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Something FISHY
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Watching the reposeful movement of fish in an aquarium is an ideal stress-buster. M. RAGHURAM dives in deep
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Close observation reveals that every species of fish has its own movement.
CAN ONE be inspired by the adventures of Jules Verne's Captain Nemo and fall in love with the creatures of the sea? Of course one can in the coastal city of Mangalore.
Thanks to veteran aquarists such as the late Pailoor Lakshminaryana Rao and Rameshchandra J. Harvey, the septuagenarian who is still going strong, Mangalore has a good understanding of that exotic and colourful world. Mr. Harvey, who humbly calls himself a disciple of the late Pailoor Lakshminaryana Rao, is a patriarch of commercial aquarium keeping since 1953, when, with the exception of Bangalore, no other place in the State had commercial aquarium ventures. There are now at least a dozen good commercial aquarists who make their homes in the city amenable to the underwater world.
No mere hobby
Aquarium keeping, Mr. Harvey points out, is not just a hobby. "It is a passion for life — within your own house garden or wherever, there is place for another living species to co-exist in their own environment," and that fact that every fish that lives its full life within the aquarium gives the keeper immense satisfaction. The message is clear — much like the other pets that dwell on land, the fishpond or the aquarium is part of human habitation — that brings with it the additional charm of colour and movement. And "the aquarium does not sleep" — at any time of the day there is movement and life inside an aquarium, says Mr. Harvey.
The preface in the book Ornamental Fish for Aquarium authored Pailoor Lakshminarayan Rao says aquarium as a hobby has many pluses. It is economical, space efficient, and can co-exist with other pets in the house. And these are beings that are silent. The creatures of water also don't make the house dirty.
Close observation reveals that every species of fish has its own movement. The barbs, the tetras, the mollies, the angels, swordtails, gouramies, guppies, Oscars, the zebras, loaches, and fighters have their own exquisite movements and colours. Aquarists today are adding variety by bringing in more marine life. They are adding slow moving shell snails, white prawns, black sweet water sharks, the Bback gold fish, "headlighters", and "hockey sticks". Spotted Singapore guppies are another variety known for their lovely tail colours. Small turtles and crabs are also becoming part of aquarium keeping.
Marine Product Exports Development Authority (MPEDA) Deputy Director Rajan says the Authority has a special package for export of ornamental fish in the country.
The MPEDA has a scheme to encourage exporters of ornamental fishes to various countries in Europe, and to the U.S.A. All one needs is supply of clean water, breeding tanks, and a place where production of ornamental fishes can be undertaken without hindrance. But there have been few takers so far.
Great scope
One very interested citizen, Anna Vinayachandra, who has taken the scheme seriously, says what started as a hobby now is an export business. He sees great scope for rearing and is now exporting ornamental fishes.
Some of the well-kept aquariums in the city include the one that Mr. Harvey has. Here, you virtually have a community of fishes and a number of accessories make it a delight to watch them float. Schoolchildren have made this aquarium a regular haunt. The one at Prestige hotel in Balmatta has two large Oscars, a treat to watch.
Apart from fishes, aqua plants too have their place. They add to the beauty of the aquarium and give the fish their natural food — algae.
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Metro Plus
Bangalore
Chennai
Coimbatore
Delhi
Hyderabad
Kochi
Madurai
Mangalore
Thiruvananthapuram
Vijayawada
Visakhapatnam
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