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Recent content by martin_c

  1. martin_c

    Again question on water hardness and fish needs as well as ph crash

    Regarding PH crash: Even with very soft water with ec <= 20µs i've never experienced highly volatile PH values. I believe it requires further conditions like: - sterile tank without any buffering mulm or humic substances - very high fish density - CO2 injection or insufficient aeration In my...
  2. martin_c

    A. psammophila female turned into fully functional male

    Here are some photos (low quality unfortunately) of the two from november 2025, shortly after the wildcaught male had died and there was no male left in the tank. I added the neons then, because i thought breeding chapter is closed. And some i took today. It now has elongated dorsal fin...
  3. martin_c

    A. psammophila female turned into fully functional male

    Yesterday i witnessed that a wildcaught A. psammophila which was a mother 2 years ago is a father now. I received a trio (1m, 2f) of wild caught A. psammophila in 2023. Both females were once rasing their fry simultaniously (3 weeks apart in age), so there can't be a mix up, they both were...
  4. martin_c

    New A. agassizii suddenly inactive and not eating, zero clues

    In my opinion, if your plants will have grown some more, your tank isn't wrong for a pair of Apistogramma. A trio is always a problem though in a tank of that size. One often gets mobbed to death by the other two in the long run. Your other fish seem to be typical dither fish, they'll be okay...
  5. martin_c

    New A. agassizii suddenly inactive and not eating, zero clues

    Hi, since no one else responded yet, here are my thoughts on this: I can't help you with identifying his exact illness (flagellates may be right). Just: In tap water the immune system of Apistogrammas kind of sucks. They are prone to parasites / illnesses in it. Your setup looks well put...
  6. martin_c

    Collecting in Peru

    Have a nice trip! If I'll ever make a trip like that, I'd probably be looking for dwarfs from the genera Microphilypnus, Elachocharax, and Fluviphylax. They are so hard to find in the aquarium trade.
  7. martin_c

    My new upper Amazon tributary blackwater biotope

    usually about 3-6 tee bags for my 250L tank after a water change. Sometimes as tee, sometimes i just hanged the bags in the tank for 2 days.
  8. martin_c

    My new upper Amazon tributary blackwater biotope

    I used roiboos tee a lot, but i never achieved such a redness. More like amber colored. Maybe i just never used enough of it.
  9. martin_c

    Is this a pair of Apistogramma cf. moae?

    I have one too. I wished though there was a version of it with a square shaped opening so you can reach the bottom in corners with it.
  10. martin_c

    My new upper Amazon tributary blackwater biotope

    Nice tank. Do you know which of your humic compounds is responsible for this level of redness?
  11. martin_c

    Rio Negro focused Biotope Tankmates

    Not sure, but here's a snapshot of the wildcaught father i found on my disk:
  12. martin_c

    Rio Negro focused Biotope Tankmates

    Temperature wise A. diplotaenia is the one in your list that matches the needs of S. discus. I actually kept those 2 species together for a while. The diplotaenia are small enough to fit into a grown Discus mouth, but mine never showed any hunting efforts at all. Can't guarantee the same for...
  13. martin_c

    Befuddled by ph

    I once had issues getting the PH down in a tank, and in the end it seemed to be because of the sand i used. Even though it was river sand (from Maas river in netherlands) which was adverted as PH neutral and didn't show no visible reaction when i dripped acid on it, the issue disappeared after i...
  14. martin_c

    Apistogramma rositae

    Sry for spoiling the mood, but sentences like "my Apisto killed xy.." always trigger me. If an apisto kills another fish for territorial reasons then it either took at least days of ignoring it and not intervening (by removing the hunted fish) or if it took only hours the tank was undersized and...
  15. martin_c

    Hi, just in case you happen to live in Germany (or Netherlands): I have a wildcaught female A...

    Hi, just in case you happen to live in Germany (or Netherlands): I have a wildcaught female A. psammophila, you could have it for free. I have no use for it anymore. BR Martin
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