Ottawa Valley Aquarium Society Auction
On a chilly November evening, a group of aquarium hobbyists gathered at Tom Brown Arena to bid on an impressive selection of aquatic plants and freshwater fish. As expected, there were plenty of Rotalas, Ludwigias, Crypts, Cichlids, Mollies, and shrimp; however, there were also some rarities such as Crystal Black Shrimp, Buchephalandra Arrogant Blue, and an Buchephalandra Black Mist. There were also several Ludwigia ‘Super Reds’ boasting spectacularly deep reds.
How we get great deals on a wide variety of plants and fish
Plants grow and propagate. Fish get bigger and multiply. Somehow, our tanks gain an extra 20 gallons when the LFS has a sale. When a friend offers us free aquatic life . . . we imagine our tanks to be double their actual size! For any one (or more) of these reasons, tanks get overstocked. This year 20+ hobbyists culled their tanks and bagged up fish, shrimp, and plants for auction resulting in about $1500 falling under the gavel. Of that money, $1300 went directly to the sellers and OVAS collected $200 in commissions to be used for the purchase of rare plants and fish for next year’s auction. If you have ideas of items you would like the club to import, please PM any Exec (or start a thread) and let us know what you would like to see in the future.
Whether begginer, intermediate, or advanced aquarist, this year’s auction was the place to be to pick up some great deals and to socialize with fellow fish & aquatic plant keepers.
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Of course, some of our hardcore friends were also in attendance – chasing stock for their next build. For these folks, the perfect number of tanks is n+1 (where n equals your current number of tanks).
In total, more than 350 lots of plants & fish were sold at this years auction. Here is a listing of some of the varieties that were on the block along with the average price per lot.
| scientific name | common name | average $ |
| Ancistrus sp. | (Bushynose/bristlenose pleco) | $9.00 |
| Anubias barteri var. “nana gold” | (Gold anubias nana) | $8.00 |
| Anubias barteri var. nana | $7.00 | |
| Apistogramma borellii, | (Umbrella cichlid) | not available |
| Barbus conchonius | (rosy barb) | $2.00 |
| Bolbitis heudelotii | (African water fern) | $4.00 |
| Bolbitis heudelotii | Longfin bristlenose pleco | $5.00 |
| Bucephalandra "Arrogant Blue " | $11.00 | |
| Buchephalandra "black mist" | $16.00 | |
| Buenos Aires tetra albino | not available | |
| Buenos Aires tetra regards | not available | |
| Caridina cantonensis | (Crystal black shrimp) | $23.00 |
| Ceratopteris thalictroides | (watersprite) | $2.00 |
| Chladophora aegagropila | (Marimo moss ball) | $6.00 |
| Cichlasoma salvini | (salvini cichlid) | $2.00 |
| Cryptococoryne - assorted | $7.00 | |
| Cryptococoryne cordata v. siamensis | (Siames water trumpet) | $6.00 |
| Cryptocoryne parva | (Crypt parva) | $3.00 |
| Echinodorus parviflorus | (Tropica) | $8.00 |
| Echinodorus tenellus | (Pygmy chain sword) | $5.00 |
| Enchytraeus albidus | White worm culture | $4.00 |
| Hemianthus micranthemoides | (Pearlgrass) | $3.00 |
| Heteranthera zosterifolia | (Stargrass) | $3.00 |
| hydrocotyle tripartita | (Hydrocotyle Japan) | $6.00 |
| Hygrophilia pinnatifida | (hygro) | $4.00 |
| Julidochromis dickfeldi | (Dickfield's Julie cichlid) | $5.00 |
| Labidochromis caeruleus | (Yellow lab cichlid) | $2.00 |
| Lindernia rotundiflolia sp varigated | $3.00 | |
| Lobelia cardinalis dwarf | (Cardinal plant) | $6.00 |
| Ludwigia arcuata | (needle leaf ludwigia) | $2.00 |
| Ludwigia inclinata var. verticillata | (cuba) | $3.00 |
| Ludwigia palustris | (Ludwigia super red) | $4.00 |
| Marsilea hirsute | (Underwater 4-leaf clover) | $6.00 |
| Microgeophagus ramirezi | (German Blue Ram Cichlid) | $8.00 |
| Microsorum pteropus | (java fern) | $7.00 |
| Microsorum pteropus trident | (trident java fern) | $4.00 |
| Microsorum pteropus var. narrow | (narrow leaf java fern) | $6.00 |
| Neocaridina cf. zhangjiajiensis var. white | (snowball shrimp) | $5.00 |
| Neocaridina heteropoda | (blue carbon rili shrimp) | $2.00 |
| Neocaridina Heteropoda | (Red cherry shrimp) | $11.00 |
| Nymphoides hydrophylla 'Taiwan' | (Taiwan lilly) | $4.00 |
| Pistia stratiotes | (water lettuce) | $3.00 |
| Poecilia sp. | (Black dalmation mollies) | $2.00 |
| Poecilia sp. | Yellow jacket tiger endlers | $5.00 |
| Pogostemon stellatus | (Eusteralis stellata) | $3.00 |
| Procambarus fallax | (Zebra Danios) | $2.00 |
| Pterophyllum scalare | (Angelfish - black) | not available |
| Rotala Macrandra green | $4.00 | |
| Rotala Rotundifolia | $2.00 | |
| Rotala sp. Vietnam | $5.00 | |
| Salvinia minima | (Water spangles) | $5.00 |
| Salvinia natans | (floating fern) | $4.00 |
| Sciaenochromis fryeri OB | (electric blue) | $10.00 |
| Taziphyllum Barieri | (Java moss) | $6.00 |
| Turbatrix aceti | (vinegar eel) | $6.00 |
| Vallisneria americana | (jungle Val) | $7.00 |
| Vesicularia montagnei | (Christmas moss) | $4.00 |
Auction Volunteers
Standing: Jody, Ayden, Kaylem, Angela, Andre. Seated: Mike, Sid, Liam, Matt, Mike, Karen
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Once again, Andre (ajm1961) and Jody (Jody) served as auctioneers extraorinaire and were supported by a group of hard-working volunteers. Thanks to this group’s energy, enthusiasm, and attention to detail the evening ran smoothly and the checkouts ran quickly all night.
Volunteers:
- Mike (dxpert)
- Jody (Jody)
- Sid (sidarnold)
- Ayden (Ayden.h)
- Kalem (Kalemh)
- Liam (tanksalot360)
- Angela
- Matt (mattimms49)
- Andre (ajm1961)
- Mike (Gilbotron)
- Karen (Kalinkacat)
Many thanks to them for their time and effort!
We also want to thank Big Al’s for providing discounts on some of the livestock that went on the block. The beautiful bucephalandra specimens were purchased from Lizzys Fishies in British Columbia who waved the shipping fee for us.
But, an event such as this would be nothing without your attendance. This year auction attendees happily posed for a group photo. Many thanks to all who attended and participated.
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Missed the auction? It’s not too late!
If you’ve never been to an OVAS Auction . . . don’t miss the next one! Fish and plants sell for well below retail prices and there is always a wide variety of specimens to choose from. You can fill an entire tank for a fraction of what you would expect to pay in a store!
On Sunday, April 29th, OVAS will be holding its annual GIANT AUCTION. Join us for the chance to bid on fish, plants, tanks, filters, lighting, power heads, gravel, and more. Keep an eye on our homepage for details and how to participate if you have items you would like to sell.
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OVAS is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to promoting and supporting the aquarium hobby in Ottawa and its surrounding areas. Membership is open to anyone with an interest in home aquariums and provides many benefits such as discounts at local retailers, easy access to the aquarium community, attend events, and more! The club meets at least once a month at Tom Brown arena from September through to May and maintains the ovas.ca website and online forum.
OVAS is a member of the Canadian Association of Aquarium Clubs.
