Aquarium

“ There is no more fascinating adjunct to nature-study than a well-kept aquarium. It is a never-ending source of enjoyment, interest and instruction to students of any age. Children in the kindergarten or at home will watch with delight the lively occupants, which cut all sorts of queer capers for their amusement, and older people may read some of nature's choicest secrets through the glassy sides of the little water world. ”

“ In the Aquarium the Sea-mouse crawls restlessly to and fro, and round the margin of the bottom; once or twice I have seen it essay to burrow under the fine gravel, but generally it lives exposed. It is uninteresting in its manners, though the brilliance of its changing colours will always attract admiration. Perhaps it is most beautiful by candle-light, when red and orange reflections predominate; by day, pearly greens and blues prevail This difference is owing to the position of the light, and the angle at which it is reflected. ”

“ The marine Aquarium is, as yet, a plaything, a mere toy; but it is destined to become a far more important means of advancing science, and ministering to popular instruction, amusement, and wonder, than is yet dreamt of. It has yet to do for the ocean that which our menageries and vast gardens, devoted to the service of natural history, have done for the forests and mountains of the terrestrial portion of our planet. ”

“ The library, which was back of the drawing-room, had been transformed into an aquarium. All round the walls, waves of blue-green gauze simulated water, in which papier-mache fish were gliding and swimming. The illusion was heightened by other fishes, which, being suspended from the ceiling by invisible threads, seemed to be swimming through the air.
Altogether the effect, if not entirely realistic, was picturesque and amusing, and coral reefs and rocky cliffs covered with seaweed gave aquatic impressions, even if not entirely logical. ”

“ Even this he may now do through the medium of the marine Aquarium, within the narrow boundaries of which he may, with a little care and experience, establish in healthy existence some of the most beautiful of the animal and vegetable forms that people the caves and depths of the ocean, and make its watery world a region of wonders. ”

“ In an aquarium, the water is not changed at all, or at least only at long intervals, as we shall explain hereafter; and besides the enclosure of fishes in a vessel of water, growing plants of a suitable kind, always form a feature of the collection. Formed on this plan, an aquarium is an imitation of Nature on a small scale. The tank is a lake containing aquatic plants and animals, and these maintain each other in the water in the same way as terrestrial [8] plants and animals contribute mutually to each other's support in the preservation of the purity of the air. ”

“ In the aquarium we have a most convenient field for the study of Natural History: to learn the varieties, nature, names, habits, and peculiarities of those endless forms of animated existence which dwell in the hidden depths of the sea, and at the same time to improve our minds by cultivating our powers of observation.
The pleasure derived from the aquarium comes from the excitement of finding and collecting specimens, as well as from watching the tank itself. ”

“ But the aquarium opens to us the living, moving curiosities and wonders that are nowhere else to be seen. What the menagerie is to the creatures of the forest, the desert, and the prairie, the aquarium is to the tenants of the lake, the river, and the ocean. But, while land-animals have long been captured and collected for inspection, the aquarium is a new and recent affair, involving great difficulties in its successful management. ”

“ THE VEGETATION OF THE MARINE AQUARIUM. As the forest must be planted before its denizens can luxuriate in its shades, so the submarine shrubbery of the Aquarium must be perfected before the aquatic animals can be introduced. For it has been shown, in tracing the history of the experiments which resulted in the establishment of the principles that regulate the formation of Aquaria, that it is by plants only that a supply of oxygen can be kept up, sufficient for the health and existence of all forms of animal life beneath the water. ”

“ The Philosophy of the Aquarium must be clearly understood by those who purpose to cultivate it. It is a self-supporting, self-renovating collection, in which the various influences of animal and vegetable life balance each other, and maintain within the vessel a correspondence of action which preserves the whole. A mere globe of fish is not an aquarium in the sense here indicated ”

“ And now we may enliven the appearance of the Aquarium, by adding some seaweeds preparatory to stocking it with such animals as may be most desirable,—nor is this portion of our operations lightly to be passed over, for on its proper regulation depends almost entirely success or failure. The collection of materials will afford much pleasure and healthy exercise, and when they are flourishing and spreading out their delicate fronds in the waters of our tank, we can recall with delight the rambles we had in search of them. ”

“ It is interesting to study the habits of fishes in a small aquarium, and to especially notice their ability to change color, and how rapidly they do it. So many persons seem to be saturated with the idea that an aquarium must have in it one or more gold fish. This seems to me to be a mistake when our streams contain so many species suitable for the aquarium which are far more handsome than the gold fish, and which, if you give them half a chance, will teach you something of interest. ”

“ I tell my friend that I love the pretty creatures as much as he does, yet, as I write for everybody who wishes to keep an aquarium, I feel bound to consider how it is to be managed without them, if their absence is desired. I confess too, that I do object to their appearance in some cases myself, as I do also to beetles, and all other insects in a tank fitted up for the adornment of a drawing-room, however necessary they may be in the tank of a student. ”

“ In a small aquarium the water can be refreshed by frequently drawing it up through a glass or rubber syringe, and squirting it back into the vessel from some height above it.
The first thing to be done in the formation of a fresh-water aquarium is to start your plants in proper soil at the bottom of your tank, fill the tank with water, and leave it undisturbed until the plants begin to grow and the little bubbles of oxygen are to be seen rising to the surface of the water. ”

“ An aquarium, even on the largest scale, and with every appliance that science can suggest, only represents, after all, a few of the conditions which actually exist in nature; but in small vessels, with a limited quantity of water, without the continual motion of the liquid, which belongs naturally to seas and streams, and with circumstances of light and temperature widely different from those which are obtained in nature, it is not surprising that the success of domestic aquaria should be but very partial, and that the taste for them should have declined accordingly. ”

“ But introduce him while in health into an Aquarium, where living sea-plants are perpetually revivifying the water, and where the bottom, varied with sand, gravel, and peices of rock, imitates the natural floor of the sea, and you will soon see other particulars in the economy of our little friend, which will, I doubt not, charm you as much as they have pleased me. ”

“ There is one more feature, which no writer on the aquarium has yet noticed, namely—when a tank is properly stocked, the water soon gets crowded with infusorial animalculæ, which swarm among the plants, and on the sides of the glass in countless thousands, visible only by the aid of the microscope. ”

“ Every school may have some sort of an aquarium if the teacher and pupils are willing to give it some daily thought and care. Without such attention a fine aquarium may become an unsightly and disagreeable object, its inhabitants unhealthy and its beauty and usefulness lost.
The great fundamental principle underlying success in making and maintaining an aquarium is this: imitate nature. We all know how much easier it is to formulate a principle, and even to write a book about it, than to put it into practice. ”

“ The Aquarium is then established. The water, which at first is somewhat turbid, becomes in the course of a day or two clear and crystalline; the plants expand their feathery tufts in beauty, and the animals begin to take possession of their holes and corners, and to find themselves at home. But you must lay your account with the loss of some specimens; some will certainly die in the course of the first twenty-four hours, others in the first week. But those which survive the first ten days may be considered as pretty well established. ”

“ But a gigantic Aquarium is, fortunately, a feat that yet remains for modern science to achieve, and which it will doubtless accomplish. The day will arrive when we shall see the living Behemoth—the Titan of the deep—rolling majestic in waves of his native element, perhaps pursued by his cruel enemy the Sword-Fish, or harried by a shoal of Herrings, 112graphically exemplifying to a London crowd the origin of Yarmouth bloaters. ”

“ Inside the aquarium wing he found a circular corridor both side walls of which were made up of tanks filled either with salt or fresh water. To keep this water fresh and wholesome for the fish, spurts of water shot down through the surface from above, making a silvery fountain upside down at the top of each tank. There were no windows in the corridor, all the light coming through the water from the top of the tanks. This arrangement made that part of the building rather gloomy, but enabled the people to see the fish under the best possible conditions. ”

“ If, spite of everything, the seawater fail, then try a fresh-water aquarium. Use your tank for the pond instead of the ocean; and in the spotted newt, the tortoise, the tadpole, the caddis-worm, and the thousand other inhabitants of our inland ponds and brooks, with the weeds among which they live, you will find as much entertainment as in watching the wonders of the great sea. ”

“ Rockwork claims the first consideration when we proceed to fit up and furnish a tank. For a fresh-water aquarium, I do not recommend rockwork of any kind; and in the case of a vase, rockwork is positively dangerous, from its weight, and, unless very skilfully managed, will be ugly rather than ornamental. In the marine tank a few pieces of rock add to the beauty of the scene and the comfort of the creatures. ”

“ The aquarium must be ventilated. Its top should be broad and open. Every little fish, snail and insect wants air, just as every boy and girl wants it. A certain quantity of air is mixed with the water, and the creatures must breathe that or come to the surface for their supply. How does Mother Nature manage the ventilation of her aquaria,—the ponds and streams? The plants furnish part of the air, as we have said. The open pond, whose surface is ruffled by every passing breeze, is constantly being provided with fresh air. ”

“ Yet man at times makes a pet of the fish, which he keeps in the little table pond called the aquarium as he keeps his bird pets in the cage, and of these fish pets a few words may be said.
PETS OF THE AQUARIUM
The aquarium is a very pretty piece of furniture for the lovers of animal life, for a variety of water-living things can be kept in it alike for study and pleasure. Plants are needed of various kinds, to give beauty to the collection and keep the water in a fit state for the fish, for animal life and plant life need to go together. The plant gives off oxygen for the fish to breathe. ”

“ It is easy to knock off with a hammer, or even to dislodge with a strong clasp-knife, a fragment of rock on which a minute sea-weed is growing, proportioning the surface of leaf to the volume of water,—and you have an Aquarium. ”

“ A wide terrace separates the aquarium from the pond. This latter is 38 yards long by 35 wide. Thanks to a system of sluice valves, it is filled during high tide, and the water is shut in at low tide, thus permitting of having a supply of living animals in boxes and baskets until the resources of the laboratory permit of a more improved arrangement. This basin is shown in Fig. 3. It is at the north side of the laboratory as seen from the beach. Here too we see the aquarium, the garden, and a portion of the shore that serves as a post for the station boats. ”

“ However, you at last contrive to raise the slippery subject, and commit it safe to your tank at home, in which it will live an indefinite while; often invisible for weeks at a time, lying concealed under some of the stones, then seen perhaps in every corner of your aquarium at once, stretching from one stone to another, and coiling around every groin and projection, folded back upon itself, until in the multitude of convolutions you despair of finding head, tail, or any end at all to the uncouth vermin. ”

“ Glass soon becomes foul, and needs frequent cleaning. In any case the aquarium should be kept out of the sun, and for this reason a northern window is best. Whatever form of aquarium is selected there must be soil and sand at the bottom, weeds, and shelter for the fish. The bell glass is the least favourable form of aquarium, but even that may be made tolerable if the hints we have given are adopted. In the square or oblong form only one side need be glass and the remaining three sides wood, metal or slate. The sand that forms the bottom of an aquarium should be quite clean. ”

“ Selection of Plants.—There is scarcely any aquatic plant but may be grown in an aquarium, and unless some attention is given to the botanical department, only half the pleasure and instruction it is capable of affording is attained. I cannot agree with Mr. Gosse, that the vegetation of a tank has so strictly a secondary place—"preserved because they cannot be dispensed with,"—for in either a marine or fresh-water vessel the vegetation is a special source of beauty and interest, and fairly divides attention with the animals. ”