You can build an aquatic ecosystem in a fish tank or you can build a terrarium with any plants you choose. The process is quite simple, but striking the balance between organisms can be tricky. “Make an ecosphere using aquarium plants” you say? I’ve been getting requests to do this for awhile now, but say no more because it’s here! I had a lot of fun doing this one and I hope that it works out long-term. Obviously it’s somewhat experimental, but I don’t see any reason why this shouldn’t work. Time will tell!/SerpaDesign
source/image: SerpaDesign
I should mention that some of the plants used were grown immersed, so you may have noticed some melting leaves near the end of the video. That’s nothing to worry about though. It just has to run its course until we get some acclimated underwater plant growth.
The EcoSphere’s main visual appeal is provided by tiny red-pink shrimp, Halocaridina rubra, between 1/4 and 3/8 inch (or approximately a centimeter) in length. The shrimp swim energetically around the aquarium, eat the brown bacterial and algal scum on the glass, consume the filamentous green algae which sometimes forms a globular pillow in the water, and perch on a fragment of soft coral.
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The main conceptual interest of these objects lies in the fact that they are materially closed ecological systems which are self-sustaining over a period of years. At room temperature, and with only low inputs of light, the algae produce oxygen which supports the shrimp and bacteria. Bacteria break down the shrimps’ wastes. The breakdown products provide nutrients to the algae and bacteria upon which the shrimp feed. The manufacturer states that shrimp live in the EcoSphere for an average of 2 to 3 years, and are known to live over 10 years.//wikipedia
