Here are some of the weird tanks we spotted on display at the Interzoo trade show in Germany. Prepare to be amazed, wowed and appalled, and as ever, we welcome your comments below.
1. Get ready for the Euros!
Yep it's a planted tank made to look like a football pitch. The grass is Hairgrass, the players are Swordtails (in two team colours,) and the ref is the one in black. It was even floodlit by clip-on LEDs.
2. Oo-er saucy!
Umm, here is a tank by Zolux. It's small, made of glass, has a bust as an ornament and a candle holder on the side. What more can we say?
3. Fishkeeping in black and white
This one was on the Sicce stand, being used to show off some pumps and some new lights. As you can see it has black gravel, white pebbles and some white, coralesque sculptures in there. Not to our taste…
4. Jelly breaking the mould
A definite trend at this year's Interzoo was for jellyfish. The first three stands we visited all had jellyfish tanks, and it won't be long before you'll be able to buy one here in the UK.
5. The editor's tank
I'll do anything for some peace and quiet, so snuck under this tank and grabbed a photo opportunity at the same time. The fish didn't seem to mind…
6. The wall of death?
We've seen these before. We didn't stop to find out whether you could get into them or not but being tiny, stuck on a wall and with no filter or heater we certainly don't recommend them. Avoid.
7. Bling
Not to be outdone by their other creations, Zolux added some glass stones and a chandelier to this one. We think the feather boa sets this one off nicely. Not!
8. Optical illusion
Look closely and you'll see this tall tank has two tanks hanging off the sides of it, yet they're open topped! Any ideas on how they do it?
9. Chill out with the Betta Duo
As gift wear it may appeal to some, and it has the whole zen buddhism thing going on, but the tanks are intended to house singular Siamese fighters, and the black tiles can be used to separate them from each other's line of sight. Chilled is the right word, with no heater. Bored is another, as is poisoned, and doomed…
10. Kiss tank
Aquascaper extraordinaire Oliver Knott galvanised his reputation for "out there" aquascapes with this mossy Gene Simmons. That tank rocks!
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