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Any pencilfish (genus Nannostomus only) except possibly N. beckfordi, which have been reported to eat apisto fry should be OK. My personal favorite is N. marginatus.
It will 'get your feet wet' (literally). Such trips have several advantages including they eliminate the headache of shipping fish home. The disadvantage? Well they go where they want to go and collect fish that you might not be interested in. As for Go Wild Peru Tours, they have their...
Yes, "fry theft" is fairly common among A. borellii, especially between females. This instinct is so strong in this species that they have been know to brood fry of other apisto species - and even fry of dwarf pikes!
The are several geographic populations of L. dorsigera. They look quite similar when not in breeding colors. Breeding color can vary from deep burgundy to sooty black, like yours do.
To me the "female" looks disturbingly like a young or sneaker male. But as mentioned before females of domestic strains can show many masculine characteristics.
Per Römer & Beißenherz's study 26°C for 6 weeks produced 50/50 sex ratio for A. borellii. I would use it. A. borellii is/are a species found in the Pantanal grasslands of South America and are not a rain forest species. As such they adapt easily to a wide range of temperatures.
Good new for you. "South American Dwarf Cichlids (Datz Special Publication in German & English)" doesn't need a translation since it contains both German and English text. I can provide a free (no cost!) electronic tanslation of "Die Buntbarsche Amerikas - Apistogramma & Co." to you once you let...
Before I try to answer your questions I want to say that female A. panduro will not accept just any male. That your "pair" haven't physically damaged each other is a good sign. I have, however, seen "pairs" like this tolerate each other but not consider each other as breeding partners.
No, but...
I'd expect to see some sort of spot pattern even on female Steel-blue. It does appear to be a resticulosa-complex species. Based on the bowed vertical bars on the smaller species (2nd photo) it's possible that you have 2 female A. sp. Wangenflecken.
Most females prefer that their breeding caves' openings just large enough so that they can slide in sideways. Your cave probably won't be used. Most likely your female will dig a cave under driftwood.