Atahualpa

[BillyBlanks]

There is a shipment of Apistos coming to my LFS that contains A. Atahualpa, A. Norbeti and A. Maulbruter.

I can only really purchase one pair. I was wondering if A. Atahualpa is as aggressive as is claimed on the net. Can you house a single young pair in a 10 gallon (with lots of plants & driftwood) as you would with A. Macmasteri or something?

Which is the most peaceful of the above species?

 

[cootwarm]

Hi BillyBlanks,

I have a pair of atahualpa in a 10 gallon with no trouble. The true test is if you plan to spawn them. If you do, be sure to provide many hiding places for the male in case the female gets a bit carried away. As long as the male has a couple places to keep out of sight of the female (without crawling into a hole!) while she is caring for a spawn, everything should be OK.

Some species may be more aggressive than others, in general. However cichlids all have individual personalities, therefore individual temerments. Especially be wary during spawning and brood care.

I just lost my male Fresa a couple weeks ago while I was away camping. I had a pair of wildcaught Fresa in a 10 gallon tank for at least 9 months with no trouble. They weren't spawning because my hardness and pH were a little high for them. I was planning to add peat water to their tank so they could spawn in September. But as luck would have it, they spawned in August while I was away camping and the male had nowheres to hide.

Now I have a female with only about 8 fry and no mate.

The tank set up is the most important factor. I like to keep a good size piece of driftwood in the center of the tank with a coconut shell cave on each side. It sort of creates 2 "territories" as mother usually likes to keep her fry together in a group on one side or the other. For plants I use mostly Java Moss and Java Ferns as they like soft water and normal light. A pile or 2 of Oak Leaves also make a big difference.

Michael

 

[BillyBlanks]

Thanks Michael,

Yes I meant in regards to spawning them in a 10 gallon. I generally use about 3 medium sized pieces of driftwood to create a number of 'out of view' regions in the tank. Hopefully this works. Also where you put the cave is important, correct.

Bad luck with the Fresa, fish always seem to have the worst timing dont they! :frown:

 

[Mike Wise]

A. atahualpa, like many other species related to it, tend to be preferentially monogamous. That means that they won't spawn with some members of the opposite sex for reasons of their own choosing. If you are lucky enough to get a compatible pair, you will be OK, but if they aren't compatible one will die.