Thanks to the grandparents and Auntie Leah who brought it with her, the kids now have a new project. We have our very own saltwater aquarium. Since we live right near the ocean we thought this would be the best option. Plus we don't have a fish store nearby, so we had to acquire our own sea creatures.
We set up the tank and tested all the equipment. Everything came with it including the filter, heater and chemicals. The kids cleaned the tank out and to test we filled it with fresh water and some fake fish. Then it was time to try the real thing.
On Saturday it was off to the beach. Our kids love exploring the beach and watching the fish and other sea creatures. We collected some gravel, a bit of sand and they picked out some shells and rocks for decoration. We wanted to get the tank set up before we introduced some fish (assuming we can catch any) so the kids found some limpets. They are about the size of a dime and have cone shaped shells. They seem to be happy cleaning the tank and climbing on the rocks. We filled a 5 gallon jug with sea water and made our way home.
After putting everything in the tank things were murky for a bit. But everything cleared up quickly. As the kids have watched the little marine environment they discovered that we had also brought home a few other creatures. There were some very tiny snails (1-2mm), some kind of small isopod that moves very quickly. The large rock in the middle of the aquarium seems to have a little red anenome or nudibranch on it. It is only about 1mm across and lives in a tiny hole in the rock. It comes out, dangles it arms in the water and then will slip back in the hole. The kids are enjoying watching him. God's creation is amazing!
No comments:
Post a Comment