A Fish Story

Lately, a few astute and caring guests have noticed that the fish in the Tropical Butterfly House seemed a little under the weather. What they did next reminded us why we love our visitors and what a small world it is.



We feel lucky to have a wonderful veterinarian in Dr. Maas at The Center for Bird and Exotic Animal Medicine. As it turns out, some of our visitors also know Dr. Mass, and cared enough about our animals to mention the fish to him. Meanwhile we were making the same observations, and trying to strategize how to help get the fish get back into peak condition.


Luckily, we had already scheduled our semi-annual house call from our fine veterinarians. But with a week to go until that exam, our concern was growing and we wanted to get a head start on the fishes’ recovery. We also wanted our fish to have a private area with a lower light level to hasten their recovery. In the absence of a large, off exhibit tank, we improvised a hospital out of a large, clean plastic trash receptacle. In it, we circulated the water using the emergency backup pump from the axolotl cage. There the fish were treated to warmer water with salt solution and medication.


Because he was tipped on the problem with the fish, Dr. Maas arrived at our scheduled appointment with a net in hand, ready to help with the fish. He commented that the higher than usual salt concentration, good pH, and the added heat, probably helped get the fish down the road to recovery. Our goal now is to get the water quality high enough that their own healing process can finish their cure. Unfortunately, ammonia levels in a smaller tank build up more quickly than our filter could process. Dr. Maas found the fish to be near the peak of the ammonia development stage in the nitrogen cycle and gave us suggestions for bringing the levels down faster.


The fish are recovering swiftly and should be back on exhibit within days.

The rest of the exam went ‘swimmingly’. Most of our collection is in exceedingly good health. We always learn a lot whenever Dr. Maas visits. Be on the lookout for more articles about some of the other fascinating news we’ve learned about our animals (because there’s always more)!


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Recipe for a Healthy Axolotl Aquarium

Whenever the time comes to fully clean the axolotl’s aquarium, it’s an all hands on deck experience.



The axolotls need somewhere safe to stay during the process. Since turbulent water is stressful to them, we place them in individual containers with clean water instead of setting them in a recirculating aquarium where water flow would upset them. Where do they stay during this time? In the fridge, of course! Set at the least cold temperature, the refrigerator is actually therapeutic for axolotls and will often put restore a slightly “off” animal to good condition.


Returning the axos to their newly cleaned tank is not as simple as just putting in new water and putting them back. The chemicals used to make tap water clean for drinking can be toxic to aquatic life. We add water conditioners that lock up the chlorine containing molecules that are sometimes added to municipal tap water. We also add a little salt which helps animals maintain the right electrolyte balance. Then we start the system up and make sure it is running well.


The water in the aquarium must be the same temperature as that of the axolotl’s temporary containers. We give the axos plenty of time to warm up to room temp.


The axolotls go back into their home. But that’s not the end of the story either. New aquarium water needs to be colonized by beneficial bacteria. The nitrogen wastes produced by animals start out in a highly toxic form – ammonia. Beneficial bacteria in the filtration system digest ammonia and break it down, first into the less harmful nitrites and finally into nitrates, which is far less harmful. Eventually, nitrates can be further converted back into atmospheric nitrogen, but in most aquariums this step is never reached. Instead, partial water changes remove the nitrates – which make great plant food!

The nitrogen cycle is a whole story in itself, perhaps good for another blog another day. Meanwhile, we welcome the axolotls back to their tank after a short hiatus.


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