Andrew Rao: 35+ years with Indian Ornamental Fish: A candid discussion

If there is one person who can be considered a gold standard as far as knowledge about Indian Ornamental fauna is concerned. So when we traveled together to Satkoshia Wildlife reserve, we decided to ask Andrew a few questions about Indian Native Fish and Shrimps suitable for aquarium.

We are sure our viewers, whether you are an expert in Indian fish or you are thinking to try them for the first time, will find the discussion very helpful. With 35+ years of experience under his belt, you can learn about Indian Ornamental or Native fish from none other than Mr. Andrew Rao.

We interacted on a diverse set of topics.

0:00 Introduction
0:20 Introducing Andrew
3:15 Which Indian Fish or Shrimps are suitable for planted aquariums?
8:05 Types of Channa sp. suitable for planted aquariums?
10:45 Which types of Indian Ornamental Fish are popular among international aquarists?
14:45 How to acclimatize wild-caught fish?
17:00 Will I harm nature if I keep wild-caught fish?
23:00 Thoughts on breeding indigenous fish for the aquarium hobby

Listing out some species for ease of our viewers.

For planted aquarium: Pethia canius, Laubuka dadiburjori, Hordandia brittani, Hifin Barb, Drape Fin Barb, Pesudalaguvia sp. catfishes, Melon Barb, loaches from Schistura group, Honey Gourami etc

Fishes from Channa variety suitable for planted aquarium: Channa andrao, Channa bleheri, Channa pardalis, Channa stewarti and many more

We also learned about concerning facts like the loss of fish habitats due to:

Use of pesticides in tea gardens
Jute softening in North Bengal streams
Use of check dams for irrigation purposes in South India

We have given some links, in case viewers are decided to learn more about these factors of great concern.

https://assamteabreak.wordpress.com/2... https://www.deccanherald.com/city/ben...

It is very difficult to cover all aspects of this vast topic in one video, so fee free to ask questions that you might have and we will try our level best to get your queries addressed.

This video is a part of the series that we made on our trip to the state of Odhisha India in the month of March 2022. We have provided the links to the other parts in case our viewers are interested.
Aquarium shop visit in the city of Bhubaneswar:    • Bhubaneswar Aquarium Store Visit | ପପ...  
Setting up of a 3-sided open Nature Aquarium in Bhubaneswar:    • How to make a 90 cm (3ft) 3 side view...  

We sincerely thank fellow aquarist, Mr. Himadri Das, for providing us with the footage on channa species. Videography is done by Saikat from Ripples Team and our mentor Mr. Gautam Gupta. We also would like to thank Mr. Sailendu Mohanty of M/s. Pappu Aquariums and Birds, Bhubaneswar without whose help this trip would not have been possible.

Music for the video has been from our favorite Bensound: https://www.bensound.com/