I don't know if the bio portion does any good in the winter. I think it's probably too cold for the bacteria to be doing any good. However, come spring, they are still there, and I introduce powdered bacteria to jump start the cycle. As for the filter, it must be doing something. I cleaned it in December when temps got into the 50's. It was pretty full of sludge, and the water clarity improved greatly after a cleaning. For winter '09, I think I will disconnect my filter though. Last year I didn't have a problem, but don't want to have any problems again. On a side note, I got some anti-choline stuff, and added it to my pond. Although I had only lost 1 GF, and 4 minnows, I didn't feel comfortable with untreated tap water in the pond. Unsure of how quickly it would have disappated in the cold with only a 5" hole to vent. It's now frozen over completly, so I'm glad I added it yesterday. Fish probably like the extra slime anyways.

I had more time to research this and found this: Index Forum Articles Product Reviews Pet Shop Reviews FAQs Aquariums Of The World Showcase Featured: - PetFish Forum - Join with 2000 plus members and talk about fish Trading Post Stock Shop Links Tank Calculators Ask A Question Site Map PetFish Index / Articles / Bettas Swim Bladder Disease By Rachel Hunt (Mushi) Swim Bladder Disorder Information and Symptoms Swim Bladder Disorder is an extremely common betta ailment, and it typically looks worse than it actually is. I know, you're probably sitting there watching your poor betta flop around, struggling valiantly to make it to the top for air, and basically looking nothing like his usual graceful self, and thinking to yourself, "This is it, I'm going to lose him." Let me make you feel a little better before I get into all the details - Swim bladder problems are not contagious, they don't seem to be painful, they are generally easy to treat, and they are usually not even close to fatal. Feel better? Good, let's get on to the fun stuff. Symptoms can include: Either floats uncontrollably to the top of the tank, or sinks to the bottom. Seems to struggle greatly while swimming, and often will swim at an unusual angle. May or may not have a "kinked" spine, often in the shape of an "S" when viewed from above. May lie around, barely moving except when a mad dash is made to the surface for air. May or may not have a swollen belly, often caused by constipation Swim Bladder Disorder Treatment Swim Bladder Disorder can be caused by several things, and it's best to try to figure out the cause of the problem because the cause will determine what treatment you will want to use. As always, I recommend isolating the ill betta for treatment if you have him/her in a community tank. While Swim Bladder Disorder isn't contagious, isolating the betta will make monitoring and treating the condition much easier on you (and will give the sick betta much needed "quiet time" to recover). If your betta is having a hard time getting to the surface for air, it is often a good idea to lower the water level to make things easier on him. Just remember if you do this that you have much less water volume than before and water changes must be increased to keep him in good health. Below is a list of things that can cause Swim Bladder Disorder, in order from most common to rarest. Constipation - Constipation is the number one cause of Swim Bladder Disorder in otherwise healthy bettas. If your betta is showing symptoms of Swim Bladder Disorder, I always suggest treating the betta as if he has constipation first, because they usually do (click on the underlined "constipation" for treatment information). Overfeeding - If your betta is displaying symptoms of Swim Bladder Disorder immediately after feedings, and the symptoms tend to go away after a few hours, you are probably overfeeding. It is helpful to remember that bettas only have stomachs approximately the size of one eye, so try to feed smaller meals several times a day instead of one giant meal once a day. That is the treatment for Swim Bladder Disorder caused by overfeeding in a nutshell, not too hard, eh? Injury - Sometimes bettas who have recently been through a traumatic experience (being dropped on the floor, being in a physical fight with another betta, etc) may display Swim Bladder Disorder symptoms. In these cases, many times there is permanent damage to the swim bladder. Unfortunately this means that there is no real cure for the disorder if it is caused by injury, but you can manage the illness. Often bettas permanent swim bladder problems can live normal, healthy lives if accomodations are made - such as keeping the water level lower than normal to allow for easier access to air, or providing large-leaved plants near the water surface to make a "lounging" spot where launching off for air is more doable for the betta. Swim bladder problems are not painful and are generally not fatal in the case of injury, so these guys have a wonderful prognosis in general. Birth Defects - This is one of those rare and yet common causes. If you are a betta breeder, it is extremely common to get some fry with congenital swim bladder problems. If you are someone that "collects" bettas from petstores, it would be extremely rare to find a betta whose swim bladder problems are caused by birth defects as usually wholesalers that supply the bettas will destroy fish with birth defects before they ever make it to the store. As in the case of injury, birth defects are really not curable but they can be managed so that the bettas can live normal, happy lives...if less graceful lives than non-damaged bettas. Bacterial Infections - While I have never personally seen a case of Swim Bladder Disorder caused by a bacterial infection, some fishkeepers that I respect very much have, and so I will list this as a possible cause of swim bladder problems if nothing else seems to fit. I have always heard that swim bladder problems caused by bacterial infections are incredibly difficult to treat, which makes me wonder if they are not caused by something else altogether...just my random musings. If you are convinced your betta's swim bladder problems are caused by bacterial infection (or are sure that none of the other things i've listed above could be causing it), you may want to start treatment with a good broad-spectrum antibiotic such as Kanacyn (Kanamycin sulfate), Spectrogram (Kanamycin sulfate and Nitrofurazone), Tetracycline, or Furan 2 (Nitrofurazone). Again, I have not ever witnessed a bacterial swim bladder infection, so these medications may or may not work and I would exhaust all other possibilities before treating with these medications. Swim Bladder Disorder Prevention Almost anyone who keeps bettas will have to deal with a swim bladder problem or two in their betta-keeping career. It is one of the top three betta ailments along with finrot and constipation. That being said, there are a few things you can do to reduce your betta's chances of contracting Swim Bladder Disorder in the future. Swim Bladder Disorder is almost always caused by overfeeding or constipation. Remember that a betta's stomach is only about as big as his eye, and feed small meals several times a day instead of one large meal. Remember to feed bettas with nutritionally sound foods and don't go overboard on fatty foods such as bloodworms to avoid constipation. Water quality is extremely important to keeping healthy bettas, tank maintenance is key. Back to Betta disease main menu. Visit the Petfish.net Betta Boards or the rest of the Petfish.net Forum for more fishy advice and chat.

Congratulations on entering the world of aquariums! I have to agree with the others, that your tank would probably be better suited to a single betta than several tropicals. Bettas are perfect for small tanks, since they really are low-maintenence fish and aren't as picky about things like pH or water temp (though they are definitely not "no-maintenence" fish, and do need regular care and water changes!). I'd suggest looking for a crowntail variety if you can find one. In my experience, their tails are bigger and flashier and when they puff up and pose, they are truly glorious! I don't know if you've learned much about your GloFish, but I've attached a link to the Wikipedia entry. You might find it interesting to do a little research about them. Though their history is fascinating (they are genetically altered using florescent genes from jellyfish and colors from corals, and are the first genetically altered organisms available as pets in the U.S.) they really are "man-made" fish, or at least their colors are, since ""Starfire Red," "Electric Green," and "Sunburst Orange" danios donÂt occur in the wild. I'm pretty sure they are still not legal in the California, the European Union, or Canada, because of their genetically altered status. Personally, I try to stay away from the GloFish as well as the artificially dyed fish in neon colors (especially these, since most of the dyeing processes are pretty horrific), not so much because of worries about safety from their genetically altered status, but just because I don't particularly agree with the idea of artificially enhancing an animal to make it more marketable; but then again, I have no problem with goldfish, and they are also a completely "man-made" fish, though they came about from long-term aggressive selective breeding rather than genetic enhancement. Anyway, even though IÂm certainly not hard-core opposed to the GloFish, I think the genetics debate in aquarium fish is incredibly interesting, and thought I'd share some info. Best of luck!!! Here is a link that might be useful: Wikipedia's Entry on

Goldenpond, I think you may be right. Those look very much like fingerling bass. If so, that's great. You do know tilapia will end up taking over? They are destroying bass and bluegill, etc, in our streams. They are fine in an enclosed system like you have, but I fear you will soon have only tilapia living there. And your dreaded walking catfish, of course. Ugh is right on those! On the plus side, tilapia ARE pretty, and very tasty, if you can keep from making pets of them. ;o) But bass! I'd love to have a pond with bass in it! Lellie, I absolutely LOVE your flying fish! So cute! Ill, it doesn't matter so much what type of birdbath you have, as long as it will hold about 2" of water. A garbage can lid on the ground will even work. But it needs to be placed in an area where birds feel safe. Not too close and not too far from cover. Too close, and they can be ambushed and won't use it. Too far, and they feel too exposed. It is a trial and error thing. There are many really pretty ones out there in all price ranges. Target carries some very nice inexpensive ones. Or you can stack up a couple of terra cotta pots and top with a terra cotta saucer. Goldenpond, it isn't often that a bird actually drowns in a birdbath. BUT...they are afraid of deep water and won't use one that is filled too high. You can still use your antique ones, but do one of two things. Only fill them partway up, or fill the bottom with some flatish rocks before adding water, so that the birds only have about 2" to deal with. That is usually all they require. But whatever you do, however you do it, everybody get busy and put out some birdbaths! You never know what you will see using them, and during very dry weather, they are really critical to our feathered friends. Marcia