These fish appear to match diagnostics for new species B. dennisyongi. Image shows a nuptial pair with female in front. © Daron Tan

A new species of Betta from Aceh, northern Sumatra, Indonesia is decribed by Dr. Heok Hui Tan in the latest volume of ‘The Raffles Bulletin of Zoology’.

B. dennisyongi is included in the previously monotypic B. rubra species group and superficially appears very similar to B. rubra. Continue reading »

Apistogramma spp. will be the focus of the BCA’s Spring convention 2013. © Kris Weinhold

The British Cichlid Association (BCA) has been a respected mainstay of the aquarium hobby for around 40 years, and for cichlid hobbyists resident in the UK the group’s 2013 conventions promise to deliver a real treat.

The annual Spring event takes place on Sunday 5th May and should prove unmissable for anyone interested in dwarf cichlids of the genus Apistogramma with guest speakers Mike Wise (USA) and Tom Christoffersen (NOR) among the world’s most respected names in the study and husbandry of this diverse group of dwarf cichlids.

Mike and Tom have made a number of expeditions to the Amazon region, and will share their sometimes very amusing rainforest experiences as well as revealing how they transport their fish back home from some of the most remote regions in South America and breed them in their tanks.

Check out Tom’s brilliant website for a flavour of what’s in store.

The Autumn convention is scheduled for Sunday 8th September and true to form the BCA have selected a contrasting yet equally appealing range of guests for their second convention of the year.

First up is well-travelled cichlid enthusiast Ted Judy (USA) who will share details of his collection trips to Gabon in West Africa alongside Dr. Anton Lamboj.

A light lunch may be in order, since the afternoon lecture will be chaired by Dr. Peter Burgess, biologist and consultant for a well-known range of fish foods and aquarium products.

Dr. Burgess will guide attendees through a fascinating and undoubtedly vivid collection of parasites known to infest cichlid species, including the discus, Symphysodon spp., and explain the various options available to eradicate them.

Both events take place at the Lodge Park Social Club, Lodge Pool Drive, Redditch, Worcestershire, B98 7LH, with entry charged at £3.50 for BCA members or £5.50 for non-members.

In addition to the superb presentations there will also be auctions of fish and other items with some rare species and real bargains to be picked up, plus an extensive raffle sponsored by several leading manufacturers.

For further information check out the BCA website or their busy Facebook page.

As well as their standard membership package the BCA also now offer a special online membership offer at a bargain price, click here for more details.

PS: If you’re involved with a club and fancy promoting your activities via SF, please feel free to drop us a line on the forum or by private message.

We’re more than happy to feature both national and local events taking place anywhere in the world, so get in touch and spread the word to other hobbyists in your area and beyond!

The site should now be working as normal, and please accept our apologies for the extended and unplanned downtime this week.

We’ll be offline again for an hour or two from around 1600 GMT today as there are still a couple of things that need fixing but everything should be back to normal after that.

Thanks once again for your patience and understanding!

The SF Team

The SF forum has undergone a minor reshuffle, with the idea being to makes things a little clearer since there was some ongoing confusion between the ‘Beginners’ and ‘Fishkeeping and Aquaria’ sections.

What we now have is a ‘Fresh and Brackish Water Fishes’ forum for all fish-related discussion and another entitled ‘My Aquaria’ for set-up, stocking, equipment and health topics.

The media forum has been dispensed with and community members are instead encouraged to post photos in the relevant fish or aquarium forum.

We’ve also added a ‘Field trips and Conservation’ forum, mostly because there were a number of threads that didn’t fit into any of the other fora but also because it’s an area of the site we hope to develop going forwards.

Please feel free to add any comments or suggestions either here or in the forum feedback thread.

Zebra danio embryos are popular subjects in genetic experiments. © Adam Amsterdam

Japanese researchers have for the first time been able to record a real-time video of thought processes moving within a living animal’s brain, and the creature in question is a fish! Continue reading »