A paludarium is a type of vivarium or terrarium that has both land elements and water elements. It can be among the most challenging and rewarding projects to undertake. This is because you have to maintain both the water and land elements.

Often times a paludarium will house fish, frogs or other types of amphibians. Creates that are best suited for it are the types that naturally live in wet environments like swamps or mangroves.

If you are considering building a paludarium you have to give strong consideration to the types of plants that will be housed in it. You have to use plants that are hardy and will thrive in very humid and wet environments. Plants from the genus of Anubias is often a good plant to start with.

The following picture is of a tree frog Paludarium. This was built by Aaron and I have more pictures about this and some information about how it was made. There are lots of things to consider when making something like this. First off you should design it specifically for a certain type of creature or amphibian. Secondly you have to give a lot of consideration to how the water will be handled and kept clean.

Here is another good example of a paludarium. This one shows a great way to manage the water. It has a plastic container to hold the water and it uses an aquarium pump and filter to circulate/clean the water. You can see more pictures and info about this project here

Need More Information and Resources?

It can be difficult to find a book on the niche of the paludarium. You often have to decide which type of amphibian you want and then find a book on caring for that. You can also try looking for books on how to make vivariums. Vivariums cover a lot of different types of environments including deserts and rainforests. You also might want to do a search for hte word Aquaterraria.

Here is a book that might be of help. I haven't read it so I can't give it a solid recommendation but it might be worthwhile.

Firefly Encyclopedia of the Vivarium: Keeping Amphibians, Reptiles, and Insects, Spiders and other Invertebrates in Terraria, Aquaterraria, and Aquaria (See all Reptile & Amphibian Care Books)

The Enormous Fantasy Terrarium

Step into a magnificent Fantasy Terrarium World. This is a massive six foot terrarium and you have just got to check it out! The Big Fantasy Terrarium

Making a more artistic terrrarium

Terrariums used to be all about creating a small eco-system. This has changed in the past couple of years. Terrariums are now works of living art unto themselves. I have some tips for making a terrarium that is more artistic: Making an artistic terrarium

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