Just curious...

[Krystal907]

But has anyone gone foraging for local plants/fish/inverts for their tanks? I've done it once here in WA, but looking forward to doing it again at home.

[i'm a ninja]

I haven't deliberately gone out looking for stuff to throw in my tank, but I have picked stuff up when I'm out wandering around. There was one stem plant in particular that I found in a stream in Texas that I used to keep in most of my tanks. I tossed it all out when I moved though...

[Krystal907]

Anything interesting/pretty in AK?

[akdylpickles]

In anchorage at the westchester lagoon I caught a 3 spine? stickleback that i put in with some guppies in a 29, it actually did pretty well for a few months. (I was really young at the time, like 8 maybe?) Not really sure about plants though. Also alot of schools do salmon raising, where they go out and find a female salmon cut it open get the eggs then get a male and fertalize the eggs. Then the class room keeps a 10 gallon with the eggs in a fridge until the hatch then they put the fry into a chilled 55 gallon and once they reach 3+ in the release them into streams

[grogan]

Westchester is also a great place to play Frisbee golf in the summer. I go there almost every day

[psalm18.2]

I have picked up rocks and wood from a local lake. I did look for plants, but found out the lake treated for millfoil, didn't take home. I can't wait to look in the mountain lakes this summer.

[naoki]

I collect some plants near Fairbanks. Hornworts (maybe Ceratophyllum demersum?) grows really well in my tank. They do have dormancy, but I can break it by putting them in cold area for 2 weeks or so. Also, I can grow bladderwort (Utricularia macrorhiza) easily. I can't grow pondweeds (Potamogeton sp.), common mare's-tail (Hippuris vulgaris), and Slender bur-reed (Sparganium minimum) so well. If anyone is successfully growing them, I'd like to get tips. Now I have CO2 injection, I might try them again. Myriophyllum sibiricum is supposed to be in AK, but I haven't found them.

[HappyNewMe]

Originally Posted by akdylpickles

alot of schools do salmon raising, where they go out and find a female salmon cut it open get the eggs then get a male and fertalize the eggs. Then the class room keeps a 10 gallon with the eggs in a fridge until the hatch then they put the fry into a chilled 55 gallon and once they reach 3+ in the release them into streams

My son's school just did that! Hope they will get to see them hatch.
Not sure, but thought I heard something about it not being legal to breed salmon other than in hatcheries? (schools might be different). No clue

Originally Posted by akdylpickles

In anchorage at the westchester lagoon I caught a 3 spine? stickleback that i put in with some guppies in a 29, it actually did pretty well for a few months. (I was really young at the time, like 8 maybe?)

I caught a few small fry of some sort in some pond a few years back, and put them in my first little tank. They also did OK for a while, but kept getting sucked into the filter. They do better in a normal tank, I am sure.
Also kept some salt-water ocean crabs in a plastic tub for a couple of months... the only reason why not longer because we had to leave for a month. They were super-cool to watch!

(As a kid, wanted my own tank SO bad, that when I went with my dad fishing, brought home some river snails and plants. Put in a few gallon-size glass jars, those were my aquariums for a few years Tried to keep some of the fish alive, too, but without real tank and bubbler, they soon died, anyway.)

Always wanted to raise crayfish! That time is still coming

[HappyNewMe]

Krystal907, thanks for reminding me of such option!
Next summer, I will be sure to try and get some free plants! (or, perhaps, not too late now?) I recall seeing some in Lake Hood

[Assassynation]

We have snow!!!

[HappyNewMe]

Originally Posted by Assassynation

We have snow!!!

yep, it is definitely too late now!

[akdylpickles]

I want the snow to stick :/ just got a new snowblower that blows our 15 year old one outs the water. If only I could use it :P

[AlyeskaGirl]

You 3 can keep the snow!

[akdylpickles]

You have Alyeska in your name!! Its amazing with snow there. I cant wait to start snowboarding!

[Assassynation]

Originally Posted by AlyeskaGirl

You 3 can keep the snow!

I hope we get it by the yard

How are things down on the panhandle?