[Wet Thumb Forum]-Madagascar biotope?

[C. Masse]

The local pet shop just got in some madagascar lace plants and I couldn't help but buy one.

So now I'm interested in setting up a biotope for this plant (Aponogeton madagascariensis).

Can anyone here help me out with plants and fish native to its home range?


Any and all help will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks
Chris

[C. Masse]

The local pet shop just got in some madagascar lace plants and I couldn't help but buy one.

So now I'm interested in setting up a biotope for this plant (Aponogeton madagascariensis).

Can anyone here help me out with plants and fish native to its home range?


Any and all help will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks
Chris

[skylsdale]

That's quite the endeavour...I believe Madagascan fish (cichlids, anyway) can be quite pricey. However, I think you should be able to put something together. Here is a start (albeit a rather dizzying one): http://www.mongabay.com/fish/data/Madagascar.htm

There are just very very very few people interested in this type of setup and/or part of the world. If I come across more I'll add it to this thread, but it's going to take some searching to really come up with good stuff. I would recommend just using a search engine and trying to find as many pics of different Madagascan waterways as you can to get a feel for the landscape there.

______________________________
It's biotope, not biotype.

[C. Masse]

Thanks for the quick reply skylsdale.

Looking at that list I can see what you mean. But I'll keep searching maybe I'll stumble upon some inspiration.

Thanks!
Chris

[jabberwookie]

There are some pictures of Malagasy waterways here:
http://www.mongabay.com/mad_landscapes.htm
specifically the top row and the last row.

[C. Masse]

Thanks jabber, those are some nice pics.

Well here's some of the stuff I've found so far.

I provided links but wasn't able to link directly to the plant or fish. They can be found on the pages linked you just need to search for them.

Plants
Aponogeton ulvaceus
Aponogeton madagascariensis
Aponogeton longiplumulosus
Aponogeton boivinianus
Cyperus alternifolius

Fish
Bedotia geayi
Lamena nourissati
Lamena spec. "blue lips"
Pachypanchax omalonotus

There are some other attractive fish but I don't know if they are exported or grown elsewhere.

I also don't know what type of environment Aponogeton madagascariensis lives in. Fast flowing river or stagnant swampland or anything in between?... I don't know and haven't found that info yet.

Chris

[jabberwookie]

I just saw that mongabay.com added a Madagascar Biotope page:
Madagascar Biotope

[The Bishop]

Some choices for plants:

Lagarosiphon madagascariensis
Hydrotriche hottoniifloria
Bacopa madagascariensis
Bacopa crenata
Blyxa aubertii
Ceratopteris cornuta
Eichornia natans
Lindernia parviflora
Nesaea crassicaulis
Nymphaea lotus
Ottelia ulvifolia


Fish:

Bedotia spp. (all species can be found on Madagascar)
Ptychochromis spp.

[Robert Hudson]

Madagascar rainbow fish would be real nice. They are fairly easy to keep, not to expensive, and very nice looking. One of my favorite fish