blueface apisto?

[tetraboy]

An LFS near me has fish described with this term going for $7 CDN ea. I'm trying to figure out what species they are :?: . They look grey (or perhaps a slate blue?) with a black horizontal line across a background of fainter vertical bands. There are radial lines of iridescent blue spots on the cheeks. They have a stocky build, like cacatuoides, the anal and dorsal fins are long and pointy at the back, tail is rounded. One fish had a territory staked out in the decorations on the bottom of the shop tank, the other four were stationary near the surface.

So any idea what this is? They sorta look like the male A. Eunotus in the gallery of this website, but I don't remember seeing quite so much blue on the sides.

If this is the right species, or if you think they are some other kind, will two males do alright in a 10g? (I don't think there were any females in the shop). How are they for water conditions? (Mine is a touch on the hard side: somewhere above 7.6 pH, about 220 ppm hardness). Do they have feeding preferences? Is it okay to give 'em flake and freeze dried daily with some frozen food every couple of days?

(I also saw a lovely male checkerboard cichlid but perhaps my water wouldn't be right for him).

Sorry my description is a little vague :? , TIA for any advice!

 

[Mike Wise]

Everything that you describe points to the fish being the Blue-head or Steel Blue Apisto - a domestically produced (hybrid?). Two males should do fine in a 10 gallon tank that is suitably aquascaped.

 

[newworldan06]

It really sounds to me like a borelli "opal", and yes they would do just fine in a 10 gallon.

 

[Apistt_ed]

...

The problem with the "steel blue" is that it has hit the hobby hard with large shipments and many of which are miss-labeled. I had the chance to come across many of them which have been labeled as A. borellii to aggies but they closely resemble fish in the eunotus/resticulosa family that they are many times mistaken for the ones in that family that DO make it into stores. I ran into a shipment of fish that was somewhat close in resemblance to the steel blue but not as metallic blue in color with green/yellow cheeks instead. I obviously saw females in the tank ( because of the yellow breeding colors were coming in) and knowing how "rare/non-existant" it was to find a female steel blue, I decided to pick a few pairs up to later identify them. I had the worst time trying to find out what they were... from A. eunotus orange to A. amapa`.. everyone had an opinion on what they were. Finally after researching shipment records, help from some people in the forum here (thanks), and from one of the dwarf buffs/private collector from the local cichlid associations, we identified it as being A. wangenflecken. One of the downfalls is that it is frustrating a bit but out of the frustration, I found that I do have one of those dwarfs that I don't see too much. just out of curiosity where are you from tetraboy? I noticed the shop here in town labeled a few of them as blue-faced apistos too...

 

[newworldan06]

From what you describe to me looks exactly like my Apistogramma Borelli "opal"

 

[Mike Wise]

A. borellii never shows vertical bars on its flanks, except when in a highly stressed/agitated state. The lateral band tends to fade out on the front half of the body, and the adult male's dorsal fin has no spines sticking out above the sail-like dorsal fin - exect the first spine. They do not have a separate caudal spot at the base of the tail fin. The lateral band widens at the base, but extends to the root of the tail. The tail is normally patternless.

The Steel-blue/Blue-head Apisto regularly shows vertical bars along the flanks (especially females; rare on dominant males). The lateral band is typically continuous across the body with dark, broader patches where it crosses the verical bars. The dorsal fin has slight spine extensions, making the top of the fin look very slightly serrated. They have an obvious caudal spot that is much taller than the width of the lateral band. The male's tail is crossed by rows of spots.

 

[tetraboy]

Well...

for Apistt_ed: I am in Calgary, Canada. I bought my blue-face just a couple of days ago from the Petland chain. (In ony a week they sold out completely, mine was the last one :!: ).

for Mike Wise: Yes, there is a dark spot at the base of the tail, no spots on the tail and distinct vertical banding on the sides(in addition to the prominent horizontal stripe). The dorsal fin is not sail-like (except toward the rear where it matches the similar extention of the anal fin) and the forward portion over the back is distinctly spiny. The underlying colour over the back appears to me a pale olive and there is a slight purplish luminescense on the sides when the fish turns in the light (then too, this could just be the effect of my lighting).

It's in a 10g now with a trio of lamp-eye killifish and a few dwarf cories (most of the cories are also new to this tank). He(/she?) seems a little nervous but is active and feeding.