Welcome to 2019! We are hoping for some great things this year. First, we will travel to Colombia for what should be some fabulous fishing. The area we are headed to, Puerto Carreno, is well known for its fishing which includes three species of peacock bass, vampire tetras (Payara) and tiger shovelnose catfish. It is also known for its river dolphins and caiman.
There are some notable species of fish that come into the aquarium trade from the areas in and around Puerto Carrreno including: Hemiancistrus sp. L128, Hypancistrus debilittera (L129), less commonly seen Tetranematichthys wallacei and Geophagus taeniopareius. But there are also a number of species that are supposedly found in the area that are not in the trade including: several Ancistrus spp., Hypostomus spp., Peckoltia spp., a Leporacanthicus sp., a Tatia sp., and a Trachelyopterichthys sp. There are also limited records of Corydoras spp. which is very surprising considering their popularity in the hobby. Perhaps the species found there are not very colorful? We hope to find that out and bring some of these species home.
To prepare for the trip, we have purchased some pretty advanced equipment including: diving boots, gloves, a mask, a drone and new waterproof camera. On top of this, we have built several photo tanks from extra glass that we had from making tank lids. All of this should allow us to document our trip in great detail. The challenge will be to find a balance between documenting our trip and fishing time.
To help with keeping our special fish alive, we have added on to the number of battery operated air pumps. We will once again have poly filter to help remove ammonia and other contaminants from the holding containers. It was very useful last year and likely will be again this year.
In order to bring fish home from Colombia, we need to add on to the fishroom. This includes adding ten 50 gallon breeder tanks! This should give us the room that we need to bring some of these fantastic beasts home and give them the space they require. See photos below. It is going to be a great year folks! We have much more to share but need to get back to work. Stay tuned and happy fish keeping everyone!
