Goodeidenhaltung in den Aqualabs in Monterrey und Morelia. Part 2 - Das Aqualab in Morelia - das Laboratorio de Biologia Acuatica der Facultad de Biologia der Universität in Michoacan

By Domínguez Domínguez, Omar

Beiträge zur Biologie und zum Artenschutz der Hoch land kärpflinge, 123-132 2013


" Both Aqualabs in Monterrey and in Morelia are working primarily in conservation. The central program of the Laboratorío de Acuacultura of the biological faculty of the university in Nuevo León (FCB UANL) is dedicated to the threatened and endangered species of fish in Mexico, especially to ensure their sampling, maintaining and breeding in short, middle and long-term categories. It is its goal to widesPread information about these species, to create environmentalism, to facilitate knowledge about native fish and to finally reintroduce captive raised individuals when the environmental conditions will have changed for the better.

The head of the Aqualab, Arcadio Valdés Gonzáles describes the maintenance of their fish in detail. How and how often the fish are being fed, how the water is treated, how the species are being bred. He gives detailed information about each of the 16 species that are kePt in the lab, and he explains the start of the conseration facility, beginning with 3 species in 1988: Characodon lateralis, Xenotoca variata and Xenoophorus captious. All goodeid species are being maintained in concrete pools of the size 280 x 165 x 86 cm The surface is covered at about 30% by water hyacinths Eichornia crassipes, and Ceratophillum demersum is used as underwater plants. For special situations, smaller tanks 30 cm high and a capacity of l15 liters are used. The origin of the Laboratorio de Biologia Acuática of the biological faculty of the university of Morelia dates back to 1997. At that time it had been primarily run as an aquaculture lab, maintaining and breeding mainly ornamental fish and Tilapias. That changed rapidly with the visit of lvan Dibble and members of the North of England Zoological Sociery in 1998. He established his "Fish Ark Project", in the rooms of the Aqualab and the focus oI the lab turned to conservation. With the help of Chester Zoo and funding by hobbyists, Omar Domíngez Domíngez, the head of the Aqualab, built up a big live fish collection including 38 species of goodeids and 1 Cyprinid. It is still the help of the Zoo and hobbyists that is planing an important role in financing projects. The whole facility encompasses around 120 tanks with a total capacity of 9.000 liters, 11 concrete indoor pools with a total volume of 60.000 liters, 20 concrete outdoor pools with 120,000 liters and (very large) soil ponds in the open. The construction of these soil ponds is the main focus at the moment as it gives the Aqualab the possibility to maintain fish in semi-captive conditions. Besides the fish maintaining facilities, there are 13 ponds for the culture of Artemia, and a room with containers to cultivate algae, Daphnia, other cladocerans and Hyalella, all used for food.

Further programs of the lab are education, working in environment protection, attending meetings, pursuing and publishing studies and supporting other conservation facilities by leaving fish from the live fish stock to them to establish breeding groups on their own "

Classification: Distribution and exploration.

Language: German

Domínguez Domínguez, Omar. 2013. "Goodeidenhaltung in den Aqualabs in Monterrey und Morelia. Part 2 - Das Aqualab in Morelia - das Laboratorio de Biologia Acuatica der Facultad de Biologia der Universität in Michoacan". Beiträge zur Biologie und zum Artenschutz der Hoch land kärpflinge. 123-132 (ffm00756) (abstract)