September 22 – Meeting

Welcome back!

Our next meeting will be on Monday, September 22nd 2025 at J.A. Dulude Arena starting at 7:00 pm. OVAS will be hosting Peter DeSouza from the Peel Regional Aquarium Club (PRAC) who will be giving a presentation on his collection trip to Cameroon. All are welcome to attend.

Collecting Adventures in Cameroon

Peter DeSouza has always had a strong interest in Zoology. His parents lived in fear of what he would bring home and keep in the basement. From an early age he had aquariums and raised livebearers and spawned some of the easier cichlids. After high school his interests turned to the new African cichlids from Lake Malawi that were just becoming available to hobbyists. After school, marriage and a mortgage he left the fish hobby behind for a few years.

In 2002 after moving to Alberta to work, he decided to raise fish again. This time he started with killifish right away with a few small tanks. After building a few fish rooms and moving back to Ontario, his fishroom today contains approximately 70 tanks of various sizes filled with mostly Killifish and Bettas.

He has raised and spawned representatives of most of the Aquarium Fish groups but has a preference for killifish of the genus Fundulopanchax particularly Fundulopanchax sjoestedti, the Blue Gularis. He has been line breeding Blue Gularis for almost 20 years and Domestic Bettas for the last 10 years.

He has always wanted to travel to another countries and collect fish. When he finally retired he had the opportunity with a group from Europe to collect in Ghana in 2018. In 2022, he travelled to Cameroon. His presentation, titled ‘Collecting Adventures in Cameroon’ will detail the areas collected and the fish that were found as well as some interesting adventures experienced in Cameroon.

Peter DeSouza will be bringing some Bettas and Fundulopanchax (killifish) for the highest bidder, so liquidate your assets and bring some cash! Please join us this Monday!

Members Corner

All members are invited to showcase their aquarium related projects and discoveries at our meetings! You, or an executive member, can share your photos, videos, or other content of up to 5 minutes, at the beginning of our meetings. Please talk to the exec about submitting your content.

New Executive for the 2025-2026 Season

Big thank you to Eleonore Schmidt for steering the club last season as President. Many returning faces for this season with the returning BAP Chair position. See the full list of the Executives here.

Meeting Info and Location

J.A. Dulude Arena
941 Clyde Avenue
Ottawa, Ontario
K2C 4B2

Monthly Meetings and Fish & Plant Mini Auction start at 7 pm.
There will be door prizes at the monthly meetings.
Members are encouraged to set up vendor tables or maybe you have some leftover items from the garage sale to sell.
Bring cash as there is no ATM onsite.
Complimentary snacks and refreshments will be served.

Dates to Remember for the 2025/2026 OVAS Season

Monthly Meeting
Monday, October 27 2025

Fish & Plant Mini Auction
Monday, November 24 2025

Breakfast
January 2026 (TBD)

Monthly Meeting
Monday, January 26 2026
Monday, February 23 2026

Giant Auction
Saturday, March 21 2026 @ Tom Brown Arena
More details to follow

Monthly Meeting
Monday, March 23 2026
Monday, April 27 2026
Monday, May 25 2026

General Info

OVAS Memberships for the 2024-2025 season will be expiring soon on September 30 2025! OVAS memberships can be renewed for the 2025-2026 season at monthly meetings or online (PayPal).

This is a FREE event sponsored by the Ottawa Valley Aquarium Society. Anyone with an interest in aquariums and related hobbies is welcome to attend. OVAS presentations are a great place to meet other aquarium hobbyists, exchange ideas and learn more about fish and aquatic plant keeping.