Choosing Apistos

[Arget]

My LFS ordered some Cockatoo Cichlids for me. They got three males in a few days ago, and might be able to get in some females next week. They're holding the males right now to make sure that they are healthy, and so that they'll color up once they get calmed down. How to choose the best ones? I've never had any Cichlids before, and was wondering about their behavior. So how to tell if a male is the best one? Is it something to do with how they act? Their fin color or length?

 

[mbkemp]

I would be looking for clamped fins, or not, full rounded bellies, and clear eyes. Color probably won’t be great in a Store tank. These guys like cover

 

[Arget]

I know the basics, those that work for fish in general. Any other behavior or displays specific to Cichlids or Cockatoo Apistos? Actually, my LFS is a very good one, they have cover for the fish in the tanks, including flower pots. They take such good care of them that there is a breeding pair of Marlier's Julies in one of their display tanks.

 

[Barliman]

How big a tank are you planning to put them in? Mated pairs will form and defend a territory, pushing everyone else out.

 

[Arget]

I've a 55g with a colony of guppies, a cory, and a 3" pleco. It also has leaf litter and 6 pots.

 

[Barliman]

I've a 55g with a colony of guppies, a cory, and a 3" pleco. It also has leaf litter and 6 pots.

I'm no expert, but I suspect that would support a couple of pairs.

 

[coralbandit]

You could get away with 3 pair in a 55 probably.Need lots of cover for the pairs to claim and feel safe.
The Males should have a distinctly lyrate[lyre] caudal [tail ] fin while the females will be round or at best truncate.

 

[Arget]

Okay, that helps a lot. One site that I read said that the females will claim and defend a 12" diameter territory, a 55g is 48" by 12". The leaf litter is in spots where it fell, and I've got a good sized bag of leaves that I can pick through. I have one good sized fake plant, and can easily get more at my LFS to put some space between the pots.

 

[coralbandit]

I use terra cotta plant pots side ways and upside down in my apisto tanks.
I break some to make caves also.
Some apisto prefer to spawn in the pot upside down.Only the female should be able to fit through the hole.She will lay eggs around the hole in the pot and the will fertilize from outside the pot.
These are my hongslio with eggs in the pot.

 

[Arget]

The pots are 2.5". I did not break them, too worried that the fish would hurt themselves on any jagged edges.

 

[Arget]

Here's the tank. I still need to replace a bulb, but it's what I got. I also have a big bag of leaves if I need more.

 

[EOGoldfish]

I would suggest adding more cover to break the line of sight.

 

[Arget]

I've got a large trash bag of leaves, and I plan on getting another fake plant for the center, those two pots need it.

 

[coralbandit]

I would suggest adding more cover to break the line of sight.

^^ +1 ^^
Wood would work well in the tank hard scape and for the fish.
It is helpful ,sometimes necessary for the fish to able to completely hide from the others. I also recommend at least one more cave then total number of apistos so subdominant has place to go if alpha steals their house...
Believe it or not fish are smart enough to know who is where in short order in tanks. The extra empty cave always adds good distraction for all.

 

[Arget]

I'm still trying to decide if I want to replace the 3" pleco with a Bristlenose Pleco. I also only plan on having 2-4 Apistos, only one of them will be male.

 

[machotaco]

If you're planning to breed the apistos and have the pleco I have heard that the pleco will often eat the eggs. No personal experience with this so cannot confirm for sure but it seems very plausible to me.

 

[Arget]

I did read about that as well. I also thought about Otos, but I don't have good experience with them. I lost all of them and I have to drive an hour and a half to boot.

 

[Arget]

Okay, lot has changed. I lost my pleco, but replaced it with a BN Pleco, and have some driftwood in the tank as well. Is there much difference between one type of Apisto and the next? My LFS has recently changed hands and supplier. They currently can't get the Cockatoo Cichlids, but they can get Apistogramma Bitaeniata. The only issue is that my tap water, is hard water. It does cause some issues. The guppies love it though.

 

[coralbandit]

I have a pair of bitaeniata that I breed. They are somewhat picky eaters..They are not the pigs I feed often who will eat what ever I offer...
I can't say if they will be ok in hard water ,but I will bet they don't breed or show best color. Most Apistos are going to prefer soft water. I keep my adult male hongslio in my tap which is 7.6 ph /2-3 kh / 9 gh with a TDS of 350 and they show great color so ?
All others for breeding I keep under 100 TDS.

 

[Arget]

Okay, That's what I thought. Most Apistos seem to be soft water fish. Now to wait for them to get a breeding pair of Cockatoo Cichlids in. That should be easy.