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Finally got some!

Mk11wagn

New Member
Messages
7
Alright....

I have been keeping an eye out for some Apisto's for a few months now.... (Rather difficult to come across over here)

Well.... I managed to get my hands on some "A cacatuoides - super red" (that's what they have been sold to me as)

I have now got 10 juveniles ranging in size from nearly an inch down to half an inch.

At this stage I have put them all into a 100L tank with plenty of driftwood plants and caves.

Have a few questions.....

How long approx will they be able to live together like that?

When I can tell males/females I was planning on splitting them up..... Can say 5 males exist together in one tank and say 5 females in another? ( Wasn't planning on breeding at this stage because they are all from the same parents)

Also what's the best tank size for say 5 females?

No doubt I'll have another 50 questions tomorrow....
 

Mike Wise

Moderator
Staff member
5 Year Member
Messages
11,202
Location
Denver, Colorado, U.S.A.
Your cacatuoides should be able to live together until 1 or 2 males become dominant and want to claim territory and then breed. This time can vary with age, size, food, tank lay-out and maintenance. Once the fish sex out you will have less problems if there is no chance of breeding, but there often is a dominant fish so you need to give each fish its own territory or at least 2 - 3X the number of hiding places as fish. I find males are less aggressive than females when kept in same-sex tanks, but it varies with species and each individual fish. I suggest that you keep a close eye on each fish and remove any that are overly stressed by another fish. In such situations I keep tubes of floating PBS pipe (black plastic) for fish to hide in at the top of the tank. Apistos usually hide at the top of the tank when they can't hold a territory and are repeatedly attacked. As for females, tank size is not as important as structure. For example, I've have had 6 A. sp. Abacaxis females in a mostly bare 20L/75x30x30cm quarantine tank for about 2 years now (they're probably close to 4 years old now). Other than a sponge filter the bottom only has pieces of PVC pipe that they hide in.
 

Mk11wagn

New Member
Messages
7
Ok thanks mike that's handy information

Be interesting to see what sort of mix m/f I get out of the bunch.
 

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