Apistogramma Cacatioudes Spawn!- Here they go again

[WaterPond]

Hey Guys,

I have a full grown pair of Apistogramma cacatuoides in a heavily planted ten gallon. I have a few caves for them to hide in. For the first month or so of having them they acted very much like a pair. The female got more yellow and more yellow, and today i came home and she was almost full yellow, she had totally changed colour. She stays in one spot while the male roams around the tank. The spot where the female stays is in front of a cave. She also used to be really plump, but isn't so much anymore. My first thought is that she is guarding eggs.

My question is:

I always thought that the female would get really yellow to show the male she is ready to breed, then they do their thing and she gets less yellow, but do they get more yellow gaurding eggs?

I don;t even know if she is for sure. But i really hope so. I'm just so confused, i really doubt she is, but everything sounds right, does it not?

:?

 

[Gillie]

The answer is yes they get more yellow when brooding, if she is sticking to one particular cave or peice of wood she most likely has eggs laid there. If you are careful you can gently tilt it so you can peek but I don't advise this unless the light on the tank has been of for a while, and you can use a dim flashlight to check for eggs.

 

[WaterPond]

theres no way i can see them, because its under a big peice of driftwood. I don't want to disturb anything.

 

[Gillie]

Then just wait it out with your fingers crossed. Are there any other fish in with them?

 

[WaterPond]

there is just the pair, and then there is a pair of guppies. I will move the guppies out tomorrow.

 

[severum mama]

My a. stendachneri female turned bright yellow when the pair spawned, and the stayed yellow even while she was guarding fry. When the fry got eaten (I assume), she turned back to her normal coloration.

 

[Gillie]

Well WP any updates?

 

[WaterPond]

she is still major yellow, even more yellow than before, and still guarding that spot. No sign of fry yet. I am hopeful though.

 

[Gillie]

Judging by the date of your first post they should be free swimming soon, if they're in there.

 

[WaterPond]

no

 

[Gillie]

No?

 

[WaterPond]

no babies.

 

[Gillie]

Is she still bright yellow? If so she may be ready and the male may either not be ready or uncomfortable for some reason or she may be that color because she is defending her cave from the male, does he stick by her much?

 

[WaterPond]

they did the first week or so of having them... then she became more independant, this is when i say her starting to get more yellow.

She is still bright yellow, yes.

 

[Gillie]

Is she chasing the male away? If so she may not be ready yet, and her coloring may be a threat display warning him to stay away from her and her tiny territory. What are you feeding them?

 

[WaterPond]

Shes chases the male away sometimes, not always though. Sometimes they swim side by side.

I am feeding them frozen bloodworm, frozen brine shrimp, spirulina flakes, and stape food flakes.

 

[WaterPond]

You will never guess what i cam home to today! wooooh, the perfect thing to cheer me up around exam time. I finally found a swarm about 30 of these little guys around my female.

This is my first ever spawn of any type of egglaying fish. YAY!

A few questions now-

-is BBS ok? how long can they go without having it because i just used the last of it on some guppy fry which were just born. Can i supplement it with something else for a few days while i get and hatch some BBS?

-Should i remove the male... he doesnt seem to have any interest in snacking on these guys, but can that change?

They are so tiny, only a like 2mm long! I manages to get some fairly decent pics seeing as how these guys are so small. Here they are:

One smack dab in the middle

I spy with my little eye 4 tiny abay apistos.

first time mom:

The proud father displaying his crest with triumph:

My gosh, this is so exciting.

 

[severum mama]

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!

Congrats on the fry, you've wanted this to happen for so long! Mom and Dad look like very proud parents.

 

[rich311k]

Way to go Jason. Nicely done.

 

[Big Ben]

congrats. I just bought 3 of the same species of apistos today as a matter of fact .
I hope to breed mine someday as you have. My male isn't as colorful as yours though because they are wild. My females are very yellow though, one more then the other, I have a couple shaded ares but I need to put some cavesin still. How long overall did they take to lay you think after the female turned yellow?