gobies with apisto's

[hexy]

I have 3 x Stiphodon gobies in my tank with a sexed pair of bitaeniata and wanted to know peoples thoughts on keeping these together?

I think I have decided to move the gobies out now as fear they will stop my apisto's breeding...

thanks

 

[Tom C]

To be honest: I think it's a bad combination........

A. bitaeniata is a black water species. Their natural habitat has soft water with quite/very low pH. The water is very slow-moving (if moving at all), and usually no true aquatic plants or algae are present. When they breed, they can defend a territory of 2 - 3 square meters, and violently chase other fish out of it.

Stiphodons usually inhabit white waters, to my knowledge. The water usually has some hardness, and a high pH. Some species lives in fast-flowing water, and they need a plentiful supply of algae-covered rocks and other surfaces.
They are not recommended to be kept together with aggressive species.

It's not possible to set up one tank that could give both these species the best possible and natural conditions, at the same time.

The Gobis will probably not stop the apisto's breeding, but the conditions under which the fish are held probably could.

So yes, I agree with you: move one of them to another tank

 

[Bilbo]

A few of us have already answered this for you. Gobies wont be like soft acidic water and bitaeniata will suffer badly in hard alkaline water. You should not keep these two fish together in the same tank.
If you try to have a mid range tank to keep them both then neither of them will be happy.

 

[hexy]

Thank you for your help. I noticed the female had been very protective of her cave and is now a beautiful yellow colour. It was ahrd work but have moved the gobies out as they kept trying to sneak a look at her cave.

Hoping I'll have some young Any tips on how to care for these? I also believe the bitaeniata I have is of the mamuri type....

To be honest: I think it's a bad combination........

A. bitaeniata is a black water species. Their natural habitat has soft water with quite/very low pH. The water is very slow-moving (if moving at all), and usually no true aquatic plants or algae are present. When they breed, they can defend a territory of 2 - 3 square meters, and violently chase other fish out of it.

Stiphodons usually inhabit white waters, to my knowledge. The water usually has some hardness, and a high pH. Some species lives in fast-flowing water, and they need a plentiful supply of algae-covered rocks and other surfaces.
They are not recommended to be kept together with aggressive species.

It's not possible to set up one tank that could give both these species the best possible and natural conditions, at the same time.

The Gobis will probably not stop the apisto's breeding, but the conditions under which the fish are held probably could.

So yes, I agree with you: move one of them to another tank

 

[Tom C]

..... Any tips on how to care for these?....

Two to four days after spawning, depending on the water temperature, the female helps the larvae out of the eggs and the larvae are placed on the bottom of the breeding cave. Some females move their offspring out of the cave and put them in other hiding places, in pits in the bottom or on higher lying surfaces. At this stage, as wrigglers, they don’t need any food other than from the yolk sac.
The fry become freeswimming after 2 - 4 days as wrigglers, and then they will need food immediately! They are able to eat newly hatched brine shrimp nauplii now, and if possible, you should feed them this several times a day.

 

[Apistomaster]

I haven't kept any Stiphodon species but some I have seen for sale certainly are beauties.
I have kept and bred Rhinogobius wui, White Cheek Gobies which seem to be a semi-tropical species as it is found in Hong Kong and that vicinity.
They breed much like Apistogramma except it is the male that provides the brood care. Males like to dig their own tunnels under rocks and are in some respects, a kind of a "poor man's" fresh water Jawfish in their behavioral similarities. They also do best in slightly alkaline water with a pH of 7.6 or so and lower to mid 70's*F.
I enjoy them but they only show up infrequently but when they do they are not usually very expensive; maybe about $5.00 each.
I think there is a Goby forum in case you want to explore this group of fish more and share experiences with other Goby enthusiasts.