History of Aquarium & Ornamental Fish

The origins of aquarium keeping have been around for about as long as keeping food fishes, although
the methodology and understanding of aquarium filtration has varied considerably. The origins of
aquaculture most likely originated when fish were trapped in some type of enclosure after monsoon
floods receded. The earliest known aquarists were the Sumerians, who kept fishes in artificial ponds at
least 4,500 years ago; records of fish keeping also date from ancient Egypt and Assyria. The Chinese,
who raised carp for food as early as 2000 BC, were probably the first to breed fish with any degree of
success. Their selective breeding of ornamental goldfish was later introduced to Japan, where the
breeding of ornamental carp was perfected. It has been noted that the ancient Babylonians kept ponds
of ornamental fish and this was circa 500 BC. The ancient Romans, who kept fish for food and
entertainment, were the first known marine aquarists; they constructed ponds that were supplied with
fresh seawater from the ocean.

Ornamental Fish keeping

The most important contributor to the art of fish keeping was the Chinese. Goldfish were the first
ornamental fish to be kept. These fish date back to 960 AD during the Sung Dynasty in China. Ponds
stocked with ornamental fish gained popularity among the rich from 968-975 and eating the fish was
strictly prohibited.
In 1136 Emperor Hiau-Tsung started to breed and keep these fish in a more controlled environment.
Several new breeds of ornamental; fish evolved which helped make him popular and known throughout
China.

By 1510, goldfish were no longer a luxury for the rich, but common among all people. Many houses and
dwellings had ponds with goldfish and breeding them flourished. It was very common to keep breeding
ideas secret. Even today in many cultures its good luck to keep these fish in the house or in ponds
around the house.

In 1616 the goldfish reached Japan .The Japanese mastered the breeding of fish over time. They are now
the largest exporters of goldfish worldwide! The Japanese and Chinese have some of the most beautiful
ponds in the world. These ponds are even more exotic when their combined with water plants!

In 1691 goldfish appeared in Portugal and the rest of Europe. From there they arrived in England in
1780. By 1850 goldfish arrived in the New World and they were the big attraction in New York in 1865.
Although goldfish were successfully kept in glass vessels in England, aquarium keeping did not become
well established until the relationship between oxygen, animals, and plants became known a century
later. During the mid 1800’s the "Balanced Aquarium" approach was considered the only method for
keeping aquarium fish. The Balanced Aquarium consisted of "a tank in which the air surface of the
water, aided by plants would supply sufficient oxygen" and "most of the waste from the fish was
consumed by the plants and scavengers”.

Johann Matthaeus Bechsttein (1757-1822) in 1794 preserves a lot of fish and amphibians to study in
Germany. In 1797, his first fish book published. The book described on how to keep the fish such as
replacement of water, the density of fish in a container, color and shape of fish, and so forth. But not to
discuss about the aquarium. However, until now, after more than 200 years have passed, "ornamental
fish books" still describe the same thing.

In 1819, William Thomas Brande of England published his fish book with the inscription that fish breathe
by inhaling oxygen dissolved in water. He further that the oxygen in the water produced by the water
plants, and fish will live a healthier when kept in tank containers that have a water plants.
In 1833, Dr. Danberry in a seminar in Cambridge, England, proves that water plants release oxygen by
taking the CO2 with the help of light. Danberry's papers have been increasingly enriched repertoire of
today's fish books.

In 1853, Philip Henry Gosse made the first public aquarium combined with a water fountain placed at
Regents Park Zoological Gardens – England, so that can be enjoyed by the community. This was done
because he saw the aquarium price is still expensive and be owned by rich people only. This is an
aquarium in the truest sense and kept indoors. Previously aquarium in the past was kept in the yard.

Philip Henry Gosse was the first to use the word "aquarium". Since then the aquarium has become a
popular in many European countries, like France (1859), Germany (1864) to reach the United States
(1900). Many fish types cannot live long in the aquarium, but the Macropodus operculatus, also called
Paradise fish or Corydoras paleatus introduced in Paris, can survive for long time.

Philip Henry Gosse was also a writer of "A Handbook to the Marine Aquarium”. One of popular fish
books and completes enough in that time, containing practical instruction for constructing, stocking and
maintaining a tank and for collecting plants and animals. The book was published in London, in 1855.

Aquarium History notes that Red Goldfish is the first freshwater ornamental fish which maintaining in
the world and popular remain until today. Now, more than 125 varieties of goldfish vary of form and
colors as crossbreeding result have circulating around the world.

“In summer one must ensure that the lovely colors and nimble movements catch the eye. The container
of choice for this is a large glass ball with an opening large enough to ensure that the fishes can obtain
sufficient air, but small enough that they cannot jump out and die if nobody is at hand”. This was written
(in German) about the goldfish bowl in 1856 in issue 19 of the magazine “Die Gartenlaube” after, to
keep and maintaining ornamental fish become trend, in 1850 Otto Gitter opening his ornamental fish
shop at Leizpig, German and Aquarium Historyalsonotes that it was the first ornamental fish store in the
world.

In 1842, Dr. Johnston introduced his first glass aquarium but the glass is only in the front side. This
aquarium capacity of 20 liters and it’s filled with sea water. Discovery still continues, in 1850 freshwater
aquarium with a larger size (50 liters) was introduced. The aquarium contains Goldfish, a water plant
species Vallisneria gigantean and some snails.
At that time, marine aquarium is more popular than freshwater aquarium. Difficulty of finding
freshwater ornamental fishes (except goldfish) - while the marine ornamental fish was having more
attractive colour and more vary - making marine fish tank more popular.

By 1850 the keeping of fishes, amphibians, and reptiles had become useful in the study of nature. It was
in the works of Philip Gosse, a British naturalist, which the term aquarium first appeared. His work
aroused increased public interest in aquatic life. The first display aquarium was opened to the public in
1853 at Regent's Park in London. It was followed by aquariums in Berlin, Naples, and Paris. P.T. Barnum,
the circus entrepreneur, recognized the commercial possibilities of living aquatic animals and, in 1856,
opened the first display aquarium at the American Museum in New York City as a private enterprise.

During the early 1900’s Aeration, Particulate and Charcoal filtration was touted as the state-of-the-art
but it wasn’t until the 1950’s that the under-gravel filters was introduced. Ironically even though it was
promoted as a biological filter its true role in filtration was still misunderstood, and yet the under-gravel
filter has been the greatest advancement to the aquarium industry.

By 1928 there were 45 public or commercial aquariums throughout the world, but growth then slowed
and few new large aquariums appeared until after World War II. Many of the world's principal cities now
have public aquariums as well as commercial ones.

In 1856 a groundbreaking essay about "Sea in a Glass” by Emil Robmaber was published in Germany
which is recognized as the beginning of the aquatic hobby as we know it today.

Up until the 1950's, all fish were fed live foods. Dr. Baensch revolutionised the hobby by inventing flake
foods. From there on, the hobby flourished. Fueled by faster and more advanced transportation, more
and more breeders and hobbyists helped make the aquarium hobby more popular. The inventions since
the 1950s, such as water chemistry, filtration, aeration, and lighting have basically made it possible for
anyone to enjoy fish keeping.

There was not a wide choice and selection of aquariums in the 50's and 60's. Most of them had thick
metal frames and the largest size was 100 gallon, unless you had a tank custom built. Today, the tanks
are frameless and are available in glass and acrylic. They come in all shapes and sizes, such as square,
rectangular, hexagon, bow front, and cylinder. Most new tanks have fluorescent lighting instead of
incandescent, which is better for plant growth, and emphasize the beautiful colours of the fish.
It wasn’t until 1974 that successful commercial attempts to spawn and rear marine ornamental fish
began to occur and by 1975 Martin Moe and Chris Turk of Aqualife Research and Frank Hoff and Tom
Frakes of Instant Ocean Hatcheries were raising three species of clownfish, Oscellaris (Amphiprion
ocellaris), the Tomato (Amphiprion frenatus) and the Clarki Clownfish (Amphiprion clarkii).

In 1984 the second greatest advancement occurred in the aquarium industry, the introduction to the US
of the European Wet - Dry Filter. Now hobbyists could keep fish as well as corals and invertebrates
successfully.

It has taken thousands of years, but at least now we can keep basically any type of fish and enjoy a
nature in our own living room! We can enjoy a little piece of the ocean, or even parts of the great rift
Lakes of Africa. Nothing is more relaxing than to sit in front of the aquarium and watch the antics of the
fish. It is an art of its own and you can create a living art!

References

Adey, Walter H.; Loveland, Karen (1991). Dynamic Aquaria. San Diego: Academic Press. ISBN 0-12-
043792-9

Alexander, Bob (November 2005). "The first Parlour Aquariums and the Victorian Aquarium Craze"...

Axelrod, Herbert, R. (1996). Exotic Tropical Fishes. T.F.H. Publications. ISBN 0-87666-543-1.

Baensch, Ulrich (1983). Tropical Aquarium Fish. Tetra. ISBN 3893561315.

Blundell, Adam (December 2004). "Delicatessen Part I: Creating a system for rare and delicate animals".

Brunner, Bernd (2003). The Ocean at Home. New York: Princeton Architectural Press. ISBN 1-56898-502-
9.

Chris Andrews, Adrian Exell, & Neville Carrington (1988). The Interpet Manual of Fish Health. ISBN 0-
86101-368-9. Crosswell, Tom. "Advanced filtered bowl aquariums - biOrb Aquariums".

Crosswell, Tom. "Benefits of Acrylic for Home Aquariums"

Dakin, Nick (1992). The Macmillan book of the Marine Aquarium. ISBN 0-02-897108-6.

Emerson, Jim (1999-08-01). "Aquarium Hobbyists".

http://library.thinkquest.org/C0124402/data/html/1/1aquarium_history.htm
Ihnatko, Andy (1992). "The Original MacQuarium".

Kisling, Vernon (2000) “Zoo Aquarium History” ISBN- 10: 084932100X. ISBN 13:978-0849321009

Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. http://www.m-w.com/dictionary/aquarium. .

Riehl, Rüdiger. Editor; Baensch, HA (1996. 5th Edn.). Aquarium Atlas. Germany: Tetra Press. ISBN 3-
88244-050-

Sanford, Gina (1999). Aquarium Owner's Guide. New York: DK Publishing. ISBN 0-7894-4614-6.

Sanford, Gina (1999). Aquarium Owner's Guide. New York: DK Publishing. pp. 162–169. ISBN 0-7894-
4614-6.

Sanford, Gina (1999). Aquarium Owner's Guide. New York: DK Publishing. pp. 180–199. ISBN 0-7894-
4614-6.

Scott, Peter (1996). The Complete Aquarium. Dorling Kindersley. ISBN 0-7513-0427-1.

Whittall, Robin. (1999) "How Did It All Begin? The Roots of Captive Fishkeeping from The Victorians'
Perspective

Despite the country’s advantages, the Philippines has only around 3.8 percent of the total export market
supplied by Asian countries and most of these ornamental fishes are marine species that are caught in
the wild, Sarmiento said. The growing of ornamental fishes in the country’s lakes and other bodies of
inland waters will be a big boost to the industry as 90 percent of the fish traded in the world market are
freshwater species, he said.

Another advantage in raising ornamental fish is that it commands much higher prices than food fishes–
typically at $1.8 million a ton. In contrast, the average freight on board value of food fishes exported by
the country amounted to $2,700 a metric ton in 2004.

The raising of ornamental fish such as goldfish, koi, angelfish, fighting fish and similar species is easy and
cheap as the fish could be reared even in one’s own backyard.
 A step by step process onto is fast becoming a multi-billion-dollar industry.

The Bureau of Agricultural Research’s (BAR) National Technology Commercialization Program (NTCP)
recognized the potential of ornamental freshwater fish (OFF) breeding in the country as a viable
industry. Its promotion was stirred when the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources’ (BFAR)
scientist, Dr. Aida Palma presented this technology nd during the 2 Agriculture and Fisheries Technology
Forum held at BAR in August last year.

BFAR jumpstarted the Ornamental Fish Development Program in September. The project aims to widen
the market base for the export of our OFF. It is expected to kick off soon with the two largest freshwater
lakes in Southern Tagalog, the Laguna and Taal lakes, as sources of ornamental fishes.

Technology

There are quite a large number of tropical aquarium fishes known to aquarists. While many of the fish
are easy to breed, some of these are rare, difficult to breed and expensive. Most of the exotic species
can be bred and reared easily since the technology is simple and well developed.

It is advisable to start with common, attractive, easily bred and less expensive species before attempting
the more challenging ones. An ornamental fish project can be either

rearing only

breeding only

breeding and rearing depending upon the space available.

The technology involves the following activities

Culture/rearing : The culture/rearing of these fishes can be taken up normally in cement tanks. Cement
tanks are easy to maintain and durable. One species can be stocked in one tank. However in case of
compatible species two or three species can occupy the same tank. Ground water from dug wells / deep
tube wells are the best for rearing. The fishes reach the marketable size in around 4 to 6 months. Eight
to ten crops can be taken in a year.

For commercial production, a 1,000-meter area with a good source of water, is needed to breed several
kinds of ornamental fish. In the area, 10 earthen ponds or concrete tanks measuring 4 to 2 meters with a
minimum depth of half meter are constructed.

Whether to use earthen ponds or concrete tanks depends on the water holding capacity of the soil.
Earthen ponds are used if the soil is clayey or loamy, while tanks are used when the soil is sandy.

Different kinds of ornamental fishes must be produced to cater to different markets at different times. If
it has to be an all-year round business and not just seasonal, one must have different kinds of fishes.

At the research center, interested persons can avail of breeders of both egg-layer and live-bearer
ornamental fishes. Egg layers include the coy carp, gold fish and angel fish while the live bearers include
the mollies, platys and swordtails.

FISH DEMAND AND SUPPLY

There is an increasing demand for ornamental fish worldwide. In the US alone, there are around 1,500
hypermarkets that require continuous supply of ornamental fish.

The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) reports that 90 percent of the fish traded in the
world market are freshwater species. The country currently supplies around 3.8 percent of the total
ornamental fish export worldwide valued at US$4 million. Most of these fishes are marine species that
are caught in the wild.

In the past many years, ornamental fishes were not given much attention by the government because
the priority had always been food fish such as tilapia, bangus, carp and other species.
The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) is intensifying its campaign for the production of
high-value ornamental fishes for export.

This was announced by BFAR Director Malcolm Sarmiento during the launch of the Ornamental Fish
Development Project at the Bioresearch breeding and hatchery facility in Pila, Laguna recently.

"The vigorous campaign on ornamental fish production and export, especially here in Southern Tagalog
(Region IV-A), is aimed at creating rural jobs and backyard livelihood, increasing dollar incomes,
contributing substantially to the attainment of President Arroyo’s 10-point agenda on national
development, and addressing the decrease in the country’s surface areas allotted for aquaculture,"
Sarmiento said in an interview.

Section 51 of Republic Act 8550 limits aquaculture to only 10 percent of surface areas even as
industrialization results in the multiple use of bodies of water.

These factors led to the decrease of aquaculture areas. In Laguna lake, for example, the area allotted to
aquaculture shrank from 38 percent to only 10 percent, resulting in the dislocation of many fish cage
operators.

To address the problem and still increase production incomes, BFAR has shifted from traditional (bangus
& tilapia) to high-value species (ulang & ornamentals) and from water-based to land-based aquaculture
using backyard fishponds and tanks.

For ornamental fish, BFAR is specifically targeting reduction of imports while promoting exports as part
of its medium-term (2004-2009) plan.

The plan was based on the surging ornamental fish trade that ballooned to $188.4 million in 2003 and
continues to do so up to the present. Of that volume, 85 percent involved freshwater species and 15
percent marine. Of the freshwater species, 90 percent were cultured and 10 percent wild.
The uptrend is consistent over the 20-year period beginning 1983, when world demand for ornamental
fish was less than $50 million and the supply level was only at $38.9 million.

The bulk of the supply went to United Kingdom, the United States, Japan, Germany, and France, and
more than 50 percent of it came from Asia – Singapore, China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Taiwan, Sri Lanka,
Japan, and the Philippines.

And for two decades, ornamental fishes have been in the top 10 fishery exports of the Philippines in
terms of value as the country has the natural capacity and existing facilities for its production – vast
freshwater resources, year-round tropical climate, available manpower, farmers and breeders,
international ports, government and private research and development centers, fisheries schools,
indigenous species.

At present, however, the country is still lacking in technology and information dissemination, enough
quality brood stock, capital and credit support, commercial scale breeding, hatchery, fish health and
nutrition facilities, and policy on ornamental fish zoning, production programming, and accreditation of
ornamental fish operators.

These gaps are being addressed by BFAR through research, technology development and training,
promotional and regulatory measures, multipartite contract growing, area-based species specialization,
and advocacy on the use of existing fish cages and production facilities.