if you read the list archives here, you will find discussions on this. in
particular, amphipods.
bill keiser

> I have read about snails, sea-monkeys, and little more. Did anyone used any
other animal with succes?
>
> Pedro

Greetings

I have read about snails, sea-monkeys, and little more. Did anyone used any
other animal with succes?

Pedro

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Disclaimer...I'm very new at this.  Although there are clearly very many
variables other than size, my 1 liter sized water based sphere could not
support even one 3/4 inch diameter snail.  Except that I don't wish to open
it, I am tempted to add a couple smaller snails.

Steve

On Tue, Jun 23, 2009 at 5:32 AM, <flip+@...<flip%2B@...>
> wrote:

>
>
>  the_jon_person <no_reply@yahoogroups.com <no_reply%40yahoogroups.com>>
> writes:
> > Also, Would I be okay with only bacteria and plants in biosphere or
> >should I add a few critters to help balance out the O2 CO2 etc. levels.
>
> Remember that in the absense of light, plant cells respire. (use O2 and
> release CO2.) if you have too many plants, you can cause a pH shift in
> the system at night from excess CO2 which could be harmful to some
> higher life forms. (in large saltwater aquariums, they sometimes counter
> this by turning on the algae scrubber lights when it's dark in the tank.)
>
> As for animals, I minimally put a cleanup crew of a few snails in.
> They scrub the walls so when you do get something interesting
> in the sphere, you can see it. ;)
>
> As for quantity of plants... hard to say. I used to eyeball it.
> Couple lemma minor, some java moss, mayby java fern if it was handy.
> Probably not more than half the "volume". (counting the water space
> between the leaves as part of the plant allotment.)
>
> --
> flip
> When you see beyond yourself
> then you may find, peace of mind
> is waiting there. --George Harrison
>
>
>


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

--- In homemadebiospheres@yahoogroups.com, the_jon_person <no_reply@...> wrote:
>
> I am working to start my first biosphere to keep myself occupied during the
day and I have a couple questions on what I should be adding to it.
>
> I can not decide on the number of plants I should add to my biosphere, Does
anyone know about how many leafy plants (please include sizes of plants in your
answers if possible) should I add for every, lets say, cubic foot of soil?
>
> Also, Would I be okay with only bacteria and plants in biosphere or should I
add a few critters to help balance out the O2 CO2 etc. levels.
>
> Thanks
>

There are no hard and fast rules regarding number of plants per square foot or
such. Different species will have different needs and different conditions will
also set limits on the number of plants you can have.

There are also different philosophies regarding density of planting in a closed
system. I prefer to underplant my biospheres where others prefer to pack the
biosphere full of plants.

Animals aren't really necessary fo a biosphere and plants and bacteria will be
fine and provide plenty of their own O2/CO2 to cycle. Animals require more
specialized conditions by and large and are more sensitive to disruptions.
Snails are often pretty tough though as mentioned earlier.

A plant only tank will often last for months to years depending on the set-up
but in my experience most biospheres that include animals run down to brown
residue within a few months unless they are very specially designed, and usually
this means much more complicated and expensive than the average hobbyist
aniticpated.

the_jon_person <no_reply@yahoogroups.com> writes:
> Also, Would I be okay with only bacteria and plants in biosphere or
>should I add a few critters to help balance out the O2 CO2 etc. levels.

Remember that in the absense of light, plant cells respire. (use O2 and
release CO2.)  if you have too many plants, you can cause a pH shift in
the system at night from excess CO2 which could be harmful to some
higher life forms. (in large saltwater aquariums, they sometimes counter
this by turning on the algae scrubber lights when it's dark in the tank.)


As for animals, I minimally put a cleanup crew of a few snails in.
They scrub the walls so when you do get something interesting
in the sphere, you can see it. ;)

As for quantity of plants... hard to say.  I used to eyeball it.
Couple lemma minor, some java moss, mayby java fern if it was handy.
Probably not more than half the "volume". (counting the water space
between the leaves as part of the plant allotment.)


--
flip
   When you see beyond yourself
   then you may find, peace of mind
   is waiting there.    --George Harrison

I am working to start my first biosphere to keep myself occupied during the day
and I have a couple questions on what I should be adding to it.

I can not decide on the number of plants I should add to my biosphere, Does
anyone know about how many leafy plants (please include sizes of plants in your
answers if possible) should I add for every, lets say, cubic foot of soil?

Also, Would I be okay with only bacteria and plants in biosphere or should I add
a few critters to help balance out the O2 CO2 etc. levels.

Thanks

"sjgarcia1958" <sjgarcia@...> writes:
> I seem to remember in the 70s using a layer of crushed charcoal
>(as in that used for aquarium filters) as a bottom layer, under the dirt.
>I don't recall why, though.
I've heard it's to keep it "sweet". I believe the activated charcoal will help
absorb bad chemicals in the system. Also, it'll provide surface area for
denitrifying
bacteria and some drainage so the soil isn't sitting in any pooled water.

--
flip

I'm new at this, so consider my reply in that light.

I prefer glass because it's typically more clear, thus it just looks better to
me.  If you use a metal can and lid, no sunlight would reach your system. 
Wouldn't it die in a hurry with no sunlight?

Soil and land plants would be great.  Back in the 70s folks used to do just
this.  Read up on "terrarium".  I think you'll want a good seal because the
water that evaporates from the dirt and expirates from the plants is the only
water that your plants will get.  It needs to condense on the inner walls of the
container and run back down into the dirt.  If it escapes, then your plants will
not have enough water.

I seem to remember in the 70s using a layer of crushed charcoal (as in that used
for aquarium filters) as a bottom layer, under the dirt.  I don't recall why,
though.

Good luck.

Steve


--- In homemadebiospheres@yahoogroups.com, tejjammy <no_reply@...> wrote:
>
> This is my first post and i have a few doubts which i believe you all could
clear.
> They are :
>
> > Instead of using glass bottles or spheres, can i use a large PET bottle or a
can?
>
> > Instead of a common theme of an aquatic ecosystem, can i have an ecosystem
in which i ass soil and some land plants?
>
> > How long should i wait before sealing the ecosystem?
>
> Waiting for replies........
>

This is my first post and i have a few doubts which i believe you all could
clear.
They are :

> Instead of using glass bottles or spheres, can i use a large PET bottle or a
can?

> Instead of a common theme of an aquatic ecosystem, can i have an ecosystem in
which i ass soil and some land plants?

> How long should i wait before sealing the ecosystem?

Waiting for replies........

Hi,

I started an approx 1 litre aquatic sphere a couple of months ago.  Two ghost
shrimp died after a couple of weeks.  Guess I was overly optimistic with them in
that container.  A 0.5 in diameter snail remains.  He/she keeps the glass quite
clean, though I'm getting a thick buildup of algae on the two plants.

When I start another, I'd like to have an algae consumer to keep the plants
somewhat clean.  Any ideas?

Steve

On Wikipedia they say:
Tardigrades occur over the entire world, from the high Himalayas (above
6,000 m), to the deep sea (below 4,000 m) and from the polar regions to the
equator.
The most convenient place to find tardigrades is on lichens and mosses. Other
environments are dunes, beaches, soil and marine or freshwater sediments, where
they may occur quite frequently (up to 25,000 animals per litre). Tardigrades
often can be found by soaking a piece of moss in spring water.[3]
Tardigrades are polyextremophiles
and are able to survive in extreme environments that would kill almost
any other animal. Some can survive temperatures close to absolute zero[4],
temperatures as high as 151 °C (303 °F), 1,000 times more radiation than any
other animal[5], nearly a decade without water, and even the vacuum of space.[6]
If you got everything from a Wild source, I would be willing to bet you have
Water bears, I hope this helps/


--- On Wed, 2/11/09, Rymel <rymelsleeps@...> wrote:
From: Rymel <rymelsleeps@...>
Subject: Re: [Homemade Biospheres] Re: Room for tardigrades or water bears in  a
home biosphere?
To: homemadebiospheres@yahoogroups.com
Date: Wednesday, February 11, 2009, 10:57 PM












             how would they be in the water already?  where are they common?



On Sun, Feb 8, 2009 at 12:28 AM, toadeye48 <toadeye48@yahoo. com> wrote:



>   --- In homemadebiospheres@ yahoogroups. com<homemadebiospheres
%40yahoogroups. com>,

> sebre <no_reply@.. .> wrote:

> >

> > Would water bears be suitable for a home biosphere?

> >

> I would be surprised if they weren't already in your biosphere

> unintentionally. They are

> tough little buggers.

>

>

>



[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]


































[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

how would they be in the water already?  where are they common?

On Sun, Feb 8, 2009 at 12:28 AM, toadeye48 <toadeye48@...> wrote:

>   --- In
homemadebiospheres@yahoogroups.com<homemadebiospheres%40yahoogroups.com>,
> sebre <no_reply@...> wrote:
> >
> > Would water bears be suitable for a home biosphere?
> >
> I would be surprised if they weren't already in your biosphere
> unintentionally. They are
> tough little buggers.
>
>
>


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

--- In homemadebiospheres@yahoogroups.com, sebre <no_reply@...> wrote:
>
> Would water bears be suitable for a home biosphere?
>
I would be surprised if they weren't already in your biosphere unintentionally. 
They are
tough little buggers.

Any thoughts on a magnifying biosphere or biosphere attachment?

Would water bears be suitable for a home biosphere?

I don't think crayfish would do so well in an aquatic biosphere, since
they're carnivores that would require a continual suppy of largish prey
items (like small guppies) to sustain them.

I would recommend using an air tight container so your water vapor doesn't
escape.  I
can't spare many words, I'm too busy.  I hope this helps!

--- In homemadebiospheres@yahoogroups.com, "tyebye2002" <tyebye2002@...> wrote:
>
> I attempted to make a terrestrial biosphere a few months ago out of
> one of those plastic containers that grocery stores use for holding
> pasteries and such.
> It had a 2.5cm of dirt in it X-x I think theres clay in it because it
> held water really well. The surface area of the dirt was about 11cm X
> 10cm.
>  I placed in it a few small leafy plants, two different dandelion
> species, the one that most people are familiar with, and a smaller
> one that has "Hairy leaves". There was also a lot of moss.
> I had place a small bottlecap in one corner and filled it with water
> to make a sort of pond or pool of drinking water ^-^; (I remember
> from a guide on caring for millipedes that they need a small amount
> of drinking water). I had even made a mechanism from a chamber I
> attached to the roof of the container and a sheet of plastic with
> holes scattered throughout it to simulate rain.
>
> For animals, I had:
> 4 wood lice(AKA "Pill Bugs")
> 3 millipedes
> 1 white slug X-x don't know the species
>
> The animals all seemed pretty content with their environment for the
> entire 4 months they lived in it @___@ but two things went wrong that
> caused a total die-off of the biosphere(or at least I believe these
> are the two main causes):
> 1- The rain simulator broke X-x and the biosphere started slowly
> drying out(looking at it now theres some small holes in the roof from
> where the rain simulator broke)
> 2- All of the moss started releasing spores at once, and untill
> things started drying out, it looked like the spores were going to
> choke everything out. Only one of the pillbugs seemed showed any
> unhealthiness after it tho.
>
> So now I have a biosphere full of dry, fairly loose dirt that could
> hold water if I added some, full of dry dead plants, and animals.
>  One idea I was considering was filling dumping all of into a larger
> container, adding some new dirt as well, perhaps some gravel or
> rocks, more animals, maybe an earthworm to turn the dead stuff into
> nutrients for the soil + new plants?
>
> any advice anyone can give me to prevent another die-off, or at least
> to prevent a total die-off for the same reasons as before?
>

Hi! I'm from america and I was wanting to start my own little
biosphere because I bought one from the store in a zoo once. Sadly my
newphew broke it while we were moving and I've never been able to find
a distributer in the United States.

Any tips, tricks, and beginner ideas would be very appriciated!

-- Hana

Mylar instead of plastic for your rain simulator and a glass container instead
plastic

 
--- On Sat, 12/13/08, tyebye2002 <tyebye2002@...> wrote:

From: tyebye2002 <tyebye2002@...>
Subject: [Homemade Biospheres] Terrestrial Biospheres?
To: homemadebiospheres@yahoogroups.com
Date: Saturday, December 13, 2008, 7:04 AM






I attempted to make a terrestrial biosphere a few months ago out of
one of those plastic containers that grocery stores use for holding
pasteries and such.
It had a 2.5cm of dirt in it X-x I think theres clay in it because it
held water really well. The surface area of the dirt was about 11cm X
10cm.
I placed in it a few small leafy plants, two different dandelion
species, the one that most people are familiar with, and a smaller
one that has "Hairy leaves". There was also a lot of moss.
I had place a small bottlecap in one corner and filled it with water
to make a sort of pond or pool of drinking water ^-^; (I remember
from a guide on caring for millipedes that they need a small amount
of drinking water). I had even made a mechanism from a chamber I
attached to the roof of the container and a sheet of plastic with
holes scattered throughout it to simulate rain.

For animals, I had:
4 wood lice(AKA "Pill Bugs")
3 millipedes
1 white slug X-x don't know the species

The animals all seemed pretty content with their environment for the
entire 4 months they lived in it @___@ but two things went wrong that
caused a total die-off of the biosphere(or at least I believe these
are the two main causes):
1- The rain simulator broke X-x and the biosphere started slowly
drying out(looking at it now theres some small holes in the roof from
where the rain simulator broke)
2- All of the moss started releasing spores at once, and untill
things started drying out, it looked like the spores were going to
choke everything out. Only one of the pillbugs seemed showed any
unhealthiness after it tho.

So now I have a biosphere full of dry, fairly loose dirt that could
hold water if I added some, full of dry dead plants, and animals.
One idea I was considering was filling dumping all of into a larger
container, adding some new dirt as well, perhaps some gravel or
rocks, more animals, maybe an earthworm to turn the dead stuff into
nutrients for the soil + new plants?

any advice anyone can give me to prevent another die-off, or at least
to prevent a total die-off for the same reasons as before?


















[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

I attempted to make a terrestrial biosphere a few months ago out of
one of those plastic containers that grocery stores use for holding
pasteries and such.
It had a 2.5cm of dirt in it X-x I think theres clay in it because it
held water really well. The surface area of the dirt was about 11cm X
10cm.
  I placed in it a few small leafy plants, two different dandelion
species, the one that most people are familiar with, and a smaller
one that has "Hairy leaves". There was also a lot of moss.
I had place a small bottlecap in one corner and filled it with water
to make a sort of pond or pool of drinking water ^-^; (I remember
from a guide on caring for millipedes that they need a small amount
of drinking water). I had even made a mechanism from a chamber I
attached to the roof of the container and a sheet of plastic with
holes scattered throughout it to simulate rain.

For animals, I had:
4 wood lice(AKA "Pill Bugs")
3 millipedes
1 white slug X-x don't know the species

The animals all seemed pretty content with their environment for the
entire 4 months they lived in it @___@ but two things went wrong that
caused a total die-off of the biosphere(or at least I believe these
are the two main causes):
1- The rain simulator broke X-x and the biosphere started slowly
drying out(looking at it now theres some small holes in the roof from
where the rain simulator broke)
2- All of the moss started releasing spores at once, and untill
things started drying out, it looked like the spores were going to
choke everything out. Only one of the pillbugs seemed showed any
unhealthiness after it tho.

So now I have a biosphere full of dry, fairly loose dirt that could
hold water if I added some, full of dry dead plants, and animals.
  One idea I was considering was filling dumping all of into a larger
container, adding some new dirt as well, perhaps some gravel or
rocks, more animals, maybe an earthworm to turn the dead stuff into
nutrients for the soil + new plants?

any advice anyone can give me to prevent another die-off, or at least
to prevent a total die-off for the same reasons as before?

Hi I'm a frensh student,
For my university I have to make my own biosphere. By now I collected
some amphipodes and very tiny snails.
I would be very gladfull if somebody could tell me what I could add and
what to do to prevent my biosphere from death and make it more likely
to survive peacefully :)
I was also looking for some special algues and plants that I coudn't
find, perhaps because it's not the most apropriate season...
I know I have to add some shells/stones, and it would be good if I
manage to catch some water flees.
If somebody has some tips to give to me I would be very pleased!
Hopefully you have more experience with biosphere than I do!

Look forward hearing from you!

I think I've documented my sealed jar system with aquatic weed and
crustaceans about 3/16" long. I think it survived about 6 years until
I moved to a different house and it didn't get the right amount of light.
bill keiser


>
>    I've been a member for a while but never posted before, I don't
> feel like typing much at the moment but I do have a quick question.
> What is the longest any of your biospheres have been able to sustain
> macroscopic  animal life?
>    My oldest is going on 15 months on the 3rd of October. It has at
> least two species of colonial algae(who knows how many microscopic
> species), only one species of vascular plant(have not taken the time
> to identify, and a strong population of daphnia.
>    It's only one quart, (probably the cause of it's low biodiversity)
> but hopefully my larger biospheres life as long with greater
biodiversity.
>     To sum things up, I wasn't sure whether to think of 15 months as
> extraordinarily old for a population of macroscopic animals or not.  I
> would appreciate the feedback.
>

I've been a member for a while but never posted before, I don't
feel like typing much at the moment but I do have a quick question.
What is the longest any of your biospheres have been able to sustain
macroscopic  animal life?
    My oldest is going on 15 months on the 3rd of October. It has at
least two species of colonial algae(who knows how many microscopic
species), only one species of vascular plant(have not taken the time
to identify, and a strong population of daphnia.
    It's only one quart, (probably the cause of it's low biodiversity)
but hopefully my larger biospheres life as long with greater biodiversity.
     To sum things up, I wasn't sure whether to think of 15 months as
extraordinarily old for a population of macroscopic animals or not.  I
would appreciate the feedback.

Did you know this site ?

www.little-gaia.com

someone know ?

Just try mushrooms, likens, dirt and wood  ;-)
Ohhh and a little bit of water, 2 teaspoons

Pedro Pereira

   ----- Original Message -----
   From: targetaddress
   To: homemadebiospheres@yahoogroups.com
   Sent: Wednesday, August 13, 2008 3:58 AM
   Subject: [Homemade Biospheres] Creative biosphere.


   I've made a couple biospheres before, but they were both very simple
   algae with snails and a single plant. Yes they were somewhat easy and
   lasted for a while, but they weren't very interesting to show people.
   Does anybody have any advice for me about a more interesting set up?
   I'm thinking about fish or some brine shrimp. I'm not really sure of
   the size of the tank yet, and I'm open to almost any size. (by this I
   mean I intend to build a tank, probably in steam punk design if you
   must know).

   I'm open to suggestion about everything, give me dimensions and names
   of things, and I'll try it.





[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

A few months ago I started to get interested in EcoSpheres, and I
discovered a site of what seemed to be a decent experiment, It is
advertised as 2.5yrs old.

http://www.discoverpotsdam.com/~ecosphere/

Thats the website. I was just wondering if there was an email to that
person or something?

I've made a couple biospheres before, but they were both very simple
algae with snails and a single plant. Yes they were somewhat easy and
lasted for a while, but they weren't very interesting to show people.
Does anybody have any advice for me about a more interesting set up?
I'm thinking about fish or some brine shrimp. I'm not really sure of
the size of the tank yet, and I'm open to almost any size. (by this I
mean I intend to build a tank, probably in steam punk design if you
must know).

I'm open to suggestion about everything, give me dimensions and names
of things, and I'll try it.

What do you want to put in your biosphere. Snails, plants, and fish
are pretty easy and basic to work with.

You need to do research of animals that eat algae...those will be your
best bet for creatures you can put in a biosphere.

--- In homemadebiospheres@yahoogroups.com, "crashinnerd"
<laboutique_brandy@...> wrote:
>
> I need help to make a biosphere. give me step-by-step instructions on
> how to make one. Thank you! = )
>

In my experience with keeping snails they tend to multiply like crazy,
but usually only when they feel like conditions are right (for the
babies). And even if the snails were to multiply further only a few
would survive...survival of the fitessed of course.

--- In homemadebiospheres@yahoogroups.com, "carye1" <carye1@...> wrote:
>
> I have a 1/2 gallon biosphere that I started in the beginning of
> April. It started out with a very small fish, a snail for keeping
> things cleaned up, and a cryptocoryne spiralis plant to assist with
> the 02 levels. For the first 6 weeks, things weren't going so well.
> The plant looked sick, and then the fish died. About one week after
> the fish died, things stabilized very well. The plant is now looking
> extremely healthy, and the snail has doubled in size.
>
> The problem is that when I put the bioshpere together, I didn't
> understand the physiology of snails -- and now there are about 18
> small snails in the sphere. My question is, what can or should I do?
> On one hand, I think that maybe I should just let things run the
> natural course. But on the other hand I am really thinking that they
> will keep mulitplying. Any suggestions?
>
> Also, I want to create a marine biosphere with a very small
> Halocaridina Rubra (or similar) shrimp. I don't have an establised
> marine tank, so where can I get some water and sand to create a
> marine biosphere? What kinds of plants should I use? What else should
> I include?
>
> Oh, another question - someone mentioned that they had a bioshpere
> with live bloodworms living in the sand - where do you get those? I
> live in the PAC NW, so I cant just get them out of the local streams,
> can I?
>
> Thanks,
>
> Cary
>

Mosquito fish don't have eggs, they are livebearing fish. They were
probably just hiding amongst the plants and debris in your
container...that's what mine do.

--- In homemadebiospheres@yahoogroups.com, "Bill Keiser" <bk2@...> wrote:
>
>
> > what will the guppy eat?
> >
> >   ----- Original Message -----
> >   From: smartboy5765
> >   To: homemadebiospheres@yahoogroups.com
> >   Sent: Sunday, April 06, 2008 4:58 AM
> >   Subject: [Homemade Biospheres] will this last long?
> >
> >
> >   I put 1 male guppy and an anubius nana plant in a 1.6L jar. I
picked
> >   one of my uglier(i have hundreds) guppies and took water from the
> tank
> >   he was in. I left air room at the top to allow for exchange of
gasses
> >   from the water to the air and then sealed it. Will it last long?
> >
>
>  i've had small gambusias, (mosquito fish) live in an open gallon jug
> for months. actually, they appeared spontaneously months after i
> collected the wild stream water. at first one appeared, then 4 or 5
> more. i'm not sure if the eggs had been dormant all that time, or what.
>  i doubt they would have survived with the jar sealed, though.
>  i have had a sealed quart jar with amphipods, cyclops etc. and
> hornwort survive for 5 or 6 years in a windowsill.
> bill keiser
>