Ecosphere (Aquarium)

Ecosphere is the brand name for a particular aquarium, whose inhabitants, enclosed in a glass globe, are viable without external intervention over several years. This provides a simplified, artificial "ecosystem" dar. Ecosphere is the English word for ecosphere.

Content

Inside the transparent spherical container are air, salt water, green algae and shrimp that feed on the green algae, and bacteria, which convert back as decomposers the excreta of the shrimp back into useable for the algae nutrient salts. In addition, a coral and stones and shells is in the glass to give the algae a backing. About daylight or artificial light energy is supplied. It is enough to hold the shrimp in these ecosystems for an average of 2 to 3 years of life.

However, there are also individual cases are known in which the Ecospheren are over 10 years alive. This is not much, because the shrimp have a natural life expectancy of over 10 years and the animals are said to have already grown in individual cases in the spheres.

When the shrimp is the kind Halocaridina rubra that can get along very long time with little food and lives of their body substance. This is an evolutionary adaptation to the natural habitat of this kind, which also includes underground nutritional and oxygen-poor waters. The species is very peaceful. Compared to the simple algae and bacteria, these shrimp are the most challenging type of simple ecosystem dar. Specially developed Ecospheres without shrimp ( containing only algae and bacteria) have remained alive for over 18 years.

Operation

The functioning and the basic principle behind the Ecosphere is relatively simple and therefore mimics natural ecosystems after. It is based on a self-contained fuel cycle, in which, however, constantly energy is "consumed", this can be the inhabitants of the Ecosphere divided into three parts:

Thus all important parts of the ecosystem are present, making the entire system, except for the necessary supply of energy in the form of light and heat from the environment, is completely self-sufficient. With regard to the consideration of the light need the choice of the site is of crucial importance; the ball may even get neither too much too little light. Recommended six to twelve hours of light a day, in which case both artificial light and daylight hours are meant. With underexposure, the algae can not develop properly, while it may cause an algal bloom with over-exposure, which is also bad for the balance in the Ecosphere.

Even when the temperatures are quite sensitive Ecospheren, mainly because of the shrimp. To keep the miniature ecosystem in the long term stable, the temperatures should permanently be between 15 ° C and 30 ° C and these extreme values ​​is best not fall below or exceed.

History of development

In 1849, Robert developed Warington, founder of the " Chemical Society " in London, the "Plant and fish pond", an ecological equilibrium system for maintenance-free attitude of two goldfish. Aquatic plants of the genus Vallisneria produced oxygen and food. As a garbage disposer mud snails, whose young were eaten by the fish served. In all probability, many types of bacteria and algae were involved in this experiment. In daylight the biological balance held for years.

A replica of this system in the form of a one-meter- wide water-filled glass sphere is located at the Natural History Museum of Vienna. In 1852, Justus von Liebig was in Munich inspired by the "Plant and fish pond" to his " Liebig 's world in the glass ," which was also a sealed aquarium.

An urban legend states that the Ecosphere was developed by NASA scientists to gain knowledge about the structure of ecosystems that. Someday food for long space flights, to deliver on other planets Life on space stations or colonies

Costs

The prices are on the order of about 100 € for a ball with about 10 cm diameter up to 1500 € at about 40 cm diameter sphere, where the balls are different besides the size and in the number of shrimp. In addition, usually comes a stand still in the range from 10 € to 20 €.

Criticism

In general, the keeping of animals in closed aquariums is not considered optimal in Aquaristikbereich. The shrimp die in the spheres usually far before reaching their normal life expectancy. It is therefore obvious that the shrimp suffocate or starve in the spheres within 1-3 years. Other shrimp species that are not adapted to life in extremely nutrient-poor and oxygen-poor environment would probably go even faster. Nor does it were a welfare because the animals have very little hiding places and little space available.

The criticism meet advocates of Ecosphere with the argument that a dead shrimp is eaten by the other shrimp and decompose the decomposers (bacteria and microorganisms ) residues within a few days. Because all the factors necessary for an ecosystem are present in the Ecosphere, it could not come at a nitrite poisoning, and even the food for the shrimp -rich due to the regrowth of algae. From an ecological perspective, however, it is clear that the condition for this is that the Ecosphere receives enough light, without the temperature fluctuates too much in the water. Unlike larger ecosystems (desert, sea, seashore, stream) there is no way to get through emigration or immigration of species or by replacing the atmosphere with neighboring areas, the living conditions after a failure in the balance in the Ecosphere.