Aquarium Libraries

AquaLibs presents AquaRank Discover the world’s leading aquascapers

Explore transparent rankings built from published results across the world’s leading aquascaping contests.

Explore AquaRank View Top 300
Algae on Glass, Mulm in Substrate, or Leftover Food? Assign the Right Snail Job

Algae on Glass, Mulm in Substrate, or Leftover Food? Assign the Right Snail Job

Aquarium snails are often sold as cleanup crews, but that phrase hides several different jobs. One snail may scrape soft algae from glass, another may consume leftover food and decaying plant matter, while a burrowing species mainly moves through the...
When Aquarium Shrimp Keep Dying: A Failure-Diagnosis Plan for Planted Tanks

When Aquarium Shrimp Keep Dying: A Failure-Diagnosis Plan for Planted Tanks

Repeated shrimp losses are rarely solved by adding another product at random. The useful question is not simply why one shrimp died, but what happened before the loss, which shrimp were affected, and whether the same trigger is still present. A plant...
The Four-Filter Plant Plan: Match Aquarium Plants to Your Setup and Schedule

The Four-Filter Plant Plan: Match Aquarium Plants to Your Setup and Schedule

A plant can be labeled easy and still fail in your aquarium if it needs more light, stronger circulation, richer substrate, or more pruning than your routine allows. The better approach is to filter every plant through four practical questions: How m...
What Should Your Fish Do in the Aquascape? A Color-and-Scale Plan for Planted Tanks

What Should Your Fish Do in the Aquascape? A Color-and-Scale Plan for Planted Tanks

A planted aquarium can contain beautiful fish and still look visually confused. The problem is often not compatibility alone, but design: too many similar colors, too much movement in one zone, or livestock that overwhelms the plants and available sw...

Aquascaping Contest Schedule 2026

View full schedule

KIAC

Open for Entries
Closes in: --:--:--
Open21/10
Close22/11
Result26/12

AGA

Judging
Results in: --:--:--
Open01/08
Close04/10
Result07/11

CBAP

Judging
Results in: --:--:--
Open01/07
Close16/08
Result29/11

ITAC

Judging
Results in: --:--:--
Open01/08
Close30/09
Result30/11

EAPLC

Completed
Status: Announced
Open01/06
Close31/07
Result17/10

CIAC

Completed
Status: Announced
Open02/08
Close15/09
Result10/10

IAPLC

Completed
Status: Announced
Open01/04
Close31/05
Result10/10

How to make an aquarium

STEP by STEP guide
Fresh from the rankings

Latest works from the AquaRank Top 300

A rotating selection from the newest locally archived contest works created by the world’s Top 300 aquascapers.

Selection rotates daily · Local images onlyExplore the Top 300 →

Aquarium Library

  • All
  • Plant
  • Fish
  • Shrimp
  • Snail

News & Press

Read more aquascaping news
Analyse Spain aquascapes at IAPLC 2026, then explore the country’s results, contributing creators and competition history on AquaRank Nations.

Spain at IAPLC 2026: Roberto Buenadicha’s Forest and the Space Between Trunks

Roberto Buenadicha’s aquarium is the only Spanish work in the published ranks 1–300. Its slender dar...
Analyse France aquascapes at IAPLC 2026, then explore the country’s results, contributing creators and competition history on AquaRank Nations.

France at IAPLC 2026: A Close Reading of Jean Christophe Grosset’s Woodland

Only one French work appears in the published ranks 1–300. That gives this instalment a different ta...
Analyse Singapore aquascapes at IAPLC 2026, then explore the country’s results, contributing creators and competition history on AquaRank Nations.

Singapore at IAPLC 2026: Open Stone and an Enclosed Planted Passage

Two Singaporean works appear in the published ranks 1–300, and they offer an unusually clear contras...
Analyse Hong Kong aquascapes at IAPLC 2026, then explore the country’s results, contributing creators and competition history on AquaRank Nations.

Hong Kong at IAPLC 2026: Three Studies in Light, Layers and Visual Impact

A low timber ceiling, blue-toned terraces and converging planted diagonals create three visibly diff...
Analyse Italy aquascapes at IAPLC 2026, then explore the country’s results, contributing creators and competition history on AquaRank Nations.

Italy at IAPLC 2026: Calm Routes and More Dramatic Planted Frames

A clear route through planted banks can feel quiet; a coloured ridge beneath a dark frame can feel t...
Analyse United States aquascapes at IAPLC 2026, then explore the country’s results, contributing creators and competition history on AquaRank Nations.

United States at IAPLC 2026: Four Distinct Readings of a Wooded Aquarium

The four American photographs selected here all contain important wood structures, yet they do not p...
Top 300 spotlight

AquaRank Top 300

Explore AquaRank

Masashi Ono

Japan
5945

I am Masashi Ono, I am from Japan. I have been in aquascaping for over 30 years. I have always maintained this as a hobby and leisure activity. Becoming friends with people from all around the world and living a happy and joyful life every day - Masashi Ono san

It will be easy for you to see that he is one of the first aquatic designer in the world to achieve real "nature style" aquarium.

He has understood since a very long time how to make the fishes feels like they were in their natural habitat. Just look how they fit perfectly in the layouts he did 14 years ago and you will understand how far he had gone a long time before the other aquatic designers.

AWARDS

2001
IAPLC World Ranking 09

2002
IAPLC World Ranking 02

2003
IAPLC World Ranking 12

2004
IAPLC World Ranking 02

2005
IAPLC World Ranking 14

2006
IAPLC World Ranking 02

2007
IAPLC World Ranking 18

2008
IAPLC World Ranking 14

2009
IAPLC World Ranking 39

2010
IAPLC World Ranking 48

2011
IAPLC World Ranking 42

2012
IAPLC World Ranking 119

2013
IAPLC World Ranking 68

2014
IAPLC World Ranking 11

2015
IAPLC World Ranking 85

2016
IAPLC World Ranking 83

2017
IAPLC World Ranking 25

2018
IAPLC World Ranking 141

2019
IAPLC World Ranking 81

2020
IAPLC World Ranking 143

2021
IAPLC World Ranking 107

2022
IAPLC World Ranking 114

2023
IAPLC World Ranking 87

 

Best scapes by Masashi Ono
68

Winning Work IAPLC 2013 - Masashi Ono / Japan

The International Aquatic Plants Layout Contest - 2013
11

Beautiful Autumn - IAPLC 2014 - Masashi Ono / Japan

The International Aquatic Plants Layout Contest - 2014
85

Root under the water - IAPLC 2015 - Masashi Ono / Japan

The International Aquatic Plants Layout Contest - 2015
83

Early Autumn - IAPLC 2016 - Masashi Ono / Japan

The International Aquatic Plants Layout Contest - 2016
25

The garden of Brunei Beauty - IAPLC 2017 - Masashi Ono / Japan

The International Aquatic Plants Layout Contest - 2017
141

Fine Works IAPLC 2018 - Masashi Ono / Japan

The International Aquatic Plants Layout Contest - 2018
81

Winning Works IAPLC 2019 - Masashi Ono / Japan

The International Aquatic Plants Layout Contest - 2019
143

Fine Works IAPLC 2020 - Masashi Ono / Japan

The International Aquatic Plants Layout Contest - 2020
107

Asian breeze - IAPLC 2021 - Masashi Ono / Japan

The International Aquatic Plants Layout Contest - 2021
114

Habitat - IAPLC 2022 - Masashi Ono / Japan

The International Aquatic Plants Layout Contest - 2022
87

Stage of blue paradise - IAPLC 2023 - Masashi Ono / Japan

The International Aquatic Plants Layout Contest - 2023
Check all Aquarium Contests