Dive in to the world of Aquamania and get to celebrate the the organization’s 2nd year with the fishes underwater!
Photos by Jeffrey Lim
One of the first events this current Animal Scene team covered was AquaMania 2014, and it was again present for the 2015 edition at the Fisher Mall in Quezon City. Organized by the Tropical Fish Keepers Club of the Philippines (TFCP), it had double the crowd of the 2014 edition.
The 2015 AquaMania show featured the theme “Biotope Aquarium Keeping,” and was co-presented with Monster Fish Keepers Philippines, which was officially launched during the show. Their showcase of the four types of biotope (duplicating a natural habitat and conditions)
aquariums—Asian River Monster, African River Monster, North America, and South American Monsters—drew much attention. Under the Monster Fish Keepers are clubs such as the Philippine Bichir Brotherhood, Cichla Club of the Philippines, Arowana Keepers Philippines, Philippine Datnioides Group, and the Stingray Club of the Philippines.
The show also featured the largest Flowerhorn competition ever, with almost 100 hundred entries for 9 categories; the one crowned Best in Show belonged to Boyok Marcelo of Team Louhansome for the second time. The Asian Betta Alliance conducted an international competition for the Battle of AOC, with Nixon Lim emerging as the King of AOC. The Philippine Goldfish Club also held a competition in which an orange ranchu won the top award. The Guppy Club of the Philippines had a display, while the United Crossbreed Club of the Philippines also held its club competition.
Official partner Boa Keepers Philippines, an exotic club for snakes and reptiles, also drew much attention with their display of a variety of snakes from different morphs of ball pythons to boas and a reticulated python. Visitors also enjoyed seminars conducted by some of the most experienced fishkeepers in the hobby.
Manuel Oliver Firmalino, TFCP president, commented that the camaraderie “…among different fish clubs is indeed a great opportunity for other members to try a different hobby… [for example] I’m a flowerhorn enthusiast but because of Aquamania,” he is now interested in trying out reptile keeping.
A popular show highlight was its raffle; Paolo Cecilio Fronda brought home a 24K Golden Crossback Arowana, which was the grand prize. The good news is that half of the proceeds of the raffle are earmarked for a certain orphanage. (With reporting by Manuel Oliver Jimenez Firmalino. Additional photos by Jhun Carmona.)
This story appeared in Animal Scene’s January 2016 issue.
