Collecting in Peru, a 20 Day Adventure
For the first time ever, Eric & Regina traveled to Madre de Dios region of Peru in search of catfish, tetras, cichlids, killifish and whatever awesome fish they could find. Their travels took them to a new high, in more than one way—collecting in waters that had likely never had a net in them before, to nearly 16,000 ft. into the cloud mountains of the Andes. We will share our 20-day mind blowing bucket list adventure with you.
He Said ~ She Said!
Have you ever wondered what life would be like if your spouse shared the same deep passion for fish keeping as you do? How nice it would be that you wouldn’t have to sneak fish in anymore. And no more need for that secret fish cash stash (probably in an empty fish food can) because you’re tired of hiding the credit card receipts and bank statements, so they don’t know how much you spent on fish and supplies. Nobody to say: “NO… you don’t need any more tanks or more fish.” Sounds great doesn’t it?
Well, Eric and Regina have been together for over 18 year,s and both have an intense interest in the hobby, but that doesn’t always mean that there is a balanced harmony in their fish filled house! Both together will reveal some the funniest and most interesting stories of their “fishy life” together under one roof.
Bio: Eric Bodrock / All Oddball Aquatics
Eric Bodrock is the owner of All Oddball Aquatics, a tropical fish hatchery and independent online retailer located near Pittsburgh, PA. Along with his fiancé, Regina Spotti, they currently maintain about 275 aquariums in their home-based hatchery, and are working with many species of fish. Eric has been active in the aquarium hobby since age ten and has worked in the retail, wholesale/distribution, installation, and hatchery aspects of the industry. In addition to his accomplishment of successfully spawning over 500 species of freshwater fish, including more than 130 species of catfish, he has published articles, judged dozens of fish shows and has given countless presentations. He has traveled to aquarium related events in much of the United States, and even Canada, Germany, Norway, Peru, and the United Kingdom.
Eric has been an active member of the Greater Pittsburgh Aquarium Society, where he has been a member since 1976! He considers himself as a “Lifer” in the hobby and continues to promote the aquarium hobby in every possible way. You’ll often hear him say: “There’s always room for one more tank!”
Bio: Regina Spotti
Regina has been keenly interested in nature since childhood. Aeons ago, she persuaded her mother to allow her to bring some goldfish home from, of all places, a grocery store. These “promotional items” quickly led to an interest in the tropical fish hobby which has lasted over forty years. She enjoys keeping and breeding various tropical fish from all corners of the world. Whether it’s a lovely betta, an awesome cichlid, a boring rivulus, “ plain rasbora, or an ugly catfish, Regina will make room for it in one of her fish rooms. She currently maintains about 70 aquariums, not including the fry tanks, all of which are filled with a wide array of species from cory cats to characins. An active member in the Greater Pittsburgh Aquarium Society, she quickly attained the status of Master Breeder and enjoys writing articles on species of fish she has worked with. While her hobby may be described as out of control by some of her peers, Regina finds the fish keeping hobby relaxing and rewarding. One of her favorite things about the hobby, other than the fantastic people she meets, is watching the expressions on people’s faces when she tells them her hobby is keeping and breeding tropical fish.
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