Plant List for Papua New Guinea Biotopes

[BambitheBiotopeBuddy]

Hello all!
I recently acquired the book Freshwater Plants of Papua New Guinea written by Gregory Leach and Patrick Osborne of the University of Papua New Guinea through an interlibrary loan. I offer here the plant list contained therein in hopes that it will be of some aid to anyone else researching the appropriate plants to include in a Papua New Guinea Biotope. Note that Salvinia molesta, Eichhornia crassipes, Pistia stratiotes, Hydrilla verticillata, Cabomba caroliniana, Sagittaria playphylla, and S. subulata are all introduced species. For determining the precise distribution of the various species, I have found the Austalasian Virtual Herbarium to be an invaluable resource and more thorough than the distribution information supplied with the species accounts of the book. It is worth noting that the book was published in 1985 and further research has revealed the presence of plants not included here. Nonetheless I have found it to be a valuable part of my research and think it worth sharing. Enjoy, and do let me know if this was useful to you in your endeavors!

 

[zozo]

Nice and interesting list thanks for sharing.

are all introduced species.

I guess there are a few more... At first glance the ones I know are Utricularia minor tho on the red list it is also found in Western Europe and the Nymphaea nouchali is also known as the Egyptian water lily. For most of not all lilies, the true origin is a mystery since 5000-year-old references about the cultivation of these plants exist. Since the earliest are Asian manuscripts they suspect an Asian origin but nobody really knows. Not only do humans spread plants over the world animals do too, especially the birds that can migrate vast distances in relatively short periods.

 

[dw1305]

Hi all,

I have found it to be a valuable part of my research and think it worth sharing

Definitely is. We have a thread <"Cryptocoryne dewitii"> and there should be some biotope bits in <"Rainbowfishes ~ Their Care & Keeping in Captivity Second Edition - 2011">

A few of the plants on the list are available commercially, although they tend to be species that are very widely distributed globally. These are the ones I can think of from the list, but there are probably others:

Microsorum pteropus
Ceratopteris thalictroides
Cryptocoryne ciliata
Ceratophyllum demersum
Blyxa sp.
Ottelia alsimoides
Lemna trisulca
Hydrocotyle sibthorpioides

cheers Darrel

 

[Fiske]

Sometime during the coming year I'll be setting up a low tech tank (with a lid!!) for peacock gudgeons. I've already decided that it will be species only, and have given a bit of thought to going full biotope. I'm thinking sand, driftwood and leaflitter.
Plants so far would probably include M. pteropus and according to this thread 😅 C. thalictroides, and maybe one more.
So far the biggest hurdle seems to be getting biotope correct leaflitter, although I guess catappa could be used?
Not being hysterically purist I hope something like ADA Colorado sand would be suitable.
As you can guess, since the plant list is so short, it seems sourcing appropriate hard scape materials is the hardest.
We got any members in PNG?😂

 

[BambitheBiotopeBuddy]

Sometime during the coming year I'll be setting up a low tech tank (with a lid!!) for peacock gudgeons. I've already decided that it will be species only, and have given a bit of thought to going full biotope. I'm thinking sand, driftwood and leaflitter.
Plants so far would probably include M. pteropus and according to this thread 😅 C. thalictroides, and maybe one more.
So far the biggest hurdle seems to be getting biotope correct leaflitter, although I guess catappa could be used?
Not being hysterically purist I hope something like ADA Colorado sand would be suitable.
As you can guess, since the plant list is so short, it seems sourcing appropriate hard scape materials is the hardest.
We got any members in PNG?😂

It can certainly be difficult to acquire strictly accurate hardscape, but luckily and its perfectly acceptable to make substitutions with similar-looking materials and there are few truly distinctive stones, sticks, etc. In the Biotope Aquarium Project entry for the original location of your gudgeons (here) you can see that the stones are quite like the generic "river rock" sold at many landscaping outlets. Leaves can also be easily substituted when they are of the vaguely oblong sort. Only if you use dramatically different and distinctive leaves like oak would it stand out as atypical for the location you are emulating.

 

[Fiske]

Something like what's shown in the video should be fairly simple to recreate, I can pick up suitable stones in my garden some twiggy wood and get some leaves, ADA Colorado sand seems fitting.
Funny that of all the gobies in the video, none seemed to be peacocks but rather Stiphodon sp.
I guess I'll go biotope when I start that project.

 

[BambitheBiotopeBuddy]

Something like what's shown in the video should be fairly simple to recreate, I can pick up suitable stones in my garden some twiggy wood and get some leaves, ADA Colorado sand seems fitting.
Funny that of all the gobies in the video, none seemed to be peacocks but rather Stiphodon sp.
I guess I'll go biotope when I start that project.

While they are not show in the footage, Bleher specifically mentions them in his account of the location, along with other species not shown such as Pseudomugil furcatus.