Dennis Nakashima's Page


2 gallon tank in bathroom

3 gallon in bedroom has a 60watt bulb
over it that is on 8 hours per day

30 gallon tank in garage














A NOTE FROM
DAVID FUKUMOTO:

In Hawaii, there is a nice amount of sharing of information and I thank Dennis. I learned a lot from Dr. Sam Gon III and others and pleased that more are also assisting and sharing their experiences.

Since I began, the US Fish and Wildlife Service have removed all anchialine pond shrimp from the candidate list of threatened or endangered species.

Sam recently emailed: "Even if not a candidate or endangered or threatened, the 'opae'ula species should remain SOC "Species of Concern" since their coastal habitat is so easy to mess up."

UPDATE: EPA has issued clarifications regarding the use of fish-killer rotenone by licensed certified applicators to remove introduced alien predators. The Hawaii Department of Agriculture has been giving tests for licensed applicators. Some have passed the tests and rotenone is now being used to restore anchialine ponds!

Opae'ula are known to thrive in a full range of salinity and while the largest populations seem to be in almost pure fresh water, they are said to be able to live in water saltier than the ocean.

The problem with fresh water is that they allow mosquitoes to breed if the opae'ula population are not large enough to keep them under control. In our tanks we keep the salinity high enough so there are no mosquitoes. As Dennis reports, this higher salinity (or possibly just a change in salinity) may be a factor in reproduction.

I am hearing from more and more customers who are successful in getting reproduction in even our smallest ML-10 Micro-Utopia unit!

We are now working on larger units that combine all of the aesthetic features including breeding habitats for attractive easy-care usage in reception rooms, businesses and homes.

We are also running experiments on partial water changes if a surface film or scum appears on the water surface. I encourage email correspondence from anyone able to assist in improving our units and we'll share information on our website.

~~~David W. Fukumoto
email: david.f@fukubonsai.com

OPAE'ULA; THE STORY!

In 1978, I had bought an acre and a half in Milolii, which is on the Big Island of Hawaii. The property was about 34 miles south of Kailua Kona, which was the hub of civilization then and now. I had bought the property, with the intention of moving there someday and setting up a little piece of heaven , with a small cottage, water catchment- tank for drinking and bathing and many different kinds of birds and animals.

I purchased the property for only $8,300 cash and was very pleased with what I had acquired. It was about 2000 feet above sea level and at the very end of a narrow dirt road, which was about a mile from the main highway. It was very quiet, and cool there even during the day.

At night, the entire sky would be clear with not a cloud in sight. With the naked eye, you could see an entire canvas of stars and other heavenly bodies. It was a secluded area and without street lights. When there wasn't any moon, you couldn't even see your hand, even if it were placed right in front of your face.

I know all of this, because in October of 1978, I shipped up my 4x4 Brat with tent and camping gear, and spent about 2 months on my property. It was quite an experience, without any running water and no electricity. I used to go into Kailua Kona, every few days for supplies and mostly to see what the surf was doing.

I would spend all day at the beach, surfing, diving and drinking beers. It was Miller High Life at that stage of my life. What a great time I had. Not a care in the world except when I would have a cold beverage and where would I catch my next wave! I was alone almost everyday and I got used to being that way. It made me more spiritual, or maybe I am confusing it with intoxication at that time, without the distractions of friends and co-workers. I think I felt more "centered" (inebriated) by all that aloneness.

It was one of those trips into Kailua Kona one day that I had stumbled across an aquarium in the King Kam Hotel on Alii Drive. It was about a 40-gallon tank next to the window of what I think was a dive shop at that time. The tank contained coral for decoration and hundreds of tiny shrimps that were reddish in color.

I had never seen tiny shrimps like that before and stood there for a very long time, fascinated by them. They were so small and brightly colored that I knew I wanted some, except I didn't have an aquarium and I was only on the Big Island on a temporary visit. After two months, I left the Big Island and returned home to Oahu to my work, family and friends. I went about my daily routine, which was work, surf, beers, sleep . . . work, surf, beers, sleep . . . you get the idea.

Many years passed and on a visit to Maui, We were at Wainapanapa in Hana and were looking into a pool that was at the bottom of winding trail. Inside the pool were those little red shrimps that I had seen many years ago in Kailua, Kona. Again, I was fascinated by them and wished I had a net so that I could catch some and bring them back with me to Oahu. Reluctantly, without a net (who brings a net on a vacation) we left Maui when our vacation was over and came home to Oahu.

Again, many years had passed and one afternoon, I was in the Nature Store in Waikiki and noticed a biosphere for sale with those tiny red shrimps living in it. I was moved to go online and look up opae'ula to see if there was any information on them. I learned of the name opae'ula from one of my co-workers who had some at home as pets. That is how I came across David Fukumoto's web page and all the information I needed to start my own aquarium with opae'ula as it's inhabitants.

David and I emailed each other countless times and on October 16, 2005, on a vacation to the Big Island, I finally got to meet David in person. We talked and I listened intently to David as he shared much information about these little shrimps, their breeding habits, water salinity, life span, etc. David, was an encyclopedia in my opinion when it came to opae'ula and so I took careful mental notes on everything that he told me.

I left the Big Island with a jar full of opae'ula, lava rocks and pipipi. Upon returning home to Oahu, I set-up a 30 gal. tank, a two gal. tank and a three gal. tank all with opae'ula in them. The water salinity was 7 parts fresh to 1 part ocean water. I place the large gravel on a slope on the bottom of the tank, so that it would appear that all the gravel was on one side of the tank, piled up high and no gravel on the middle and other side of the tank. This is what I was instructed to do, for best results in breeding opae'ula.

The tanks were all placed close to lighted areas for maximum amount of indirect sunlight. Everything seemed right and now I just had to wait for the opae'ula to breed. I had expected babies in a few months, but nothing happened. I looked everyday for babies and was disappointed that nothing was happening. Then 20 months later, as I again peered into the aquarium, I saw them. Tiny red dots, about 6 of them floating near the surface of the tank.

I couldn't believe it, OPAE-ULA AT LAST!!! That was a few days ago. I Immediately emailed David Fukumoto to tell him the good news. I don't think he remembered who I was, because it had been 20 months since I had met him. He congratulated me and asked me what did I do to induce breeding. I don't know what I did, was my reply.

The only thing that might have triggered breeding was that a couple of months ago, I had noticed mosquito larvae in one of my opae'ula tanks. There were so many of them that I didn't want to take the time to catch each one, and so I increased the salinity of the water in the tank, with the hopes to kill the larvae. To do this, I introduced ocean water slowly, and in modest amounts, just enough to kill the mosquito larvae.

I poured ocean water in small amounts and waited to see if it had any effects on the mosquito larvae. After a few days, I noticed that the larvae appeared ill and so I stopped adding ocean water to the tank. In a few more days, all the (mosquito) larvae had died and so I had accomplished my goal.

I am guessing that the salinity is probably about 5 or 6 parts fresh water to 1 part ocean water. This is just conjecture, cause as they say in the islands... " I wen eyeball em".

I am hoping for better results as time goes by and will report any information that I think is helpful and pertinent to all who are interested.

Much Aloha,
Dennis Nakashima
Kaneohe, Hawaii
June 3, 2007