benstead, I'm 18, and from Kent. I know I won't have much experience compared to a lot of people on here, but I have had a few setups in the past. For me, the hobby started with a small coldwater setup with some white cloud mountain minnows. From there, it expanded to four 10 gallon tanks along my desk! I've made many mistakes, but I've also learned from them. These coldwater tanks were eventually broken down after I rehomed the fish due to wanting to start a new project. I grew up with a strong interest in reef aquariums after my uncles had a couple of setups themselves, but I knew there was a lot to learn, and it was a big step up from fish-only freshwater tanks.
After lots and lots of research, which consisted of YouTube binging and joining reef forums and asking a lot of questions, I eventually started my own 24L nano reef on my desk, which lasted about a year and was surprisingly successful considering my level of experience and the tank size! It was full of soft corals, mainly leathers, zoanthids, and mushrooms. It was also home to a stunning cleaner shrimp and a feather duster worm. Starting that tank taught me a lot more about aquariums, water conditions, lighting, etc., and also the struggles of having such a small reef setup instead of the larger one that I couldn't yet afford. I decided to pause my hobby and work out what I wanted to do with it. I knew I wanted to have a freshwater setup again eventually, but I didn't want to spend much money on it!
I have been interested in nature and wildlife since I can remember. This eventually led me to do macro photography of bugs, reptiles, and amphibians, which I aim to turn into my profession. But it gets a little complicated when wanting to photograph aquatic life below the water surface without the money for underwater housing for my camera! So, I figured why not combine my love for photographing and observing wildlife with my passion for aquascaping! The idea for this British biotope was fueled by observing my local stream. When I started to watch the European Bullhead (Cottus gobio) under the surface, I learned more about this species and eventually set up a tank that is now home to two juveniles that I managed to catch! They are currently doing very well with a diet of amphipods and various aquatic nymphs collected from the stream. But I want to create something better for them, with more space and with a more similar environment to where I collected them.
Now we get to the exciting part!
The Setup
The Tank - All Pond Solutions 60cm tank (90L) (600x400x400mm)
Lighting - Twinstar 600E
Filtration - All Pond Solutions 1000L/H External Filter
Additional water flow - Jebao SW-2 (Maybe not needed)
The Scape Inspiration!
These are some photos of aquascapes that I've seen online, hopefully they can give you guys an idea about the kind of scape that I'll try to create!
I discovered a video on youtube of the top aquascape being created, the roots are replicating the roots of american sycamore trees growing into the river bank.
The trees growing into the banks of my local stream are mostly Alder (Alnus glutinosa), and I read on the Woodland Trust website that these trees are swamp-dwellers, and that the wood of this tree doesn’t rot when waterlogged, instead turning stronger and harder. So im guessing this would be the best wood to use? Im sure there are some dead fallen trees with dried up exposed root systems to collect around my area, I would never damage any living trees of course, so I'll need to find something that looks good that I'll be able to take! In his scape, the root system that he used even started to grow smaller new roots and grow foliage above the water! which would be amazing for my scape i think.
I plan to create the aquascape quite similar to the images above, hopefully the Alder roots will grow more roots and then grow foliage out of the surface, then i would also like to have some native marginal plants growing out of the water too. Not sure on the species yet but I'll do some more research and have a look at what's in the local garden centres and around the local stream when the time comes
Hardscape - Alder Tree Roots, Rocks from my garden, gravel and sand from the garden centre.
Livestock - European Bullhead (Cottus gobio) x2
- Three Spined Stickleback (Gasterosteus aculaeatus) x2-3?
- Freshwater Amphipods (Live food)
- Water Hog-Lice (Asellus aquaticus) (Live food also)
Potential livestock - Stone Loach (Barbatula barbatula) (Depending on if I can find one!)
- Ramshorn snails (Planorbidae)
Some images of the livestock
If there's any advice that anybody has for this setup, or cautions with the stocking plan then please let me know!
I still have lots of research to do so maybe some plans will change, but hopefully this can work out and it can be a really interesting project that all of you can enjoy too!
This is my first post on here, so here's a little about me before we get to the good stuff! My name is Nathan Benstead, I'm 18, and from Kent. I know I won't have much experience compared to a lot of people on here, but I have had a few setups in the past. For me, the hobby started with a small coldwater setup with some white cloud mountain minnows. From there, it expanded to four 10 gallon tanks along my desk! I've made many mistakes, but I've also learned from them. These coldwater tanks were eventually broken down after I rehomed the fish due to wanting to start a new project. I grew up with a strong interest in reef aquariums after my uncles had a couple of setups themselves, but I knew there was a lot to learn, and it was a big step up from fish-only freshwater tanks.
After lots and lots of research, which consisted of YouTube binging and joining reef forums and asking a lot of questions, I eventually started my own 24L nano reef on my desk, which lasted about a year and was surprisingly successful considering my level of experience and the tank size! It was full of soft corals, mainly leathers, zoanthids, and mushrooms. It was also home to a stunning cleaner shrimp and a feather duster worm. Starting that tank taught me a lot more about aquariums, water conditions, lighting, etc., and also the struggles of having such a small reef setup instead of the larger one that I couldn't yet afford. I decided to pause my hobby and work out what I wanted to do with it. I knew I wanted to have a freshwater setup again eventually, but I didn't want to spend much money on it!
I have been interested in nature and wildlife since I can remember. This eventually led me to do macro photography of bugs, reptiles, and amphibians, which I aim to turn into my profession. But it gets a little complicated when wanting to photograph aquatic life below the water surface without the money for underwater housing for my camera! So, I figured why not combine my love for photographing and observing wildlife with my passion for aquascaping! The idea for this British biotope was fueled by observing my local stream. When I started to watch the European Bullhead (Cottus gobio) under the surface, I learned more about this species and eventually set up a tank that is now home to two juveniles that I managed to catch! They are currently doing very well with a diet of amphipods and various aquatic nymphs collected from the stream. But I want to create something better for them, with more space and with a more similar environment to where I collected them.
Now we get to the exciting part!
The Setup
The Tank - All Pond Solutions 60cm tank (90L) (600x400x400mm)
Lighting - Twinstar 600E
Filtration - All Pond Solutions 1000L/H External Filter
Additional water flow - Jebao SW-2 (Maybe not needed)
The Scape Inspiration!
These are some photos of aquascapes that I've seen online, hopefully they can give you guys an idea about the kind of scape that I'll try to create!
I discovered a video on youtube of the top aquascape being created, the roots are replicating the roots of american sycamore trees growing into the river bank.
The trees growing into the banks of my local stream are mostly Alder (Alnus glutinosa), and I read on the Woodland Trust website that these trees are swamp-dwellers, and that the wood of this tree doesn’t rot when waterlogged, instead turning stronger and harder. So im guessing this would be the best wood to use? Im sure there are some dead fallen trees with dried up exposed root systems to collect around my area, I would never damage any living trees of course, so I'll need to find something that looks good that I'll be able to take! In his scape, the root system that he used even started to grow smaller new roots and grow foliage above the water! which would be amazing for my scape i think.
I plan to create the aquascape quite similar to the images above, hopefully the Alder roots will grow more roots and then grow foliage out of the surface, then i would also like to have some native marginal plants growing out of the water too. Not sure on the species yet but I'll do some more research and have a look at what's in the local garden centres and around the local stream when the time comes
Hardscape - Alder Tree Roots, Rocks from my garden, gravel and sand from the garden centre.
Livestock - European Bullhead (Cottus gobio) x2
- Three Spined Stickleback (Gasterosteus aculaeatus) x2-3?
- Freshwater Amphipods (Live food)
- Water Hog-Lice (Asellus aquaticus) (Live food also)
Potential livestock - Stone Loach (Barbatula barbatula) (Depending on if I can find one!)
- Ramshorn snails (Planorbidae)
Some images of the livestock
If there's any advice that anybody has for this setup, or cautions with the stocking plan then please let me know!
I still have lots of research to do so maybe some plans will change, but hopefully this can work out and it can be a really interesting project that all of you can enjoy too!