Marimo Design: Shiawase Bottle (幸せ瓶)

Marimo Design: Shiawase Bottle (幸せ瓶)

Shiawase Bottle (幸せ瓶) literally means Happiness Bottle. This tiny glass bottle is overflowing with happiness that will put a smile on the face of its lucky owner!

Each bottle comprises a small piece of fanwort, a Nano Marimo, and some gravels. The bottle is 4cm x 2cm x 2cm in size, which is relatively small compared to other Marimo designs but is nonetheless eye-catching and unique. The small size enables easier maintenance; just pour the water out and refill with clean water weekly, for which the whole process will take less than 10 seconds!

Limited amount available! Each for RM15, while stocks last.

Marimo Tips: Quick guide on how to clean a Marimo

Marimo Tips: Quick guide on how to clean a Marimo

Cleaning your pet Marimo every time you change its water is a must; a correct cleaning method will let your pet Marimo to thrive happily!

Nano Marimo

Prepare a bowl of water before you start cleaning. Place the Nano Marimo into the bowl of water after removing it from its original container. Squeeze the Nano Marimo gently in the water but do not place it under strong water flows. Should it be deformed, you can try to roll it timidly with your palm. After changing the water inside the original container, place the Nano Marimo back.


Dwarf/Giant/Super Giant Marimo 

The method to clean a bigger-sized Marimo is the same as for Nano Marimo, but you should not roll it. Remove any brown or white spot you found on the Marimo with scissors. Squeeze it gently to remove any filthy water trapped before returning it to its original container.


P/S: If your tap water is cloudy or yellowish, do not use it as it will harm your Marimo; use filtered water instead.

Marimo Tips: When Pieces of Marimo Falling Apart...

Marimo Tips: When Pieces of Marimo Falling Apart...

Some Marimo keepers may find, to their horror, that parts of their Marimo are disintegrating. So why does this happen?

If only a small part of Marimo falling apart:

1. The culprit might just be your Marimo's tankmates! Fishes such as goldfish, silverdollar and crayfish would chew on the Marimo as food, while many other playful fishes also enjoy pulling apart your Marimo just for the glory of Satan. So keep an eye or two on your aquarium community.

2. Strong water current may bash apart your Marimo. While it is good to keep your Marimo in flowing water, tsunami-like current is just a no-no.

3. Other conditions that might lead to disintegration include water's chemistry and temperature. If you find your Marimo to start falling apart after adding medicine/solution into the tank, stop usage or dilute your medicine/solution. High temperature may weaken your Marimo as well.

If your Marimo is collapsing like a house of cards:

1. Unfortunately, this might mean that the inner part of your Marimo has started rotting, which could be caused by many factors such as poor environment or negligence. Our condolences to you. 

2. To keep your hope up, a severe disintegration might just be a normal propagation process if you can rule out the aforementioned factors/conditions i.e. rotting centre, playful/aggressive family members tankmates, poor environment/care, etc. Congrats to you as this is a natural process when Marimo divides into smaller parts to restart its growth cycle.

Marimo's September Offer!

Do you know the Marimo's September offer is released already? Check out more on http://www.okeanosaqua.com/p/offers.html!

Marimo and Betta!

Marimo Design: Marimo & Betta tank

The idea of this design is to emphasize the flamboyance of betta fish with the greenish Marimo and a sombre background. The colour contrast is visually striking. This motif is perfect for Marimo owners who wish to have a lively betta-Marimo tank.


What you need:
1. Betta fish (half-moon type with vivid colours; white or dark colours are not recommended)
2. Glass cup (require bigger size)
3. Fanwort (fanwort can be bought on Okeanos E-aquairum)
4. Substrates (dull-coloured substrates; transparent or bright-coloured stones are not suitable)
5. Aquarium decoration (choose one that fits into your cup)
6. Marimo (Dwarf Marimo or Giant Marimo)

Do be aware that basic fish keeping knowledge (e.g. water de-chlorination, etc.) is required.

Estimated Set Up Cost: RM45

Maintenance: Daily fish feeding and weekly water change. Substrates/gravels have to be cleaned to remove trapped dirt.

Marimo Comparison!

Introducing two more sizes of Marimo that you can grab from our store!


Dwarf Marimo Moss ball!
Size around 3cm

and


Super Giant Marimo Moss Ball!
Size around 6cm

Comparison between different sizes of Marimo

New Year Offer!

This Chinese New Year only, grab the Marimo Prosperity Set at an amazing price!

Each set contains 3 Giant Marimo and a bottle of API Leaf Zone fertilizer (30ml). Furthermore, get a free nano marimo with each purchase of the Marimo Prosperity Set!

Only RM80 each set and include free Pos Laju shipping with tracking number! Ready stocks available, bottles not included.

And don't miss out another amazing offers of our Red Ramshorn Snails! At only RM15, grab a set of 10 red ramshorn snails with 30g algae wafer and 5 pieces weekends food block (calcium supplement)!

Chinese New Year Offer valid until 30th of January only.

Tango Orange & Heart Pink

Introducing two new sand colour, Tango Orange and Heart Pink! Add them to your Marimo collection today!

Get a 10% discount for Snails Vivarium and Good luck Marimo Pair when you select any one of these sand colour, discount valid until 15/12/13 only!

Guppy and Marimo

Guppies are great companion for Marimo as they help to keep ugly bugs/worms such as mosquito larvae away from your Marimo. Moreover, guppies are hardy fish that do not need aeration as long as you only keep few of them in your Marimo container. However, guppies could not survive in chlorinated water; you will need to treat the water with anti-chlorine which can be bought cheaply in most fish stores.

Octobers Offer!

It is already half way past October, have you checked our October's Special Offer? Save up to 15% on Giant Marimo, API Leaf Zone and aquarium thermometer!

Preparing the Good Luck Marimo Pair!

New Marimo in sock!

New Sand Colour, LED Green available for Bottled Marimo!

Check out the new LED Green sand for the bottled marimo! Choose the newly available sand on your next order of Good Luck Marimo Pair, no extra charges!


 

New Product----------The Good Luck Marimo Pair Set!

Good Luck Marimo Pair!

Each set contains two bottles of Nano Marimo (including sand), ideal as gift during wedding, birthday party, reunion or for your partners during special occasion! 

Now up for sell at only RM20! 

You can choose the colour of the sand when ordering, both red and white available.

March's Offer!

March Offers!

(Offer valid until end of March only)

Marimo Offer!

2 Giant Marimo and 1 nano marimo (with bottle) for only 

RM68.80

RM 56! 

Nano Marimo Offer!

Buy 4 nano marimo for only

RM30.00

RM 28! 

Snails Offer!

Two snails cleaning crew set (12 red ramshorn snails, 8 trumpet snails) for only 

RM18.00

RM 15! 

Our Nano Marimo Bubbling!

 Why do bubbling occur in Marimo? This is because healthy marimo will undergo photosynthesis, and during this process, the nano marimo will have small little cute bubble around them. This will normally occur when sufficient but not extreme amount of sunlight are presence around the marimo



 More photos on our bubbling healthy nano marimo!

Marimo Moss Ball

Marimo Moss Ball

A Gift from Mother Nature

What is Marimo?

Marimo is a Japanese word that consists of “ball” (mari; 毬) and “algae” (mo; 藻). It refers to the rare ball form of Aegagropila linnaei, a species of algae that could be found in limited numbers of lakes and seas in the Northern hemisphere. In the wild, Marimo’s spherical shape is gradually formed through A. linnaei’s rotation on sand caused by water flow (Sakai, 1991). Although up to 124 worldwide locations have been reported to be the habitat for Marimo (Boedeker et al, 2010a), Lake Akan in Japan and Lake Mývatn in Iceland are the only two places in which visible quantities still persist (UNESCO, 2011). Yet, collecting Marimo from these two locations is illegal; Lake Akan is a national park while Lake Mývatn is a nature reserve, and both have been included in The Ramsar List of Wetlands of International Importance. Furthermore, Marimo in Lake Akan has been declared as a National Treasure of Japan since 1921 (Yoshida, n.d.; Guiry, 2013) and it is also a protected species in Iceland since 2006 (Einarsson, 2008).Copy from Okeanos E Aquarium

Marimo in the Aquarium Trade

Most, if not all, Marimo sold in the market today are commercially farmed i.e. being grown vegetatively from fragments. A worldwide survey conducted by Boedeker et al (2010a) has concluded that all Marimo in the aquarium trade originated from Ukraine, and it is the same case for those sold in Japanese aquarium shops. Nonetheless, DNA sequence analyses such as that by Boedeker et al (2010b) have shown that all Marimo are of the same species regardless of their habitats, with Japan being the ancestral area.

Attractiveness of Marimo 

Marimo bear a certain likeness to the Earth in being green and round and in their need to rotate to receive light on all sides. In extremely rare occasion, they could develop white exterior (Marimo-web.org, n.d.). Due to their unique appearance, Marimo are popular as gifts. They symbolise eternal happiness, perpetual friendship, and everlasting love by virtue of their slow growth rate and long life span; studies by Acton (1916) and van den Hoek (1963) have indicated that Marimo grow by less than 1cm in diameter each year.

The tale Tragic Love Story of Senato and Manibe written by Aoki (1924) also helps to promote Marimo as a symbol of love. In the story, Senato, the daughter of Ainu tribe leader, secretly fell in love with Manibe of lower social standing. In one of their rendezvous, Manibe accidentally killed Senato’s formal fiancé who had attacked him. Resenting his action, Manibe threw himself into Lake Akan and Senato followed suit; their souls turned into a Marimo which represents fruitful conclusion of their love. Marimo have proven to be a unique and convenient gift item; it is even portrayed as a suitable souvenir from a trip to “Hell” in the anime The World God Only Knows: Tenri-Hen.

How to take care of a Marimo?

Maintaining a Marimo is an easy task. Its low requirements make it perfect for busy owners. Marimo can thrive in room temperature up to 30 degree Celsius; it requires indirect sunlight or moderate amount of artificial light to carry out photosynthesis, therefore it should not be exposed under direct sunlight for extended period as this will kill the poor little plant. 

Marimo requires regular water changes of at least once every fortnight. For Marimo kept in sealed bottles, water changes of at least once a week are needed to replenish the air content. Nonetheless, Marimo is not to be placed under strong running water which might break it apart. In a nutshell, a suitable location and weekly water changes are what it takes to maintain a Marimo!

Common Q&A

1. What is the growth rate and life span of Marimo?

Marimo grow very slowly at around 5 mm in diameter per year. The world largest Marimo is said to be 95 cm in diameter and around 200 years old, although those that exceed 30 cm could easily break the official records (JNTO, n.d.; Marimo.xrea.jp, 2002).

2. Why are there air bubbles around my Marimo?

This is known as pearling and it shows that your Marimo are carrying out photosynthesis. 

3. Can I use tap water to keep my Marimo?

Yes, you can use water directly from the tap to keep your Marimo. Unlike fishes, Marimo will not die because of chlorinated water.

4. Do I need to feed my Marimo?

No. Marimo create their food through photosynthesis. 

5. Can I keep fishes with Marimo.

Yes. It is recommended that Marimo be kept together with small fishes and shrimps. The former would gobble any annoying mosquito larvae while the latter could help to clean any debris of food used to feed the fishes. Marimo would also act as a natural water filter that removes ammonia which is harmful to fishes. However, beware that your Marimo might end up as perfect greens for some species of fishes (e.g. goldfish)Copy from Okeanos E Aquarium
.

6. Why is my Marimo floating?
A Marimo might float due to a large amount of air bubbles trapped inside it. This often occurs after water changes. It will sink over time by itself or you could help by gently squeezing it underwater. 

7. Why is my Marimo growing unevenly?
During growth, Marimo in aquarium might develop uneven parts. In the wild, Marimo keeps its ball shape thanks to constant water flow, but there is no such flow that keeps it round in your container. You could gently rub your Marimo to maintain its ball shape if you feel like to do so.

8. Will Marimo get sick?
Yes. Marimo will get sick and even die if not given proper care. Remember to change their water weekly and avoid extended exposure under direct sunlight or extreme temperature. Sick Marimo will turn brown in colour. 

9. Can I keep my Marimo inside a sealed bottle?
 Yes. This could prevent mosquitos from laying eggs in the water. However, frequent water changes must be carried out to provide the Marimo with fresh water and air.

10. Will Marimo cause algae boom in my tank?
No. Rest assure that Marimo are not known to lead to any alga problem.
uarium

Bibliography

Acton, E. (1916). “On the structure and origin of “Cladophora balls.”” New Phytologist, Vol. 15, pp. 1-10.

Aoki, J. (1924). Legends and Love Stories of Ainu. Sapporo: Fukido Shobo.Copy from Okeanos E Aquarium

Boedeker, Christian; Eggert, Anja; Immers, Anne; and Smets, Erik. (2010a). “Global Decline of and Threats to Aegagropila linnaei, with Special Reference to the Lake Ball Habit.” BioScience, Vol. 60(3), pp. 187-198.

Boedeker, Christian; Eggert, Anja; Immers, Anne; and Wakana, Isamu. (2010b). “Biogeography of Aegagropila linnaei (Cladophorophyceae, Chlorophyta): a widespread freshwater alga with low effective dispersal potential shows a glacial imprint in its distribution.” Journal of Biogeography, Vol. 37, pp. 1491-1503.

Einarsson, Arni. (2008). “Marimo lake balls in Mývatn.” Nattura.info. Retrieved from nattura.info/2008/09/22/marimo-lake-balls-in-myvatn as at 19th October 2013.

Guiry, M. D. in Guiry, M. D. and Guiry, G. M. (2013). “Aegagropila linnaei Kützing.” AlgaeBase. World-wide electronic publication, National University of Ireland. Retrieved from www.algaebase.org/search/species/detail/?species_id=59094 as at 19th October 2013.

JNTO (Japan National Tourism Organization). (n.d.). "Marimo Matsuri." Retrieved from www.jnto.go.jp/eng/location/spot/festival/marimo.html as at 19th October 2013.

Marimo-web.org. (n.d.). “Marimo in Japan; Marimo Worldwide.” Retrieved from www.marimo-web.org/japan_world.html (website in Japanese) as at 19th October 2013.

Marimo.xrea.jp. (2002). "Year-End Plan." Retrieved from marimo.xrea.jp/corner/marimo2002.html (website in Japanese) as at 19th October 2013.

Sakai, Y. (1991). Science of Aegagropilas. Sapporo: Hokkaido University Press.

Author: Neoh Jia En Okeanos E Aquarium

UNESCO. (2011). “Mývatn and Laxá.” Retrieved from whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/5586/ as at 19th October 2013.

van de Hoek, C. (1963). Revision of the European Species of Cladophora. E. J. Brill.

Yoshida, Tadao. (n.d.). “Marimo.” Japan Integrated Biodiversity Information System. Retrieved from www.biodic.go.jp/cgi-db/gen/rdb_g2000_sy2.RDB_DETAIL?code=B0015&rank=&search_str=%a5%de%a5%ea%a5%e2&start_row=1&gaku_n=&bunrui=% (website in Japanese) as at 19th October 2013.

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