Advice on Apistogramma please

[cory]

Hi all,

I have acquired a pair of apisto after years of being immune to the apisto poison. Finally cannot resist the poison & got a pair from TB Ben last saturday

Would like to seek advice from the experts here on apistos :

1) ID - Is this pair A.cacatuoides tripid red?

2) Pair bonding - How do see the pair has bonded, any indication before spawning so that I can prepare or remove other tankmates.

3) Tank enviroment -

a) Tank size 24"x12"x16" (LxWxH)
b) Tankmates - 5 x lower xingu, 2 x L333, 2 x L183 & 3 normal rams.
c) Filteration - 1 x eheim 2236, 1 x juwel internal filter & 1 x sponge filter.
d) Water change 10% every 3 days.

May I know are the tankmates suitable for the apisto or any other arrangement need to be made?

Thanks & appreciate for all the advice

[taygu]

HI, this is Apisto Agassizzi Red. If you intend to breed them, is better to keep them alone as they will be very aggressive to tank mate when spawning.

[doppelbanddwarf]

You have got a nice pair of agassiziis there. Like what taygu has pointed out, there are too many tankmates if you want to have successful breeding. The tankmates are a threat to the eggs and fry, while the Apisto would be aggressive and may kill the tankmates.

The female turning bright yellow would be the most obvious sign of spawning. Also it might turn aggressive to the male and other tankmates.

[wychay]

Nice red. A bit off topic - I would not feel too much blood worms. Apisto are in general sensitive to bacteria infection especially wild ones.

[SCOPE]

Apistogramma Agassizzi Red is relatively easy breeder and they will bond in no time. One simple way to make a pair of apisto to bond easier is to use some mirrors in the tank.

[cory]

Thanks to all bros for the kind comments & advice.

Can feel the apisto poison running deeper

Very tempting to get one more pair to put in my office tank, any recommendation for a newbie like me (preferably more hardy & can withstand weekend without food).

Thanks once again.

[Biotopeshop]

Hi,
These are other hardly species:
1. Ap macmasteri
2. Ap hongsloi
3. Ap trifasciata
4. Ap cacatouides

happy keeping

Best regards

Thio

[cory]

Thanks for the advice Mr Thio,

How nice if your shop still located at Bukit Merah, just 5 mins drive from my place

[cory]

[Quote by taygu] : The female turning bright yellow would be the most obvious sign of spawning.

Hi all,

I have shifted my AP Agassizii pair from home to my office tank this morning.

Saw the pair was behaving strangely in the afternoon & took some pictures of them. 1st picture (same female) was taken on Sunday & 2nd, 3rd and 4th picture this afternoon.

May I know are they in spawning mood? The female has turned yellowish as bro taygu has mentioned & black stripe consolidated into a black dot on the body. Now female is inside the coconut cave with the male inside guarding the entrance.

Kindly see attached pictures for my Agassizii pair.

Thanks in advance for any advice.

[joopsg]

Hey Cory,
Looks like they had spawned.
The female in brooding dress.
Keep a lookout for the male.
He might get kill by the female.

[cory]

Thanks joop.

I have checked on the pair this morning, the female still in her brooding dress with a split tail. They no longer residing in the cave & also no signs of eggs.

[stormhawk]

It is possible that she is guarding fry now. You should look at the gravel to spot the fry, if there's any.

[joopsg]

Spot On! stormhawk.
split tail maybe she tried to chase the daddy away..
look around the mummy since she is still having the brood dress.

[cory]

No signs of fries or eggs

Today the female has turned back to her normal stripe dull colour.

Maybe the eggs was eaten by the male or other fishes

[stormhawk]

Possibly the other fishes. What else do you have in the tank? Breeding them in a community setting is not easy.

[cory]

I have 2 C.panda, 2 L183 & 3 guppys in the tank.

Never expect them to spawn so fast: on the same day when I transferred them from my house tank to office tank, really caught me unaware.

Just put a small mirror into the tank this morning. Now the male always stared into the mirror, doesn't care about the female.

[doppelbanddwarf]

With the cory and plecos in the tank it would be hard for the female to successfully guard her eggs.

[RustyTOols]

Guppies You mean? They won't get attacked by apisto??

[stormhawk]

Yup doppel is right. With Corydoras and those plecos, the female can get stressed easily. They're all bottom dwelling fish, plus the female will herd the fry around and sometimes a few random fry can turn into a meal for the Corydoras.

[cory]

@ RustyTOols : The apistos & guppies co-exist in the tank fine. No aggression from either sides.

@ doppelbanddwarf & stormhawk : I will remove the corys & plecs and concentrate on the apsito spawning. May I know when will the next spawn occur? After the previous spawn the female has revert back to her normal body colour & stripe. The male seems like easily irritated by the female, kept on chasing the female even during meal times.

Thanks once again.