Are you ready for the stupendous, spectacular double all-day, back-to-back events in less than 2 weeks? If you haven't already blocked your calendars for Saturday, September 30 and Sunday, October 1, don't delay.

Join us tomorrow for our September feature presentation by Shane Linder. About PVAS Member Shane (on the left in above photo) Catfish expert and naturalist Shane Linder is the “Shane” behind Planetcatfish.com‘(http://Planetcatfish.com)s Shane World. Shane’s World houses well over 150 articles by various catfish experts making it the largest such resource known to exist. Shane is also a frequent contributor to several US and international aquarium periodicals and has been a guest speaker at numerous fish conventions in the US and Europe. From 2000-2020 Shane lived and collected fishes extensively in Venezuela, Colombia, Mexico, South Africa, Uganda, and Nigeria. He has made additional collecting expeditions into Ecuador, Peru and Brazil. The September PVAS Program: Fats, Flats, and Gnats: The Pleco Subfamilies.

See everyone at tomorrow's meeting where we will enjoy a feature presentation by Jennifer Williams on building backyard biotopes. About Jen I got my first tank when I was seven and went through the appropriate array of guppies, barbs, and tetras through to my first encounter with keeping cichlids when I was in high school. Years later, in response to a craigslist ad I posted stating “Firemouth Cichlids, bring a net and a bucket”, I was introduced to something I wasn’t expecting… a formidable former Army Lieutenant in my living room filling his bucket with fish, and telling me all about local fish clubs and planted tanks. Armed with a healthy dose of curiosity at what kind of characters would be at a fish club meeting, I attended my first GWAPA gathering and was completely hooked. Serving on the Board in several positions (including President) I have also enjoyed participating in events with the other local clubs and the true friendships I have made in this hobby. I currently also sit on the board for the Aquatic Gardener's Association (AGA). To date, I have a stack of ribbons from aquascaping contests, including most recently a repeat win at the 2015 Aquatic Experience/AGA Aquascaping Live! Invitational Competition in Chicago, IL for my 75 gallon entry collaboration with Rachel O'Leary and her daughters. I am also an avid fan of Blue-eyed Rainbowfish (specifically Pseudomugil) and enjoy keeping and breeding them with the rest of my eclectic assortment of fish. To pay the electric and water bills that accompany all of the assorted gallons of aquatic madness, I work as a Graphic Designer…and also enjoy fast cars as a former professional drag racer and purring cats as a long-time volunteer/rescuer with the 4Paws Rescue Team.

Tomorrow we will have one of the all-time aquarist greats present at our club: Dr. Paul V. Loiselle. Dr. Loiselle will speak on "Australoheros: The Heroic Cichlids of the South." About Dr. Loiselle Dr. Paul V. Loiselle is an enthusiastic aquarist of 50 years' experience. During the course of his career, Paul has had the opportunity to study cichlids in Madagascar, West Africa, Lakes Victoria and Tanganyika, Haiti, Mexico, Central America and the Peruvian Amazon. Emeritus Curator of Freshwater Fishes at the New York Aquarium and a Senior Conservation Fellow of the Wildlife Conservation Society, he is actively involved in conservation programs focused on the fishes of Madagascar. Paul is co-chair of the I.U.C.N.’s Madagascar Region Freshwater Fish Specialty Group. He serves as a scientific advisor to the Lake Victoria Cichlid Species Survival Program and the Madagascar Faunal Interest Group. A founding member and Fellow of the American Cichlid Association, an honorary fellow of the Association France Cichlid and a life Member of the North Jersey Aquarium Society, he is an internationally published author of numerous articles on the care and breeding of ornamental fishes and such books as The Cichlid Aquarium, Your Garden Pond and The Fishkeeper's Guide to African Cichlids.

Every year we devote one meeting to a hands-on workshop, usually in August or November. However, this year it will be in September. We regret that might pose a challenge for some members who may be travelling over the Labor Day weekend, but the scheduling couldn't be helped. In February 2021 Dean Tweeddale gave a fantastic virtual presentation on his fry raising system. We immediately asked him if he would be willing to conduct a workshop with us when we could get together in person again, and he agreed. Members are welcome to attend to watch only, or you can sign up to build your own during the workshop. These systems are effective and beautiful, and also require a lot of materials to build. If you would like to build a system in the workshop, you MUST sign up (firm commitment) by August 25 and commit to bringing cash or a check to the September workshop. The club will source and provide all the materials you need at cost except a 20 gallon long tank and water pump which you will need to supply yourself. The systems require aluminum bars, PVC pipe, joints, and caps, air valves, water valves, plugs, cement, silicone, various types of airline tubing, and more. It may seem pricey, but trying to source all the materials on your own would be even more expensive. At Dean's request, we will not be publishing the supply list or design as this is his proprietary intellectual property. Cost: $125 for set up with 4 large trays $150 for set up with 6 small trays Other Materials Not Included: 20 gallon long tank Water pump About Dean: Dean Tweeddale is a master breeder who started keeping fish over 50 years ago. He started with guppies, moved on to discus, and has since bred countless species of freshwater fish. Always an innovator, Dean has, throughout his fishkeeping career, built three in-house fish rooms and developed an incredible fry system. Some of his proudest moments in the hobby are developing a system to raise discus artificially, breeding many rare dwarf cichlids, continuous spawning of German blue rams, and spawning several L-number plecos. He has collected and bred wild fish from Peru and has appeared on a number of YouTube channels including Aquarium Co-Op, Swishkey, L.R.Bretz’s Aquatics, Bentley Pasco, and Dustin's Fish Tanks. Sign up by responding to this forum thread. We would be happy to answer questions but there could be a delay in the response as Michael is leaving for Peru today and will have intermittent internet access during the collecting trip.

Don't look know, but our August meeting is only days away. Beat the heat in the air-conditioned splendor of the Green Acres Center. OK, maybe not much splendor, but there will be fish and plants. This month we will be remembering Ron Leftwich in lieu of our regular Lightning Talk. Feature Presentation: "A Beginning Freshwater Breeder’s Guide: Techniques, tools, triggers and tips" by Dave McGrew Description: For aquarists who are interested in learning how to successfully spawn and raise a variety of freshwater fish, this talk serves as a show-and-tell guide. From easy livebearers to finicky cichlids; from mop-spawning killifish to egg-scattering shiners; from bubble-nest-building anabantids to cave spawning catfish, a broad array of fish breeding techniques will be discussed. DIY Breeding tools will be shown and PVAS Club donations made available at the auction. About Dave: Dave McGrew and his young sons took a plunge into the deep end of the aquarium hobby just about four years ago. Always an eclecticist, he moved from a study in organic chemistry to music composition, taught fine arts in college for over a decade, and has worked as a Pastor for another ten years. Hailing from mountainous western Maryland, with soft tap water from reservoirs just over the Pennsylvania state line, the McGrews have been participating in PVAS BAP, selling to local fish stores, and shipping home-bred fish and plants to aquarists all over the country for the last few years. It's time to get your fish entered into MyGroupAuctions. We won't be having any hospitality, so remember to bring your own food and beverages. It's important to stay hydrated in this oppressive heat. See you on Saturday, Patchin

Hi Members, Nick Little has offered to give a private tour of the Amazonia Exhibit life support systems at the National Zoo. If you haven't visited Amazonia before, you will be amazed to see the huge and graceful stingrays flitting about the tree roots and gigantic Arapaima swimming in a floor to ceiling tank full of gorgeous cichlids and other Amazon native fish. A number of our members attended this tour back in the 2017-2018 timeframe. It's fascinating and well worth the time. The tour will be limited to 6 lucky PVAS members. Because the size is limited, I ask that you treat signing up for it as a firm commitment. We will have a sign-up sheet at the August and September meetings. Depending on demand, we can schedule additional tours next year. The group will meet in front of the Amazonia Exhibit on Saturday, September 17 at 10:30 am sharp. Further details will be provided to those who sign up. For those that arrive by foot/Uber, they’ll still need an entry pass (which is free): https://www.etix.com/ticket/e/1021286/zoo-daily-entry-passes-washington-smithsonians-national-zoo For those that drive to the zoo and want to park, they will need a Parking Pass (which is ~$30 I believe). It will also serve as the entry pass for everyone in the vehicle: https://event.etix.com/ticket/e/1019338/zoo-general-admission-parking--washington-smithsonians-national-zoo-parking Cheers, Patchin

At the August meeting, we will be taking a few minutes to remember long-time member Ron Leftwich who passed away this summer. Here is an excerpt from his obituary. Obituary: Ronald Leftwich Ronald "Ronnie" William Leftwich, age 58, of Culpeper, Virginia, passed away on June 10, 2022, at Reston Hospital after suffering multiple organ failure as a result of septic shock. He was born on October 9, 1963, in Indianapolis, Indiana, to James Reed Leftwich and Mary Louise Wetzel Leftwich. At the age of 12, Ronnie convinced his parents to buy the local pet shop. With the help of his younger brother, Bob, and his parents, he opened "Pet World". He ran the pet store for about 20 years before morphing into the auction business with his father. He enjoyed performing benefit auctions, affording him an opportunity to travel, meeting many famous people along the way. He was an avid member of the Safari Club for many years. Ron loved fish (tanks) and travelled to Peru 3 times to catch fish in the Amazon. Ron was senior class president of the CCHS Class of 1982. He knew just about everyone in Culpeper, and always had a smile on his face and a kind word to share. Ron was always open for an adventure and he enjoyed his life.

Erik will be bringing an incredible assortment of shrimp with him for the mini-auction. If you haven't checked out MyGroupAuctions yet, now is the time. Sellers, get your fish and plants listed in MGA so people can plan their purchases. I expect we will have a motivated group of buyers. NOTE THAT THE EVENT STARTS EARLIER THAN NORMAL TO ACCOMMODATE THE WORKSHOP Schedule 11:00 am Set-up 12:00 pm Socializing and hospitality 12:15 pm Announcements 12:30 pm Feature Presentation: Erik Lucas "Keeping and Breeding Shrimp" 1:45 pm Workshop: Erik Lucas "Grading and Culling Shrimp" 3:00 pm Mini-auction 4:00 pm Take-down We will be offering complimentary hospitality tomorrow including red beans (contains pork products), rice, corn meal muffins (thank you Jimmy Hunter!), water and soft drinks. Food will be limited in quantity so get there early if you'd like something to eat. Also, as announced at the last few meetings, if you have a colony of shrimp you'd like Erik to evaluate, bring some in for the workshop. The workshop is intended to be hands-on and informal. This is your opportunity to have one of the leading shrimp judges in the country help you improve your shrimp. Check out Erik's business at www.buypetshrimp.com