Apisto in a 10 gallon

[Kristian Tombs]

My current stock is:
5 Neon Tetras ( 1 inch long)
3 Julii Corydoras (1 inch long)
1 Bristlenose Pleco (1 inch long)

I was wondering if I could get a apistogramma cacatoides for this tank.
I changed 75% every week and gravel vac

 

[bseitz234]

I wouldn't, for multiple reasons:

Apistos and Corys occupy the same bottom region of the tank, and 10gal doesn't give them much room. More room would help, but even then people have had issues with this combination. Especially if you get a pair that breeds, they'll be very aggressive towards the corys. One fish would be better, but still probably a bit stressed by them.

Not sure how long you're planning on keeping the bristlenose, but it won't stay 1" for long. Once it reaches 6", it will pretty effectively bully the apisto if it decides it wants a given cave or hiding place.

Neons fall on the other end of the spectrum, and I've had apistos try to eat them before. A bigger tetra would be fine in a 1-apisto community, although probably not a breeding tank. Neons, might well be fine. That would mostly depend on the temperament of the individual fish. I've got some that are fine with a bitaeniata right now, so I don't want to say it couldn't work. Just be aware it might not.

Tankmates I'd recommend for a 10gal (not all of these in the same tank, that would be quite overstocked. Just some ideas to choose from):

Otocinclus. I have 4 in with a breeding pair of pretty aggressive apistos, one of which tried to eat a 2" pencilfish. And neither of them care about the Otos at all- someone once said (I think either on here or the krib) that Apistos view Otos as not even being fish, and I could certainly see that.

Hatchetfish. They'll keep to the upper reaches of the tank, adding some interest without getting in the way of the apistos.

Pencilfish- I have N. eques and N. nigrotaeniatus right now, and they behave a bit differently, although both make pretty good tankmates. The eques hang out right under the surface, looking among the roots of duckweed for food. The nigrotaeniatus hang out in the middle reaches of the tank, but are fast enough to escape any apisto that might not want the company.

Bigger tetras- with one apisto, you should have no problems. With a breeding pair, tetras will probably get any fry that manage to hatch. But if you're just considering one cacatuoides, most tetras will be fine. And like I said above, even neons might be fine. But I would prefer a bigger tetra if I were doing the tank- Black neons can be good, I've had Columbian red-blues (wasn't a big fan of the fish, but they were fine as tankmates), Ember Tetras are a favorite... the list is very long.

 

[Kristian Tombs]

How about this:

1 Apistogramma Cacatoides
6 Cardinal Tetra
3 Corydoras Julii
1 Bristlenose Pleco

 

[davidjp1982]

Your corys will get battered - believe me I tried this and it simply doesn't work - if you really want to get an apisto then I recommend getting rid of your corys first, it's not nice to watch a harmless cory getting repeatedly dive bombed as they stray into an apistos territory.

 

[bseitz234]

Agreed. The neons were the least of my worries above. If you must have corys and an apisto, a big enough footprint to ensure that they each have enough space, and *heavily* decorating / breaking up the bottom of the tank are the way to go. But if you'd have to get a new tank to have a bigger footprint, might as well just make it a second tank, so you can keep this community the way it is, then have a separate tank for a pair of cacatuoides, and then you're ensured of all the fish's safety and well-being.

 

[Kristian Tombs]

Are there any other nice centrepiece fish that I could get instead of an apisto then? Ram Cichlid?

 

[Mike Wise]

Looking at your fish right now, I'd recommend 1 or 2 more juliis and 8 - 10 more neons. You'd be amazed at what a larger school of neons looks like in a small tank.

 

[Kristian Tombs]

I want a centrepiece for the upper levels of the tank.
Any ideas?

 

[bseitz234]

Upper levels? Definitely not an apisto or a ram, regardless of other occupants. What about a beta or a gourami?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk - now Free

 

[Kristian Tombs]

Well my tank is an amazon themed tank. Any ideas of stocking then?

 

[bseitz234]

The only upper level amazon fish I'd do in a ten would be the aforementioned hatchets or pencil fish. Although as I look at my living-room 20gal, a cory is sticking eggs on the glass 2/3 of the way up, so I guess you never know where your fish are going to hang out.

10 gallon tanks are hard. They're really too small for much. Your fish will be much happier and healthier, and therefore more rewarding, if you don't overload the tank's bio capacity, or overcrowd the fish. Even without the corys and Ancistrus, I wouldn't do rams in a 10. It's just not big enough to hold most "centerpiece" fish, along with a lot else.

And I'd be careful adding a school of hatchets or pencils- that sounds like a lot of fish for a 10, unless it's very heavily planted and the plants can help with nitrate load. If the top of your tank seems empty, you could replace the neons with one of those two. If it were me, I'd keep the neons, maybe add two or three to bulk up the school, and then start planning another tank for a pair of apistos.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk - now Free

 

[bseitz234]

Oh, and Mike's right- more corys would be good too. They're pretty social little guys. I usually never keep fewer than 6.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk - now Free

 

[DanielG]

I'd like to ask a question.

I've got a 20 gallon tall with interests of upgrading to something much bigger within a month or two after I move into my house. Now, I've had a pair of Agassizi's in there just fine, until the female got a fungus infection that turned fatal. I've had a VERY difficult time locating a new female for him (i'm secretly hoping they'll breed), but have only been successful in finding a PAIR. So as it is now, I've got two pairs of apisto's in my tank, I put both in a floating hatchery in the hopes that they will get used to each other's presence and the aggression will subside.

My tank is pretty heavily planted with plenty of hiding places. I can most certainly build some sort of visual barrier between the two sides as well, but I don't want them to kill each other. Shall I risk letting them go free in the tank or should I just get a small 10 gallon tank as a temporary location until I get the bigger tank?

 

[Mike Wise]

Your 20H should be fine for a pair of A. agassizii. I would add the female first and allow her to discover all of the hiding places first, say for 2 or 3 days. Make sure that there are 3 or 4 caves scattered throughout the tank. Then introduce the male and keep an eye on them.

 

[Tattooedfool83]

So then a 10 gallon for single pair would due fine?

 

[Mike Wise]

I don't recommend 10s for pairs of most apisto species, especially species that are harem breeders. Can it be done? Sure, but you need to be careful and if/when aggression occurs you'll need to separate the fish. Otherwise you'll probably lose one of them.

 

[Tattooedfool83]

I don't recommend 10s for pairs of most apisto species, especially species that are harem breeders. Can it be done? Sure, but you need to be careful and if/when aggression occurs you'll need to separate the fish. Otherwise you'll probably lose one of them.

Thanks for the info, I was in the process of setting up a couple tanks for apistos, which happened to be 10s, I was gonna have 2 10s for a pair echo and a separate 10 for separation if needed or for fry. I do have a rack of empty 20longs I could plan on for te apistos instead. Although I wanted gbrs

 

[DanielG]

Hey, Thanks for the replies.

My question though was whether or not I could fit a second pair into the 20h tank. The answer I have just found out is no.

What I was able to do is manage to get one 3" male and two females in the 20h tank. All seem to be cohabitating just fine, although the tank is a little overcrowded with the two platy's and 8 neon tetra's.

Because my LFS only sold Agassizi's in pairs, I had to pickup a male AND a female. The new male was smaller than the male I already had, so I went out and picked up a 5 gallon marineland aquarium to house him in until I can get a bigger tank. He seems to be doing fine.

 

[Mike Wise]

Do you plan to produce fry in a tank with 8 Neon Tetras??? Very unlikely!