Group Maintenance

[Levin Tilghman]

Can non breeding Apistos be kept in groups? How about single sex groups, especially of juveniles. Can bred adults live in groups after spawning?

 

[MacZ]

The only way a group of Apistos doesn't breed is a one-sex-only group or the fish are so old (read: on their way out) that they stopped breeding altogether.

Bachelor groups of males are possible for most species of dwarf cichlid, provided the space is sufficient and the tank well structured.

E.g. 3-5 A. borellii can be kept in a well structured 120cm tank. Or 3-5 A. macmasteri in 150cm.
If you look at other genera:
2-4 Dicrossus filamentosus can share a 150 cm tank, 2 Ivanacara adoteka the same.

But don't add a female. It's like adding a drop of blood to a literal piranha tank.

As for females:
Besides A. borellii a female group hasn't worked out in my experience in Apistogramma, while a group of up to 6 females of Dicrossus can share a 120cm tank.

So bottom line:
- Bachelor groups of males work in most cases with enough space.
- Female groups rately work out.

 

[anewbie]

I kept a pair of female ortegai in my 180 without any issues and they are frequently near each other - of course that is not exactly a group but even in the original 65 with the male these two females got along pretty well though a third member of the group was more vicious (these were identified as wc hybrid by ?frank? so i broke the group up so they could not breed.

 

[Mike Wise]

Larger tanks make life easier for territorial fish. Your 180 gallon/680 l (6x2x2'/180x60x60cm) tank allows them a lot of room to avoid each other when necessary. Most hobbyist don't have that luxury.

 

[anewbie]

Larger tanks make life easier for territorial fish. Your 180 gallon/680 l (6x2x2'/180x60x60cm) tank allows them a lot of room to avoid each other when necessary. Most hobbyist don't have that luxury.

Yea i know but in truth i'm finding 40b or 65 (36x18 or 48x16) to be sweet spots for most species esp if a small group is kept. I think when i move i might give up on the 29 or 20 long for all species 'cept pair forming (nijjensi group). It just seems to work a lot better in most ways.