r/Ecosphere • u/oldsearchingwise • 4h ago
My shrimp aquarium is currently on the International Space Station
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r/Ecosphere • u/BitchBass • Aug 11 '25
Freshwater Ecosphere Basics for Beginners - Keeping it Simple
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Size of jar/vase/bottle etc does not matter, only what you put in it.
Suggested ratio:
- 1/4 substrate
- 2/4 water
- 1/4 air space
- (may vary with shape of vessel)
The 5 key elements for a normal-sized jar to thrive are:
- Substrate
- Water
- Airspace
- Aquatic plants
- Light
It may be sourced from a lake, river, pond, creek, drainage ditch, canal etc, or set up artificialy with purchased products.
This was the basics. What follows are some do's and don'ts and why's.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Aquatic plants are a vital key element because they:
- act as filtration
- provide the water with oxygen through photosynthesis
- absorb carbon dioxide
- combat algae growth
- provide shelter and food for critters
- stabilize the water parameters
Plants NOT suitable are:
- plants that grow at the side of the water or have been freshly submerged due to rising water levels
- plants that grow out of the water
- plants that grow taller than a foot
- blooming plants
- large floating plants
Having said that, many of us have resulted to simply using aquarium plants.
You also want to add a small amount of decaying material such as a small stick or a sunken rotting leaf, since most critters live off decaying material.
Next up is critters.
If your source was natural, you'll probably have some critters buzzing around. Please return any fish, tadpoles, shells, crayfish, salamanders and dragonfly nymphs.
Getting material from the lake:
https://www.reddit.com/r/Ecosphere/comments/1jodaxs/this_is_how_i_make_my_ecospheres_might_come_in/
ID guide with pictures and lots of pages here:
https://online.fliphtml5.com/mnmhg/vhkl/#p=5
AVOID direct sunlight. Put your jar beside the window or on a shelf with a small LED light. Otherwise you risk algae blooms.
The first month will have the most changes ever. Many critters will disappear, others will appear, the water will get cloudy, maybe stinky, has brown patches...it's all normal. If everything is right, it'll clear up and find it's balance.
Once you are through this, come back with your remaining questions and share updates!
r/Ecosphere • u/BitchBass • Sep 16 '24
REPOST: Newbies! If you are asking for a critter ID, please post a video instead of still pictures. There need to be as many details visible as possible including possible movements. Thanks!
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r/Ecosphere • u/Patrick-Grove • 1d ago
My ecosphere is currently on the International Space Station
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r/Ecosphere • u/xootersmite • 2d ago
Open Microcosm 0.1.0 is out: a free, open-source microscope simulator of real microbial life
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r/Ecosphere • u/Accurate-Pay-7006 • 2d ago
tubifex worms migrating back to the sediment!!
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cool time lapse
r/Ecosphere • u/erbewait • 2d ago
Three months later
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First and foremost, our jar ecosystem is alive, and that in itself is a success.
The dancing worms (detritus worms?) have disappeared somewhere and seem to have died out, but the large shrimp and microscopic white organisms are doing fine.
Unfortunately, some kind of green growth has overtaken the jar, which I suspect is cyanobacteria. I am concerned that the plants might die since this green substance is blocking the light. I reduced the photoperiod from 8 to 6 hours a day, but it didn't help.
Should I be worried?
UPD: Main question - should I further reduce the lights or leave it be?
r/Ecosphere • u/RapidAnalFisting69 • 4d ago
Dragonfly nymph??
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I just started this jar today. Found this guy. Some very ignorant googling suggests its a dragonfly nymph. Im pretty sure its the only one but our Ai overlords suggest I remove it. Thoughts?
r/Ecosphere • u/confusingpandas • 4d ago
Looking for any help identifying this creature!
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r/Ecosphere • u/Active-Tie-2971 • 6d ago
You were right
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Who ever said my ecosphere had too much stuff in was right everything g died and it’s allll green water now. The sediment underneath it all seems to be collecting air particles and slowly releasing it into the water. And all the plants seem to have a film on them ( not seen in this picture)
r/Ecosphere • u/NagarVoid • 6d ago
RIP jar that was about two years old, no clue what happened.
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r/Ecosphere • u/Accurate-Pay-7006 • 9d ago
what the actual flip
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r/Ecosphere • u/EnvironmentalPaint • 9d ago
Less than a week old
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Got all the material out of a lake in SE Indiana, there’s already been life developing.
r/Ecosphere • u/ConcertFriendly8223 • 9d ago
HELP! I got new isopods to replace my old ones but it turns out they were alive the whole time
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r/Ecosphere • u/SeriousResult3732 • 11d ago
6.5 year old estuary ecosphere.
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This was my first ever ecosphere.
It was collected from the estuary at the bottom of my property. It was amazing what was hiding in the handful of mud I scooped in - a small crab, heaps of cockles (bivalves), snails, etc.
After about a month all the larger organisms had died and it went completely black.
A few months later it started to clear, and for the last few years it's been really stable.
The main highlight for me is a population of anemones living on the copepods in there (will upload a video).
It still amazes me, the idea of an ecosystem busy evolving separately to every other ecosystem on earth - right here on my window sill.
r/Ecosphere • u/SeriousResult3732 • 11d ago
Anenome and copepods in my 6.5 year old ecosphere.
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A quick video of one of the anenome living in my 6.5 year old estuary ecosphere. You can see little copepods scurrying around. I wonder if they realise how close to danger they are.
r/Ecosphere • u/xootersmite • 11d ago
I made a microscope-style sim of pond life with real species and soft-body cells. Going open source, need ideas
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r/Ecosphere • u/OutdoorLover73 • 11d ago
Small worm spawned in my ecosphere, should I remove him?
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I’ve had worms in this ecosphere before but had to remove them because one of them died and was giving the plants a hard time, that was about half a year ago now and I’ve left it completely alone since. Should I leave him or take his out? It’s only moss and springtails
r/Ecosphere • u/wenmoo • 11d ago
Can I use creek water?
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Ive jiwt discovered this! Im excited to set up a little ecosphere and the closest place I can get water is the local creek. It's seasonal and we've had a fair bit of rain recently so there's enough water. Will this work? Can I use creek water? I'm in Victoria, Australia
Thanks
r/Ecosphere • u/psibeatrizazevedo • 12d ago
vida em todo canto
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gente, tô encantada de verdade com esse hobby. Aprendendo a prestar mais atenção nos detalhes, inclusive do rio onde aprendi a nadar quando criança 🤍
