Medaka Bowls - RedPots journal

[RedPots]

diving in to the world of Ricefish.  
Summer Tub Rocky Mountain style. ( indoor pond )

i’ve been keeping fish for a bout 15 months now - beginning with an impulse buy of some hornwort & 5 feeder goldfish.  the hornwort continues to pay dividends & Arthur - the lone survivor is eating me out of house and home :

learning more & more every day - i’ve come to the realization that what i wanted when i bought those 5 feeders was 7 Medaka.

so they ship today from Dan’s & arrive tomorrow.

i am in that liminal space where i am trying to get my head a round what i do not know…

10 Gallon Coleman cooler will be the landing pad for 7 Galaxy Medaka :

Coleman has been cycling for a bout 9 months. acting as a catchall for snails and plants.

i added a fair dozen wild type Neocaridina last week and all signs point to healthy water.

so - what am i forgetting ???

Long Range plans include establishing a handful of 3 to 5 gallon ponds in these extra large terracotta bowls i’ve been making.  ( i am a potter ).

i’ve got a fair wack of south facing windows that grab that good, good Rocky Mountain Sunshine. Temps fluctuating between high 50’s to high 60’s these days - but will spike come summer - though house temps rarely rise into 80’s.

stoked to bring these little treasures into my home.

i’ll also be trying to establish a colony of red cherries in my 10 gallon betta - hoping i’ve successfully relocated the small group of Wild Types i added last month. 🤷🏽 the three Nerites will drop one each into heated tanks.

at what point do you just start calling your living room the Fish Room ? 😓 

wish me luck & feel free to fill in gaps or ask questions.

thanks for being. CARE is the Jam!

 

 

[Guppysnail]

Definitely following this. A friend is giving me some daisys ricefish in March. Ricefish are new to me so I’m looking forward to learning from you. 

[RedPots]

On 2/21/2024 at 10:35 AM, Guppysnail said:

Definitely following this. A friend is giving me some daisys ricefish in March. Ricefish are new to me so I’m looking forward to learning from you. 

Daisy’s were at the top of my list.  They are so pretty. I read Some Thing about Daisy’s wanting to stay a little warmer and since I’m counting on window light ( with a cheap Hygger support ) i went with the Medaka.  
 

I’ve learned a great deal from your posts Guppysnail.  Look forward to learning together !
🪴

[TOtrees]

Can confirm that Daisy's are a different species from any of the medaka varieties/colors, and do prefer it warmer. Not to say they always need a heater, but they don't tolerate the same low temps or swings as medaka. IME Daisy's will do fine in unheated setup indoors, and are okay in peak summer outdoors (also without heater), but once you get to the shoulders of summer (not even the actual spring and fall), night-time lows are a bit too low for them in an unheated setup. I've got around that by using a 300W heater in a 50gal tub, set to the lowest setting, so it only comes on when water temps dip to ~60F or lower. If ambient gets much below 50F or 10C, then the heater might always be on, and still might not keep up. 

Love the homemade pots!!

[RedPots]

6 of 7 Medaka arrived healthy and cuter than buttons. 
8 red cherries (+1 bonus shrimper) and 3 Nerites all present and accounted for. 
who knows what happened to that one ricefish between Wyoming and Colorado ? i really appreciated Dan’s practice of 1 fish per bag. Bad apples and all of that…

yesterday morning i decided to create a larger ‘shallows’ for the incoming Medaka in the 10 gallon Coleman pond. a 9” diameter terracotta bowl atop a brick. Medaka seem really happy to hang out in the shallows and make them easy to observe. 
they are extremely curious and explore the whole pond but spend the bulk of their time quite near the surface. 

happy to see them in the morning sun. 
still figuring how to manage the light. i’ve been sliding off the clip on hygger in the daytime - for better viewing and also so as not to fry the light in the sunshine. probably ok to leave it attached so long as power is off.  🤷🏽‍♂️

reckon i’ll give them a few hours with the LED in the evenings after work. 

Very pleased with the fish and Dan’s service. Immediately refunded for the 1 DOA as well as its portion of shipping cost. Of course i wish there were 7 little wigglers in there. 
they seem stoked on Aquarium CoOp fry and small fish food ( like all my other nanos).

So many thanks to Cory and team for excellent information and products. 
🪴
 

[RedPots]

Medaka Pond week 1 reverse chronological.

testing out rudimentary video skills…

Edited February 29 by RedPots
Embedded video

[AllFishNoBrakes]

On 2/21/2024 at 10:16 AM, RedPots said:

Summer Tub Rocky Mountain style. ( indoor pond )

Rocky Mountains stand up!

Love the cooler as a pond idea. Immediately one of those “huh, makes sense, but I never would’ve thought of that” moments. Stoked to see these guys in the pots you make!

[RedPots]

Been awhile…..

the fishes get daily attention - my participation here is more sporadic.

 

i’ve got 7 tanks and bowls with fishes operating and All of the excellent knowledge I’ve gained on this forum has been put into hands on - day to day service.

asking more questions of the ecosystems themselves these days and less frantic searching here on the forum…which is nice.

two of my hand made bowls are in service.  One has 6 Midnight Medaka , shrimps, snails and plants.

the dark oval is seasoning with plants , shrimps and snails - Midnights will be transferred soon.  I’m intending to sell that first big bowl at an upcoming Dandelion Day festival here in town ( gotta support the habit… )

more bowls in the works…

ten gallon Coleman supporting the original bunch of Galaxy Medaka from Dan’s Fish and 6 more from Aqua Huna joined the gang.  They are smaller and grey but healthy little wrigglers. 
Big black commercial bowl is a roughly 7 gallons topped off and I’ve got 6 AQHu orange Youkihi living it up.

midnight bowl has zero air or mechanical - same practice with oval bowl. Grow bulb on 1st bowl , ambient natural light only on oval.

I’m pumping a little air into the cooler and the black bowl.  Both at the garden window.  Cooler has LED assist - bowl natural light only. 

I’ve not leaned in to breeding at all - but I will.  So far I’ve seen eggs carried on the original Pearl Galaxies but have not found deposited eggs or any sign of fry.  I’ve got a noodle and scrubbies waiting in the wings. Along with a 20 long that is not yet running.

Arthur the Goldfish (18 months from 1” feeder) is in a 30 gallon. Negotiations for where and when his 55 will establish are ongoing…

thanks for tuning in.

#medaka #ricefish #greatearth #fishbowl

[RedPots]

Mudville - no joy.

admittedly compromised maintenance schedule due to outside pressing pursuits.

coop test strips revealed nitrites in this Medaka Bowl. API test confirmed + 1ppm ammonia present. 😖

Livestock: 6 midnight Medaka , snails and shrimp. 
just 2 gallons of water.  duckweed, water lettuce, Val, Pennywort, spider plant, spiderwood and only a bit of fluval aqua soil. 
such a small ecosystem - figuring how to correct the spike with moderation. 
I did a 50% water change and a few extra drops of Fritz complete to neutralize. 
 

 

I removed most of floating plants to get a good look at things and I can confirm that all 6 Medaka are active and looking good. 
tough little fish…

regular maintenance schedule has been a 1qt mason jar out and a fresh qt jar in - twice a week. 
clearly requires reexamination. 

Today’s water change included vacuuming a good deal of waste from the bottom of the bowl.

But

test strip continues to show nitrites…

I’m going to hold off on further measures and continue to monitor - planning another water change and vac tomorrow.

if levels remain high I am thinking of pulling livestock into another bowl with healthy water , plants, snails and shrimp. Though I’d like to see if I can correct this water without a freak out.

 

[Chris]

I've never tried Medaka bowls, but in other filterless setups I've done emerged plants have been the key. You CAN do it with submerged plants, but it's really just turning the difficulty up. In such a small bowl, a pothos cutting can make all the difference, especially once the plant gets up to a decent size. 

[RedPots]

On 5/17/2024 at 8:31 AM, Chris said:

In such a small bowl, a pothos cutting can make all the difference, especially once the plant gets up to a decent size. 

Thanks Chris.  Good looking out.

I have added pothos cuttings to all my small bowls on your recommendation.

I did end up switching out bowls.  

Increased surface area, slightly more volume.

Nitrates staying around 40 with twice weekly 10% water changes. 0 nitrite, 0 ammonia.

Feeling a little stingy with the food - but everyone is happy.

I capped the aqua soil with a layer of river pebbles - more for better viewing than better water quality.

and we will see how it goes.

10 gallon Galaxy Medaka Coleman Cooler running Smooth.

7 gallon Youkihi Bowl is good, nitrates need to be watched.

And another of my bowls is home to a family of skittles with a berried Cherry mama. Curious to see what she produces.

thanks again for being so helpful and for tuning in.

 

[anodyne99]

Those bowls are crazy gorgeous! Are things improving with the pothos? About to start my own ricefish attempt!

[JMC]

Good luck with your rice fish @anodyne99 !  I started my rice fish journey in January. It has been a blast. I have two aquariums and two outdoor tubs already with an unlimited number of eggs and fry already. 

[RedPots]

On 5/23/2024 at 7:00 PM, anodyne99 said:

Those bowls are crazy gorgeous! Are things improving with the pothos? About to start my own ricefish attempt!

Thanks anodyne. I sure do like making those bowls and it is satisfying to bring two passions together.

Good Luck with Ricefish journey.  I find them delightful.  New at it myself but at your service if I can help.

I will report back on Pothos effectiveness.  I am certain that it does not hurt.  
I have simultaneously upped my small but frequent water changes slightly and decreased offered food and feedings. Result is high but acceptable nitrates -40 ish as read by ACO test strips. 0 nitrite, 0 ammonia - verified (less frequently) w. API kit

I’ll hope to see nitrates decline as evidence of Pothos value - but I’ll also intend to do a careful poop vac now and again - so there are going to be variables. 

No air, No filtration, Screw in Grow Bulb, Very small water volume and, reasonably, no fertilizer. 
As low tech as I dare…

I am putting aside any breeding efforts for now. My plates are full, cupeth runneth over, 1 more setup may be the straw that breaks my dear girlfriend’s back, Eggs are good food & we’ll see if nature finds a way.

🐟🪴🕊️

 

 

[HansE]

Absolutely LOVE your hand made bowls! So gorgeous and creative! I love blending my hobbies together in new and exciting ways! Love watching this journey!