Filterless and airless tank!

Question
Hi Karen, thanks for your email.
I live in India in a city where there doesn't seem to be too much interest in fish -keeping :-(
The only fish I can get here are:
Angels
Goldfish
Koi carps
neon tetras
Tiger barbs
Guppies
Mollies
Kissing Gouramis
Blue gouramis
Golden snails ( but I don't like snails)

We don't get anything else.
What should I do?

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The text above is a follow-up to ...

-----Question-----
Hi KAren,
I was gifted a beautiful Chinese Ming dynesty bowl which can take about 5 gallons of water. I already have an aquarium which has filters and the works... my question is:
I recently went to China and saw them keep a couple of Koi's in a bowl (the same size as mine) with no filter or oxygen pump. The owner of the bowl said that he never changes the water and the fish have been with him for a year... they grow well and the plants in his bowl were thriving...
so when i got this gift, i thought i'd do the same... but went online to check if it was really ok to have koi carps in a bowl that size with no filter or oxygen pump....and was disappointed to find out taht you can't.... is this true? I have my heart set on making thsi bowl into a fish tank/pond!
If carps are not an option, what are the other fish (besides a beta - as I already have one in a seperate bowl) that i can have in this bowl with no oxygen/filteration in place?
Help!!!
-----Answer-----
Dear Natasha,
What a odd setup. I've never heard of keeping koi in a bowl. It is well known and as you now know that Koi grow far too large, need far too much space, and produce a high bioload to be kept in anything less than a pond. They must have a large filtered enviroment and one of the most important things with koi is to make sure their pond is well-aerated.

Now I do understand that any hardy fish could live in even a very unsuitable enviroment. But they likely are not thriving. Think of it as the same way humans can endure and live for years in extreme weather conditions and a poor enviroment but this does not mean they are happy and thriving there.

Please remember not even goldfish should ever be kept in a bowl. In fact there has even been a law passed making it illegal to keep a goldfish in a bowl.

I'm really glad you did the research before you decided to get koi. That was a very responsible thing to do!

There are very few fish that can survive in a bowl without filteration or oxygenation. But you may certainly try having it well-planted and try keeping a small gourami species. Dwarf gouramis come to mind, they are very small and beautiful fish and they possess a special breathing organ called a "Labyrinth" (like bettas) and can breath atmospheric air. A planted aquarium will further help filter the water but at least twice weekly water changes should still be done. Use a gravel vaccum just like a normal aquarium and siphon all debri from the bottom and regularly trim the plants. You will also want to make sure your 5gallon bowl must not get too low in temperature. Gouramis thrive best in water in the mid 70's to 80F. You could purchase a small tank heater available at "Drsfosterandsmith.com" simply type in their search box- "Mini Heater" and you will be taken to their special heater specifically for small water volumes like yours.

Another fish I had in mind was the lovely Paradise fish. Remember to only keep one. But they are truly beautiful, hardy, air-breathing fish that don't require a lot of room and would love a planted enviroment as well. They also are tolerant of cooler temperatures than most other gouramis.

A tiny little schooling fish you might also consider is White clouds. They are small, thrive best at cooler temperatures, and don't require too much room to be happy. Many people even keep them in bowls with a betta!

You might also think about tiny ghost shrimp and other kinds of small shrimp, african dwarf frogs, and snails that could live in your 5gal bowl. All these animals are quiet and docile and like the above mentioned fish, would thrive in a well-planted enviroment.

I really hope this helps and feel free to write with anymore concerns!

Best wishes,
Karen~

Answer
Hi Natasha,
Sorry that your fish selection is low. :(

I think guppies would be good in your current setup be sure to only have males or females.As guppies reproduce far too fast for such a small aquarium especially. Neon tetras would also be good. A small shoal of about 6 may be kept--maybe 7. Neons are quiet and beautiful fish that would especially appreciated warm heated and a well-established and well-planted tank.
If you are careful with maintenance, you could try keeping 3-4 Male guppies and small shoal of neons in your tank and that would be a very beautiful site indeed. You should be sure to have lots of live plants to help oxygenate the water. A much simpler step is a small little sponge filter just to be sure your fish are not without oxygen.

Is there anyway your local fishshop can't order some other species for you? Sometimes they will if you ask.

Best wishes,
Karen~

If you want to keep any of the other listed fish unfortunately a bigger aquarium would greatly be needed.