Nature Aquarium Gallery

First step to the world of Aquascaping..

Aquascaping is an art rather than a hobby. The meaning of aquascaping is creating a natural environment using Aquatic plants, as well as rocks, stones, cave work and Driftwoods. This is similar to the gardening, but under the water. There are several styles in aquascaping like, garden like Dutch style, Japanese styles like nature style and iwagumi style, jungle style, biotopes, paludariums and Marine reef tanks.

Mostly these are all freshwater expect Marine reef tanks and sometimes brackish water biotopes. Many people believe that the art of aquascaping began in the 1930s in the Netherlands following the introduction of the Dutch style. But the Japanese designer, Takashi Amano (1954-2015) is known as the father of modern aquascaping, because with his invention of Japanese nature style using high tech for the planted tanks, the art of aquascaping became very popular in the entire world, mostly in east Asia, Europe and United States.

Aquarium being a closed system, it has to be balanced many factors that requires to grow healthy Aquatic plants and sustain it for a considerable amount of time.

These factors include a good filtration system, maintaining a sufficient carbon dioxide level, substrate, lighting system, fertilizers and regular maintenance with Algae control.

Different styles in aquascaping

Dutch style aquascape

This is a lush arrangement of several types of Aquatic plants with different colors, sizes a texture to increase the diversity of the Aquarium. This style was introduced by the Dutch aquarists back in 1930s. It has plants with different heights using different types of Aquatic plants and the landscape height arrangement which resemblance to the "Dutch streets".

                    In here, more than 80% of the bottom substrate is covered by the plants and mostly mixture of Aquatic plants with reds and greens are used to give the vivid colors to the Aquarium. 

Japanese styles

Nature style aquascape

This style was introduced by Mr. Takashi Amano in 1990s. Using stones, Driftwoods and substrate, it creates a hardscape which gives space for the plants. After the hardscape is finished, using different types of Aquatic plants, it creates unique aquascape which represent the nature in miniature way inside an Aquarium.

       

Mostly under this style, it creates a mountain view, top view of a rainforest. Grassland with a mountain range behind etc. 

Iwagumi Style

Iwagumi style is a specific subtype of Japanese nature style aquascape. From Japanese, iwagumi means "rock formation" and refers to a layout where stones play a leading role. In here each stone has a specific name and role. Mainly there are 3 stones with one main stone and 2 small stones. The Oyaishi is the main stone, is placed slightly off center in the tank. Soeishi and Fukuseki are the rest of stones and, are arranged in a subordinate position. To add green to the tank setup, carpet plants and mosses and used.

Jungle style

Separated from Dutch style and nature style, the jungle style also very popular among many hobbyists. In here first using rocks and Driftwoods, hardscape is finished. Then using plants and mosses, hardscape is decorated. Jungle style is the most complex and hardest of all the freshwater aquascaping. This requires very creative pair of hands with immense patient. Of course, creating a miniature scale forest inside a glass box is not an easy job.

Not only the talent, but to arrange the plants in best position to obtain best results, it requires a considerable amount of knowledge about plants, because different plants require different amount of light intensity. To create the levels in jungle like the ground, canopy and the middle tree level, both high light and low light plants are used.

Biotope Aquariums

To create and offer a place where similar to the nature habitat of the fish. In here, not like planted tanks, fish are one of the major components in this Aquarium. The setup style depends on the fish combination in the Aquarium. To create their natural habitat, sand, rocks, roots, driftwoods and decaying leaving and sometimes Aquatic plants also use. As an example, to create an Amazon biotope Aquarium, the fish live in Amazon river basin are used as for aquascaping, sandy substrate, roots, driftwoods, decaying leaves a used.



To create an African Cichlid tank setup, specially a lake Malawi cichlid tank setup, large rocks and sandy substrate is used.

The iconic Black water tanks also comes under biotope Aquariums. In black water tank setup, tannin releases from decaying leaves is used to give the water a slight black color, which is Help to create the similar habitat to the very famous black water river the Rio Negro.

Paludariums

A paludarium is an Aquarium that combines a Aquarium and an island in the same environment. This design can represent natural habitat like rainforest with Waterhole, river bank or even a beach.

In here, we can use Aquatic plants as well as terrestrial plants and mosses too. In the terrestrial part, it can create a real rainforest habitat in miniature scale and create a perfect habitat specially for amphibians. In the flooded part, it can arrange ordinary planted tank, mostly jungle style. This provide habitat for fish as well as sometimes amphibians too.

Reef Aquarium

Not like above Aquariums, this is a special salt water tank setup with real corals. Saltwater aquascaping typically centers instead, on mimicking a actual coral reef. For this aquascape, true live hard and soft corals, sea anemones, marine invertebrates and reef fish are used. But to maintain a Aquarium like this requires a proper, high tech filtration system including protein skimmers to regulate the right water condition. Not only filtration system, but also wave makers, right lighting system and water temperature controllers, Planktons and other foods for corals also have to be provided for this.

Most of the time sandy substrate is used for the bottom and hardscape is created by dead coral rocks which consists of calcium carbonate that supply good substrate for the growth of corals.

Written by: Madhawa Pramod Manukularathne

(To be continued..)

Sources:
https://www.adana.co.jp
https://aquariuminfo.org/aquascaping.html
https://modestfish.com/aquascape