Matthias Kählig is married with two kids. He was born in 1965 in Hannover, and still lives in the area. He is in the aquarium hobby since he is six. Initially, he developed an interest in south and middle American cichlids and their biotopes. With eighteen years, he undertook the first trip to Mexico, to finally see the fishes live in their habitats.

Through his studies in geology and paleontology, he became the opportunity for additional trips to South America as well as Mexico, such that his interest in the biotopes and their fish communities grew steadily.
Job-related he joined his parents´ electronics company, which by extension with a electric motor company reached its current stage. Through the foundation of Panta Rhei he finally tries to turn his hobby into his profession.

The main interest is focused in aquatic communities and their simulation in the aquarium. The representation of dynamic processes in aquaria and their impact on living inhabitants are his current drive to also keep some aquaria besides job and family. His interests are thus not focused on a single group of fishes, but the environmental conditions and co-housing in nature-orientated mini-biotopes.

The information in the talk are derived from a trip, together with Oliver Lucanus, to Brazil in August 2008.

As an appetizer to his talk “Loricariid habitats seen from the underwater perspective” you can see two pictures in advance below: