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Fish vivarium jar thingy

spiderplant
17 years ago

I heard something once about sealing a jar with fish and a plant and it will become a vivarium sort of a thing. Can someone help me with this? Thanks. Drew

Comments (9)

  • iliketerrariums
    17 years ago

    I dont know about fish, but I do know that there have been some type of biospheres for sale for some time, its a sealed acrylic ball that contains water, like some very small shrimp, some type of seaweed? and I dont know what else, Ive heard good things about them like they last long, Ive had a quart size masons jar that I filled with aquarium water, gravel, and a small type of Amazon sword plant, its been growing fine, smaller than usual, but fine for about five + years!

  • ms_minnamouse
    17 years ago

    I think I may know what you're talking about and if I do, then it's not adequate for any type of fish at all.

    Please read over this page. It's towards the bottom. http://freshaquarium.about.com/cs/beginnerinfo/a/minitank.htm

  • iliketerrariums
    17 years ago

    I agree, the sealed acrylic ball thing ahould stay the way you buy it, dont add anthing to it although Im almost positive that it is sealed, in that case you cant add anything to it! LOL! Remember those "vase" type flower arrangements that were selling big for some time? was a vase full of water, some type of plant, and a betta? well a lot of vendors were telling people that one did not have to feed the betta as it had a "relationship" with the plant, they said the betta provided food for the plant in the form of betta poop, and in turn the bettas feed off of its roots! What a crock of....well, poop! LOL! a lot of people ended up with dead bettas! The good vendors, not to many, told the customer to feed the betta by wetting the tip of a toothpick and picking up a bit of flake food with it and placing it in the water and to do that daily, and to change the water once a week with springwater, I wouldnt tell anyone to put any fish, no matter how small, into a jar!? thats stupid for the person and really bad for the fish! =) The jar I slapped together did not contain any fish, but is doing great!

  • larry_b
    17 years ago

    Hi Drew,

    Yes, they sell one only they use a shrimp instead of a fish. Signals Catalog sells them. They seem kinda cool only the price is a little steep.

    Larry

    Here is a link that might be useful: Biosphere

  • iliketerrariums
    17 years ago

    I think we all went in the wrong direction!LOL! I think Drew was asking about something like this, its the one I mentioned in my post, if it doesnt work just copy n paste =)
    http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y167/stumpyspic/plantjar007.jpg
    http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y167/stumpyspic/plantjar006.jpg
    http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y167/stumpyspic/plantjar004.jpg
    http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y167/stumpyspic/plantjar003.jpg

  • larry_b
    17 years ago

    Hi Ilike,

    So, how long has the fish lived in that environment?

    Larry

  • iliketerrariums
    17 years ago

    Fish? no, never had fish in the jar? just plants, like I mentioned in my post, been set up for five plus years and only opened it once to add water, the rubber seal went bad after about four years so I opened it, added a bit of aquartum water and replaced the seal, but never had fish in it, would never do that to a fish! =)

  • larry_b
    17 years ago

    Oh, my mistake. I misunderstood. I could not imagine a fish surviving that.

    Larry

  • jlogan2664
    17 years ago

    I think you are referring to the betta vases where a plant was potted in a plastic dish with a hole cut into the bottom to allow the roots to hand down in to the water in the vase. The theory is the roots of the plant would take up the waste produced by the fish and the fish nibbles on the roots for food creating a self-sustained world.

    I have kept fish for over 20 years and first of all, bettas are carnivores, not herbivores. They need to be fed animal-based high protein foods. The fish may be seen nibbling at the roots in an attempt to find something to eat but they do not eat the roots and will slowly starve to death.

    Secondly, the roots will not keep the water totally pure and the water does need to be changed on a regular basis with decholorinated water. You also need to make sure the plastic dish and the roots do not form too tight a seal to allow fresh air in because bettas are surface breathers (like goldfish) and they need oxygen above the water surface to breathe. Actually, you need space for the carbon dioxide given off by the fish to leave the water and fresh oxygen to enter the water which occurs at the water's surface. All in all, I would not recommend this setup for a betta or any other fish unless you actually plan on feeding the fish regular fish food and doing periodical cleanings (at least every two weeks).

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