can apisto's coexist with florida flagfish?

[kahunabill]

thanks to anyone who can answer.
I havea 50 gal that i'm wondering if I can have apisto's and florida (american) flagfish in together?

As far as compatibility> Will they kill each other? just wondering.

 

[cdawson]

American flagfish are brackish water fish, apistos are not compatible with them.

 

[Apistt_ed]

hello Kahunabill!
Jordanella floridae, the American Flagfish, which is a killie is a beautiful fish! Contrary to belief it is a pieceful fish. I believe it is one of the easiest to keep killies and certainly one of the prettiest. As far as aggression, the rule with most killies is as long as they are similar to in size or smaller than the other tankmates to start, its fine. The American flagfish is mainly an algae eater and is very active in the tank which will keep the apistos "on their toes" so to say but with a well planted tank and hiding spots, they'll be fine. I have kept them with A. cacatuoides, A. agassizii, A. eunotus, A. hongsloi, and A. borellii with no problem. If anything, I would acclimate the apistos in the tank first and then introduce the flagfish a week or two after the apistos have settled in. Are you planning on keeping any other fish with your apistos and flagfish and how many flagfish? What kind of apisto? good luck


john

 

[Apistt_ed]

American flagfish are brackish water fish, apistos are not compatible with them.

actually they do fine in all types of water... I keep them in straight R/O water with the apistos and they're definitely doing alright.

 

[aspen]

they are peaceful unless they are breeding. i have had a male aff tear apart a beautiful ram male when the aff was courting a female ram. i would keep only females with dwarf cichlids. YMMV. and they are great algae eaters, esp hair algae. they will also destroy fine pinnate leafed plants. i had 1 fish chew up 8 healthy stalks of rotalla walachii in just a few days. it only left the bare stalks.

rick

 

[kahunabill]

I am keeing apistogramma cacatuoides (Orange Flash) and Apistogramma trifasciata (totalling 8 fish) The aaf are various sizes, all female except for one small make under 3/4 inch. Originally, I bought a few aaf because of their reputation for algae eating, and find them all to be true. They have eradicated much of unwanted hairalgae quite impressively. I was stuck with 5 fish, and now they have bred during summer months, so now I have like 12. The males do color up quite nicely. And, have any of you seen sae's eat off rotala walachii tips?

 

[kahunabill]

man, who would of thought other ppl keep aaf's with apisto's!!!

mahalo for responses ppl.

 

[cdawson]

They are a BW species, and keeping a BW species in straight FW will jeopardize the health and immune system of the animal. Although it might seem as though it's doing fine, it will not live nearly as long as it should.

 

[Lisachromis]

Flagfish are not totally brackish. They come from all sorts of habitats.

See the following: Flagfish article

 

[cdawson]

Same as mollies, but anything that resides in BW in the wild is primarily BW. FW fish would suffer salt burn, and a slow organ burning death. BW are more suspect to disease and infection in FW. They would be much more active, colourful and overall healthier in BW.

 

[Lisachromis]

I keep my flagfish in FW totally. I have males that are at least 3 years old. Must be doing something right. I have lots of females too. They go in a pond during the warmer months and come inside for the winter. For the moment they are with X. evelynae and a female peacock gudgeon. Last summer they were in my pond with blue-eyes. Both species spawned and had fry. I've not seen any aggression from any of them. Of course, I've not tried them with Apistos, so I guess it's a matter of trying it out, and seeing how things go.

 

[cdawson]

I keep my flagfish in FW totally. I have males that are at least 3 years old. Must be doing something right. I have lots of females too. They go in a pond during the warmer months and come inside for the winter. For the moment they are with X. evelynae and a female peacock gudgeon. Last summer they were in my pond with blue-eyes. Both species spawned and had fry. I've not seen any aggression from any of them. Of course, I've not tried them with Apistos, so I guess it's a matter of trying it out, and seeing how things go.

You're obviously an experienced aquarists so water quality isn't necessarily a problem for your flagfish. However, they definately won't live as long as they normally would in BW. For instance the lifespan is around 5 years, your originals may have already died and have been replaced by younger specimen. It's possible, because of your experience, but unlikely they will last their full lifespan with at least dosing of aquarium salt or trace elements.