This perfectly transparent box has
rounded edges - a nice feature which will help in order to keep the corners clean
and easy to reach by means of a pipette. As the bottom part is made of one peace
we do not risk sudden breakage and water loss like the one encountered with
bigger (glued) aquaria. Due to the cover no water can evaporate. As a consequence the
water volume and salt concentration will remain constant for many weeks, even months.
There is only one important restriction to be taken into consideration:
this type of aquarium is a minimalistic aquarium - few inhabitants and tiny inhabitants
only.
Not allowed is anything living with a body size beyond a few millimeters:
fishes, hermit crabs, large shells and algae - all of these might ruin our well-balanced
equilibrium of life in the micro aquarium. Direct sunlight and excessive heat are strictly forbidden
whereas shell gravel and clean, grainy sand are perfectly welcome.
When following these precautions our sea water aquarium can stay in equilibrium
for many months, in some cases even several years. Of course there are no fishes
and no corals to be seen with the naked eye but there will be a tremendous
wealth of tiny organisms which can be studied by means of the microscope.
And you might be hundreds of miles away frome the sea!
Teachers and museum personel thus can present marine life at any given moment,
just by projecting a microscopic image onto a wall. Adieu formalin, welcome life!
The aquarium can easily be moved to another place and it is always ready for use.
And, strange enough, it is best to provide no additional food at all.
Even the sea water itself is full of surprises when letting evaporate tiny droplets of it
on a slide. Just have a look at the following example:
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