Apistogrammas
- Thread starter Mercury
- Start date
I think you should be fine with 1 male and 2 females. Place some caves in the tank(2-3) like upside down flower pots with holes in them for the male and female to go in/out of. I don't think you should keep anyother fish in the tank other than the apisto's. Once you see the fry i think it would be best to either move the male and other female who didn't breed or move the fry to a separate tank. What kind of apisto's were you looking at?
Pretty much what silver said, except I would keep a top dwelling fish in with either apistos or kribs. Both can get really nippy at each other, and by having dither fish in their it gives them something to 'team up' against and this sometimes helps form a stronger bond. Stay away from any bottom dweller with either group of cichlid though, as it's sure to become meat.
YMMV, but if it were me, I wouldn't put anything in the tank that you wouldn't be prepared to loose to the cichlids. They are cichlids after all, and can become very aggressive when spawning.
Always be willing to experiment, but keep your wits about you and be prepared to move the live bearers if needed. The cichlids might attack them, and might not. It all depends on the cichlid personality and 'mood' so to speak.
Always be willing to experiment, but keep your wits about you and be prepared to move the live bearers if needed. The cichlids might attack them, and might not. It all depends on the cichlid personality and 'mood' so to speak.
Just to add to Orion and Silvers posts above -
With kribs they will pretty much murder anything not fast enough to avoid them when they start to breed, cories definitely suffer fast moving mid - top dwelling fish fair much better and actually help to save aggression between the pair, I also kept a clown Plec with my breeding Kribs it faired very well staying out the way and built well enough to withstand any harrasment from the Kribs at the same time it didn't ever attempt to eat the eggs!
Apistos I have a differing view as to why you shouldn't keep other fish with them, firstly not all Apistos are harem breeders so research them before you buy incidentally Cuckoo's or Cacatuoides do prefer harems. My view on not keep other fish with them isn't so much due to the agression from the cichlids but for the fact they get spooked easily and may eat any spawn due to the fact the pair feel threatened, I kept a pair of Agassizi with a Bristlenose cat and some glow light tetras they wouldn't spawn until I moved the BN out, once I did it was fine!
With kribs they will pretty much murder anything not fast enough to avoid them when they start to breed, cories definitely suffer fast moving mid - top dwelling fish fair much better and actually help to save aggression between the pair, I also kept a clown Plec with my breeding Kribs it faired very well staying out the way and built well enough to withstand any harrasment from the Kribs at the same time it didn't ever attempt to eat the eggs!
Apistos I have a differing view as to why you shouldn't keep other fish with them, firstly not all Apistos are harem breeders so research them before you buy incidentally Cuckoo's or Cacatuoides do prefer harems. My view on not keep other fish with them isn't so much due to the agression from the cichlids but for the fact they get spooked easily and may eat any spawn due to the fact the pair feel threatened, I kept a pair of Agassizi with a Bristlenose cat and some glow light tetras they wouldn't spawn until I moved the BN out, once I did it was fine!
Ehhh, I don't 100% agree with the murderous krib idea. Heh, not from personal experence because every pair I've ever spawned was bat-crap crazy to everything else. But I've read from other people that they've had kribs spawn in tanks with other fish and that the tankmates be OK. So it can happen, but it does seem to be in the minority if not in a large tank.
Now this would depend on a few major factors: The personality of the kribs. Every cichlid can have a different personality as to if it has a tendency to be more aggressive or more docile than the 'average' of it's species. All cichlids become more aggressive during spawning. The size of the tank. The larger the tank, obviously the more hiding spots the parents/fry and tankmates are going to have and be able to get away from each other. In a larger tank other fish will have a better chance of getting away from ticked off parents. Amount of tankmates. If the tank is over crowded, then fish are going to die.
Just some things to keep in mind
Cichlids are crazy things, but are more addictive than crack.
Now this would depend on a few major factors: The personality of the kribs. Every cichlid can have a different personality as to if it has a tendency to be more aggressive or more docile than the 'average' of it's species. All cichlids become more aggressive during spawning. The size of the tank. The larger the tank, obviously the more hiding spots the parents/fry and tankmates are going to have and be able to get away from each other. In a larger tank other fish will have a better chance of getting away from ticked off parents. Amount of tankmates. If the tank is over crowded, then fish are going to die.
Just some things to keep in mind
Cichlids are crazy things, but are more addictive than crack.