I Built a Self-Sustaining Ecosystem...Then Added Predators

After losing all my fish during a cross-country move, I decided to start over by building the ultimate self-sustaining ecosystem for one of my favorite fish of all time: Pea Puffers. This planted aquarium was designed to from the ground-up to be “Puffer Heaven”. A heavily planted ecosystem to give plenty of hiding spots, and filled with microfauna like copepods, scuds, snails, detritus worms, and more for an unlimited supply of food. The goal was simple: create a self-sustaining aquarium that could naturally support a group of vicious little pea puffers. Over the course of 6 weeks, the tank slowly transformed from a brand new planted aquarium into a thriving ecosystem packed with live food that doubled as the tanks' natural clean-up crew. Then it was finally time to introduce the pea puffers: can the ecosystem stand up to test? #aquarium #ecosystem #peapuffer