Comté River in French Guiana.
It should come as no surprise that not all our fishes hail from lush, idyllic Amazon creeks densely overgrown with aquatic plants. In a video recently shared by the Guyane Wild Fish Association (a non-profit aquarium society based in Cayenne, French Guiana, South America), we get a wonderful glimpse into a stretch of the Comte River in northeastern French Guiana.
The shoreline at this locale on the Comté River consists of a sandy beach with rock, wood, and debris, and dense jungle in the background.
As listed in the video’s description, you can see: “Corydoras aff. [trilineatus] (juv), Corydoras solox (juv), Cyphocharax sp (juv), Crenicichla saxatilis (juv), some tetras…in less than 20 cm of water, in a tributary of Comte River in French Guiana, with Guyane Wild Fish Association.”
Corydoras aff. trilineatus dominate this moment of the video.
A juvenile Corydoras solox takes center stage while Cyphocharax sp. chew through the substrate in the background.
One look at this shoreline nursery, home to a wide range of juvenile fishes, and you realize it looks as if you’re staring into a home aquarium. This biotope would be incredibly easy to recreate: the aquascaping materials list could include a light-colored aquarium sand like CaribSea’s Sunset Gold Freshwater Aquarium Substrate, some driftwood, and a rough gray rock such as a granite, basalt, or seiryu stone. If you really want to complete the package, add some botanical litter, such as Indian Almond (Catappa) leaves, and other leaf litter and pods, like the types sold by Tannin Aquatics.
A juvenile Crenecichla saxatilis (at left) makes a momentary appearance in the footage.
If you’re plant-challenged, but really love the idea of a biotope aquarium, this Comte River example might make the perfect model for your next aquarium’s design.
To be inspired, watch now!
Video Credit: Guyane Wild Fish Association on Youtube
