Upcoming Meetings & Events Schedule (2024):
Saturday May 4 @ 1PM @ Vet School: Pizza Social with Topic Stations. RAS will supply pizza/drinks (including a gluten free option) and we'll have "stations" with topics that people can gravitate around. This social format allows for lots of opportunities to meet other members, plus gives everyone a chance to ask questions they have on their minds, whether about fish, plants, shrimp or something else entirely. We'll also have our usual auction.
Past Events (2024):
April 4-7, 2024: RAS is bringing the 2024 AGA Conference to Raleigh!!! 7 speakers, aquascaping and Wabi-Kusa workshops, vendor room, auction and more. Details here.
Sunday April 7: RAS/AGA Spring Auction. Open to the public, you do not need to attend AGA meeting to participate in the auction. Important! We will use AGA auction software rather than MyGroupAuctions. Review the details here.
Items in the live auction are limited to plants, plant-related fish and invertebrates, new-in-box drygoods such as CO2 equipment or showpiece hardscape
Sellers (not attending AGA conference) must must register to be an auction seller (no cost to RAS members.)
Note: No monthly April meeting due to AGA event; next monthly meeting Saturday May 4 @ 1PM.
Thursday March 7 @ 7:30 PM. Regular meeting at the Vet School. Chris Smith will provide the low down on CO2 (Carbon Dioxide) in planted aquaria. He'll talk about the benefits of CO2, ways of adding it to your tank, and how it allows one to more easily grow plants. Monthly auction follows.
Saturday, Feb 3 @ 1 PM. David Bono will perform an aquascaping demo. The final results (tank, etc.) will go to the community via auction or a door prize (TBD). (Note: this is a Saturday meeting, in place of the usual Thursday time.)
Thursday, Jan 4 @ 7:30 PM. Regular meeting at the Vet School. Jacob Davis of JDAquatics will speak on "The Gems of South America, Dwarf Cichlids and Fancy Plecos". Jacob has successfully bred a number of dwarf cichlids and the newer L-numbered plecos. He will be bringing some items for the auction and can also be reached through his Facebook page or via the Raleigh Aquarium Society B/S/T | BAND group for advance orders.
Past Events (2023):
Thursday, Dec 7 @ 7 PM. End-of-year Holiday Party at the Vet School along with Board election and BAP awards presentation. RAS supplies main dish (Chicken & Ham) and drinks, everyone encouraged to bring a dish to share. Trivia contest, White Elephant gift exchange and Cookie Contest as well!
Thursday, Nov 2 @ 7:30PM. Regular Meeting at Vet School. Thursday, Nov 2 @ 7:30PM. Regular Meeting at Vet School. Our program will feature a combination of topics: some administrivia followed by a round-table style question-and-answer discussion on the joys, challenges and main frustrations people are having with aquarium keeping. If you've got something bugging you related to keeping your tanks healthy and are wondering how others handle the issue, here is a chance to ask. We'll also review the club's plans for 2024 (AGA, CAW, etc.) as well as other possible programs.
Saturday, Oct 7@ 1PM. Regular meeting at Vet School. Richard Mullinax will facilitate an end of summer tubbing report and a whole room discussion for what we bred, what went right, what went wrong, what will you do the same, and what will you do different. Auction and Door Prizes as usual.
Sunday Sept 24: Annual Fall Auction @ Ramada Inn. Doors open at 9AM, Auction starts at 10.
Saturday, August 5 @ 1PM; Regular meeting at Vet School. Note Saturday date!!! Jason Guavara, MD, will speak on Koi. Dr. Guavara is the founder and president of ZNA Carolina Koi Club. He saw a niche for an online gathering of koi enthusiasts or koi kichi and created the most recent chapter of the worldwide ZNA family in 2015. ZNA Carolina meets monthly and hosts an annual koi show in Raleigh. He grew up steeped in koi and attended the first US koi show in 1972. Jason has won multiple awards showing his own koi and is triple certified to judge. He is not just crazy about koi, he enjoys the many friendships developed around the koi world with others who share his passion. Jason's wife, Mary Ann, is a great support in his koi journey. RAS is looking forward to him sharing his wealth of knowledge about koi history and the hobby in general. There will be our regular door prizes and an auction available to RAS club members.
Thursday July 6 @ 7:30PM; Regular meeting at Vet School. Todd Wenzel (with others) will speak on live foods.
Thursday June 1 @ 7:30PM; Regular meeting at Vet School. Gerry Hoffman from the Potomac Valley Aquarium Society (PVAS) will be speaking. Gerry will speak on a range of selected topics and experiences covering a 30 year old well-planted and established tank, its leaks, attempts at sealing the leaks from the outside and then letting the tank evaporate with crypts changing to emersed form. He will also speak on breeding and feeding Corydoras and Loricaria fry.
Thursday May 4 @ 730PM; Regular meeting at the Vet School.
Thursday April 13 @ 730PM; Regular meeting at the Vet School. Note: this is 1 week later than our normal “1st Thursday of the month”. This is also a change from an earlier planned date of Saturday - we’ve moved our meeting back to Thursday to avoid a clash with CAAS.
March 24-26: Return of the 2023 Carolina Aquarium Workshop!! Details here.
Thursday, Mar 2 @ 7:30PM; Regular meeting at Vet School. Chris Smith will host a tour of his fish/plant room, and Jamye Carr will present a talk on her RAS kids programs for upcoming events/expos.
Thursday, March 9: Social Hour (on Zoom)
Thursday, Feb 2nd @ 7:30PM; Regular meeting at Vet School. Neil Frank will host a live “Do I have to...?” audience Participation Program. People will be chosen randomly to answer preselected questions —both to share their experience and expertise and give more members an opportunity for public speaking. Up to 2 more attendees can assist the selectee to offer alternative viewpoints, promote broader group discussion and provide expanded, enhanced answers. The outcomes from this fun learning activity can potentially reduce aquarists’ anxiety through better aquaristic practices. Live, In Person, and at the NC Vet School.
Thursday, Jan 5 @ 7:30PM; Regular meeting at Vet School. Dean Di Lillo and Neil Frank: "Drip, drip, drip - automated water changes for 1 or more tanks." In this presentation, Dean and Neil will present their fully automated systems. Dean will show how his simple continuous water changing system allows him to directly use tap water without any pretreatment including use of Seachem Prime. No hoses or buckets are needed. Neil has been running his tap water through a carbon filter and doing weekly 50% batch changes. He will present his recent continuous water change automation of 28 tanks.
Past Events (2022):
Thursday, December 1st at 7:00 PM at Vet School: Holiday Party
Thursday, November 3rd at 7:30 PM - Monthly Club Meeting
Sunday Oct 9 @ 10AM at Raleigh Ramada Inn. Return of the Fall Auction. Open to all (members and non-members).
Saturday Sept 10 @ 1PM at Vet School. Selected Breeding Experiences from BAP members.
Thursday Aug 7 @ 7:30PM at Vet School. Round table on aquarium filters.
Thursday July 7 @ Vet School. Grey Rodgers on Big fish.
Saturday June18 @ 1PM at Vet School (Note different time!). Richard Mullinex will lead a discussion on outdoor summer tubbing.
Thursday June 10 @ 7:30PM Social Hour (hosted by Caroline Morgan).
To be posted 24H before event
Thursday May 12 @ 7:30PM Social Hour (hosted by Caroline Morgan).
Thursday May 5 @ 730PM: We are back in-person at the Vet School!!!. Dr. Ashley Emanuele will talk about “General fish health care” followed by our usual auction. Dr. Emanuele opened Oak City Aquatics Mobile Veterinary Service in June 2021, NC's first aquatics-exclusive mobile veterinary practice. In 2016, she became North Carolina's first WAVMA Certified Aquatic Veterinarian. Her professional interests are in the nutrition, ophthalmology, surgery, and preventative care of aquatic species. Dr. Emanuele received her DVM from NCSU College of Veterinary Medicine, and a B.S. in Marine Biology from Roger Williams University in Rhode Island. Dr. Emanuele is the President-Elect for the American Association of Fish Veterinarians, and loves speaking about aquatic animal health on podcasts, to hobbyist groups, and at national veterinary conferences.
Thursday April 14th @ 7:30PM Social Hour (hosted by Caroline Morgan).
Thursday April 7 @ 730PM: We are back in-person at the Vet School!!!. A short program to find out what people have been up to aquarium-wise during the pandemic. We'll also allow for social time with fellow members followed by our usual auction.
Saturday March 19 @ 1PM: Zoom Meeting. Our guest Speaker is Brandon Campo speaking on “Brandon Campo’s Methods for Growing Plants.” From Brandon: I have spent the last 20 years working in sleep medicine and in my spare time I enjoyed playing around with aquariums and fish. In March of 2020 I decided to get back into the hobby, March of 2021 I decided to start a plant business due to the difficulty of finding quality plants at a fair prices with staff that actually cared about their customers. I would like to discuss the varying levels of planted aquariums from aquariums with live plants to aquariums that are basically all plants. Share my experiences of what works, what works best and what I would never try again. Along with these points I will discuss in non scientific detail my top 5 favorite plants, why I love them and why *you* should try them in your own aquariums.
Note: The Saturday RAS meeting will be first of 3 quarterly meetings on Saturdays in 2022 and its planning has been in the works for a few months.
Zoom Link
Sunday March 20 @ 1-3PM RAS Meet & Greet / Tailgate Sale - fish/plants/etc. - IN PERSON! The event takes place from 1-3PM at the Raleigh Ramada Inn parking lot (the entire event will be outside). People can reserve “tables” (actually parking lot slots) from which they can sell goods. RAS will also have a table for handing out door prizes and for dropoff and pickup of previously sold items (e.g., auction). Rain or shine!
Thursday Mar 10 @ 7:30PM: Social Hour (virtual - hosted by Caroline Morgan).
Thursday Feb 10 @ 7:30PM: Social Hour (virtual - hosted by Caroline Morgan).
Feb 3 (Thurs @ 7:30): Zoom meeting: Axolotls: the worlds coolest salamander Karen Egan Carolina Axolotls. Karen has been keeping Axolotls, Ambystoma mexicanum, since 2017. She joined the RAS in 2018. She learned so much about aquarium keeping from the members of this group. At this meeting you will learn everything you wanted to know about Axolotl‘s and a little bit more. She will explain their history, life cycle, regeneration, care and variety colors.
Recording available here.
Thursday Feb 10 @ 7:30PM: Social Hour (virtual - hosted by Caroline Morgan).
Jan 6 (Thurs @ 7:30): Zoom meeting: Distinguished Master Breeder Matt DeGroodt will share with the club how he keeps and breeds fish. You can take a virtual tour of his fishroom here.
Sunday Jan 9: Deadline to participate in SwissTropicals Group Buy See Jamye Carr's email message for details.
Thursday Jan 13 @ 7:30PM: Social Hour (virtual - hosted by Caroline Morgan).
Past Events (2021):
Dec 2 (Thurs @ 7:30): Zoom meeting: BAP awards and annual election.
Nov 4 (Thurs @ 7:30): Zoom meeting: Gerald Pottern will speak on Everything About Transferring Fish: Catching, bagging, shipping and acclimating - in your home aquaria, from the field and for the RAS auctions.
Recording : here.
Oct 14 (Thur @ 7:30): Zoom meeting: Jamye Carr will speak on getting young people involved in the aquarium hobby. She runs multiple aquatic club meetings with young kids each week and will share some things she's learned and how we can get more kids involved.
Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZwkceuoqDkiG9Eh5dNxRv3GAElMhNYqAIKd
Sept 30 (Thursday @ 7:30): Zoom meeting: Bill Gately will speak on water chemistry for saltwater aquariums. Bill is owner of Reefkeepers in Clayton. (Note: meeting did not take place.)
Sept 19 (Sunday): Deadline to participate in Wet Spot Group Buy (delivery week of Sept 20). Chris Smith (email: ctyank at frontier.com) is organizing the details.
Sept 23 (Thursday): Deadline for participating in the JEHMCO Group Buy. Brandon Berry is coordinating the details.
Sept 2 (Thurs, 7:30PM): Zoom meeting: Thomas Narten will speak on water chemistry fundamentals for freshwater aquarists. A second talk (time TBD) is being finalized on water chemistry for salt water aquarists.
Recording and charts here.
Aug 21 (Saturday): The previously scheduled annual Picnic @ Sertoma Park has been cancelled and will not take place on Aug 21.
Aug 12 (Thur) @ 7:30PM; In-person meeting at the Raleigh Ramada Inn (next to NCSU vet school):
Program: Diana Walstad on Keeping Small Fish & Shrimp in Tanks with "Mobile Plants"
In-person auction
No Zoom link (in-person meeting)
July 1 (Thur) @ 7:30PM; In-person meeting at the Raleigh Ramada Inn (next to NCSU vet school):
Neil Frank will give a short presentation of his boesemani rainbowfish
project showing macro photos of developing embryos, interesting
resident micro-organisms and the bow fry.
In-person auction
No Zoom link (in-person meeting)
June 10 (Thur) @ 7:30PM; In-person meeting at the Raleigh Ramada Inn featuring social time and our first face-to-face auction in more than a year!
June 3 (Thur) @ 7:30PM: Virtual Zoom Meeting: Ryan Chan on Breeding Cardinal Tetras
Recording here.
No Auction during meeting, we will have in person Auction on Thur June 10.
May 6 (Thur) @ 7:30PM: Mini-auction plus 3 mini-talks from:
April 1 (Thur) @ 7:30PM: Dennis Wong on “Managing Algae and other “Pain Points” of the Hobbyist.”
Dennis is the creator of the website www.2hraquarist.com and many great Youtube videos covering various technical aspects of the planted hobby. He is well known for propagating difficult plant species and does testing for commercial aquatic farms on new plant products. He also consults for the local zoo in Singapore on aquatic plant matters and sells fertilizer mixes to both the commercial and consumer markets under the 2hr Aquarist brand.
Dennis participates frequently in the aquascaping sphere; competing in live aquascaping competitions (Chicago 2017 and Shanghai), and playing the role of judge as well for other aquascaping competitions. (AGA 2018, Aquajaya 2018, Singapore Hort show 2019).
Mar 13 (Sat) @ 10AM: Virtual Zoom auction CANCELLED due to ongoing Zebra Mussel contamination problem.
Mar 11 (Thur) @ 7PM: “Fish Talk” Social Hour. Zoom meeting link: (Will be posted 24H before meeting).
Mar 4 (Thur) @ 7:30PM: Virtual Zoom auction. Mini-auction plus 5 mini-talks from:
Mike Orbon: Lighting automation: Timers, dimmers, and colors, (how he's mimicking nature with a low cost light and controls).
Jon Wolfe: Water chemistry: fishless cycling and long term algae control - successes and failures.
Pinaki Pal: Planted tank approach.
Todd Wenzel: Breeding tetras using a breeding cage.
Matthew Bills: Building acrylic tanks.
Auction list here.
Zoom meeting link: (Will be posted 24H before meeting).
Feb 13 (Sat) @ 10AM: Virtual Zoom auction. Item list here. (Virtual auction overview here).
Feb 4 (Thurs) @ 7:30PM: Virtual Zoom Meeting: Gary Lange will speak on “Falling in Love With Blue-Eyes - Pseudomugils” Zoom meeting link: (Will be posted 24H before meeting). (More info on RAS use of zoom here.)
Jan 14 (Thurs) @ 7PM: Virtual Zoom “Social Hour/Fish Talk”. Hangout with fellow RAS members and talk about tanks or whatever. Zoom meeting link: here. (More info on RAS use of zoom here.)
Jan 16 (Sat) @ 10AM: Virtual Zoom auction. Item list here. (Virtual auction overview here).
Jan 7 @ 7:30PM: Virtual Zoom meeting: Ryan Chan will present his experiences breeding Amano Shrimp, a significant challenge challenging because they require both a salt and fresh water cycle to mature. Zoom meeting link: here. (More info on RAS use of zoom here.)
Past Events (2020):
Jan 7 @ 7:30PM: Virtual Zoom meeting: Ryan Chan will present his experiences breeding Amano Shrimp, a significant challenge challenging because they require both a salt and fresh water cycle to mature. Zoom meeting link: here. (More info on RAS use of zoom here.)
Dec 3 @ 7:30PM: Virtual Zoom meeting: Breeders Award Program (BAP) awards for 2020, board elections, auction. Zoom link here. (More info on RAS use of zoom here.)
Nov 5 @ 7:30PM: Virtual Zoom meeting, with RAS members Brandon Berry, Ryan Chan, Mark Goodall, Caroline Morgan, & Richard Mullinax showing us their tanks.
Oct 1 @ 7:30PM: Virtual Zoom meeting, with Neil Frank on “Angelfish: Keeping, Breeding, Raising” (More info on RAS use of zoom here.)
Sept 3 @ 7:30PM: Virtual Zoom meeting, with Matthew Bills on “Breeding Wild Bettas and Live food Cultures” (More info on RAS use of zoom here.)
Aug 6 @ 7:30PM: Virtual Zoom meeting, with Neil Frank on “Aquarium Photography using Phones.” (More info on RAS use of zoom here.)
July 7 @ 7:30PM: Virtual Zoom meeting, with Paul Parks on “The Little Fish Room That Could"
Mar 5 (Thursday - 730PM Vet School) Itchy Ichthys: Recognizing Marine & Freshwater Fish Diseases, by Ashley Emanuele and Nano Aquariums 101 by Mark Denaro.
Mar 6-8 (Thursday-Sunday, Raleigh Ramada Inn) Carolina Aquarium Workshop XXXV, collecting trip, shrimp bowl contest, and auction.
Feb 13 (Thursday - 730PM Vet School) Using Aquariums in Education by Jamye Carr (Note: date moved from Feb 6 due to inclement weather.)
Jan 9 (Thursday - 730PM Vet School) - Aquarium-related Q&A and Discussion
with RAS
Past Events (2019):
Dec 5 (Thursday - 7PM Vet School): Holiday Party (bring dish to share), HAP and BAP awards presentations.
Nov 7 (Thursday - 7:30 Vet School): 2 short talks: Grace Romano on Fragging Coral and Neil Frank on Breeding Dwarf Sunfish.
Oct 6 (Sunday 10AM-5PM - Holiday Inn): Fall Auction at the Raleigh Holiday Inn.
Oct 3 (Thursday - 7:30 Vet School): Thomas Narten. “Growing Plants- it can be easy” NOTE: no auction at this meeting, bring your stuff to the Sunday Fall Auction 3 days later!!!
New Date: Sept 12 (Thursday 7PM - Vet School): Catered Social + Discussion Centers (Grace Romano on Reef tanks and Richard Mullinax on summer tubbing) + Wet Spot Group Buy pickup. Note: Meeting date moved one week due to Hurricane Dorian.
Aug 3 (Saturday 10AM - Sertoma Park): Annual RAS Picnic + stream cleanup. Mark Denaro will do an aquascaping demo at 10am. After the demo, Michael Maieli will heat up the grill and serve lunch!
Aug 2 (Friday): Local collecting trip, led by Gerald.
Aug 1 (Thursday 7:30PM - Vet School): “Into the Labrynth,” by Mark Denaro. Mark will cover a wide range of anabantoids and related fish.
July 31 (Wednesday at Hibernian Pub): “Nano Aquariums 101”, by Mark Denaro. Mark will cover freshwater nano aquariums including appropriate inhabitants.
July 11 (Thursday 7:30PM - Vet School): “Commercial Aquaculture in the US,” by Jay Levine (Note: 2nd Thursday of month to avoid conflict with July 4)
June 23 (Sunday 9AM-3PM - Holiday Inn): 2nd Annual Tag sale. Setup (sellers) 9-11, open to public 11-3.
June 6( Thursday 7:30PM - Vet School): Chris Smith on “Fertilization in Planted Aquaria”, plus regular mini-auction.
June 7 (Friday all day): “Local aquatic plant and fish Collecting Field Trip” led by Gerald Pottern
June 8 (Saturday 1PM - Vet School): “How to to ID Aquarium Plants”, by Gerald Pottern. Saturday session will also feature a mini-auction with focus on plants. Participants can gather at NC CVM at 12:30pm. Location of 11:30am lunch with speaker will be announced later. (Unfortunately the previously planned talk by Cavan Allan on “Identification of Native and Nursery Grown Aquatic Plants” will not take place; we hope to bring it at a future date.)
May 2 (Thursday 7PM - Vet School): Catered Social + Discussion Centers + Wet Spot Order Pickup, "Water Quality Parameters" (Mark D Domanowski), “Aquarium Gadgets” (Thomas Narten) -NOTE: 7PM time
April 4 (Thursday - Vet School): Mini-talks: "Native Collecting Trip Review" (Gerald Pottern), "Growing and Flowering Crypts Emersed" (Steve Perkins), “Raising shrimp, ” (Richard Mullinax), “Using Liquid Carbon,” (Makeila Cox)
March 1-3, 2019: Annual Workshop/Auction @ Holiday Inn
March 7 (Thursday - Vet School): Bob Schraedley on “Killifish - The Chromas & Kathetys”
Jan 27 (Sunday - Holiday Inn) : RAS Tag Sale
Feb 7 (Thursday - Vet School): “A Look at RAS Members’ Aquaria” (various)
Jan 10 (Thursday - Vet School): Diana Walstad on “Small-Scale Guppy Breeding”
Past Events (2018):
Dec 6 (Thursday - Vet School): Holiday Party (bring dish to share)
Nov 1 (Thursday - Vet School): Three Mini Talks: Diana Walstad on “Raising Brine Shrimp”, Jamie Carr on “3-d Printing of Aquarium Parts” and Gabe Alrcon on “Marine Macroalgae: The Planted Reef”
Oct 28 (Sunday 10AM-5PM - Holiday Inn): Fall Auction
Oct 4 (Thursday - Vet School): Social with Sub Sandwiches + SIGs (Thomas Narten on “Inexpensive LED Lights”, Jon Hamm on “Breeding and Raising Baby Fish”, Gerald Pottern on “Catching and Keeping American Native Fish”)
Sept 23 (for October delivery): Wet Spot Group Buy
Sept 5 (Wednesday - Hibernian Pub): Ken Davis on How he has Kept and Bred over 1,000 Species. Have dinner and drinks at the Hibernian while we get together to talk fish. Ken’s presentation will be a Q&A discussion format for us to pick his brain on spawning and raising fry. He will also dazzle us with photos and interesting stories. It will be a fun evening!!
Sept 6 (Thursday - Vet School): Ken Davis on His fish collecting adventures in South and Central America
Sept 7 (Friday 10AM): Local Collecting Trip with Gerald Pottern
August 2 (Thursday - Vet School): Dave Herlong on Malawi Cichlids
August 4 (Saturday 11AM-3PM - Sertoma Park): Annual picnic (RAS supplies everything, bring dish to share)
July 5 (Thursday - Vet School): Alex Scharnberg on West African Cichlids
June 6 (Wednesday - Hibernian Pub): Special Guest Ted Judy speaks on "La Confluencia - the confluence of 3 important river systems in Columbia." Socializing/gathering @ 6:30, talk begins @ 7:30.
June 7 (Thursday - Vet School): Special Guest: Ted Judy speaks on "Pretty Places - inspirations for beautiful aquascapes."
May 3 (Thursday - Vet School 7PM): Pizza Social + Special Interest Group:
Note: Early start time of 7PM!!
David Herlong on African Cichlids
Richard Mullinax on Keeping Shrimp
Ticia Antinori on Beginning Plant Keeping
May 5 (Saturday, noon - Shelley Lake Park): Leadmine Creek Cleanup (Adopt A Stream)
April 4 (Wednesday - Hibernian Pub): Michael Barber on The Ultimate Fish Room
April 5 (Thursday - Vet School): Michael Barber on Collecting in Peru
April 6 (Friday - location TBD): Local Collecting Trip with Gerald Pottern
March 24 (Saturday): Michael Maieli hosts RAS table at NCSU Vet School Open House
March 1-5: 2018 Workshop & Auction
Feb 1 (Thursday): Arielle Wright & Chris Sotherden on What's so Fancy About Goldfish?
Jan 4 (Thursday): Mini presentations: Mark Domanowski on Breeding Black Worms, Allan Bryant on Water Treatment in NC: How it may Affect Aquariums, and Doug Brown on 2017 SpawniZoom meeting link: here
No Auction during meeting, we will have in person Auction on Thur June 10.ngs by RAS Breeder of the Year