High lighting with Apistogramma and Pencilfish

[SplatoonSamus]

I have a cycled high tech 20 gallon long that I plan to add 1 male apistogramma trifisciata, cockatoo, or macmasteri and a school of ten ish Diptail pencilfish(eques). I know these fish live in lower lighted blackwater bodies of water and I was wondering if this would be a problem for any of the fish.

 

[MacZ]

cycled high tech

Mind showing us a picture?

 

[SplatoonSamus]

This is the last picture I have, it is a bit different because it is from a few months ago, when I didn’t have co2 and I’m currently traveling so I can’t get another one.

 

[anewbie]

The mac or cockatoo (esp domestic) won't be bothered as a single male. They are like most fishes sensitive to light level changes and i suggest your light ramp up/down slowly. No clue about the triff as i've not kept those.

 

[SplatoonSamus]

The mac or cockatoo (esp domestic) won't be bothered as a single male. They are like most fishes sensitive to light level changes and i suggest your light ramp up/down slowly. No clue about the triff as i've not kept those.

Ok

 

[MacZ]

What is high tech about it? When I read high tech I think fully autimated, filtration, light and temperature control, CO2 regulation by a pH-sensor and the whole aquascaping thing.

I assume the platy and other fish in the picture are gone?

Anyhow: A single male Apisto would work, maybe offer some extra cover from another piece of wood and leaf litter. The tank does not have the structural features you'd need for a breeding setup, in which case I would drop the idea of the pencilfish as the tank is quite shallow and N. eques are the most surface-attached of their genus.

I've kept Nannostomus eques for several years. The males are quite territorial, fish that can't claim a territory usually get chased from one territory to the other, ending them quite soon. For a group of 10 your tank's floor area is probably a bit small in my experience. Especially if you have the misfortune of getting much more males than females (sadly the standard) this might not end well for the females, as they are not as territorial as the males. What helped a lot was a whole carpet of Hydrocotyle leucocephala (brazilian pennywort), covering the surface.

 

[anewbie]

hi-tech usually refers to the injection of co2 so the plants should be quite dense. The other stuff is just a by product of growing plants with co2.

I did it for a few years but found it creates some head-aches and now that i've gone pure ro the acidic water grow plants fast enough for myself. This aquarium had co2 injection and the dense plants will allow for darker areas if the fish cares though i found esp cockatoo to not be bothered:

(this is a 120):

I had setup my 600 and 200 to use co2 injection but in the end decided to not add the co2 - for me just wasn't worth the headaches it creates. However some of the injected tanks do have lovely red plants something i also don't really mess with after all if i can grow plants like these without co2 why bother.

 

[SplatoonSamus]

It’s had a co2 injected for a few months after the photo with a lot more and better plat growth, but I can’t take a picture because I’m away. The platy is taken out. Could I keep tetras about 10 I was thinking candy canes.

 

[SplatoonSamus]

How big of a tank would eques need? I’ve not been able to find to much information on the besides the basics.

 

[MacZ]

How big of a tank would eques need? I’ve not been able to find to much information on the besides the basics.

For a stable, good sized group (15+) I'd say 100x40cm footprint. I had 13 in 80x35 and it reduced down to 9 before old age struck one after the other.

 

[SplatoonSamus]

Ok, thanks

 

[SplatoonSamus]

Do you know how many gallons 100x40cm is?

 

[SplatoonSamus]

Would that be a species only or community tank

 

[MacZ]

No matter what, I would recommend these dimensions if you want to keep these fish. What would fit with them: dwarf cichlids, small catfish, tetras, hatchetfish. These will not all work well with each other, but definitely all would work with Nannostomus eques. I prefer the combination of a dozen or so N. eques and a single male dwarf cichlid. Works perfectly.

 

[SplatoonSamus]

Ok, thanks

 

[anewbie]

Do you know how many gallons 100x40cm is?

Approx 40B. Gallons would be determined by height but space is the issue here. I would start with only 8 or 9; i have some of the larger pencil fishes in a 65 which is 48x16 (inch) and don't care for them much. I mostly restrict myself to marilyn (inexpensive), marginatus (more expensive), epesi (very nice but very expensive). All three are approx 1/2 the size of eques with marilyn being the smallest.


btw this is growth of a tank in blackwater but with no co2 injection over approx 18 months:

 

[Mike Wise]

I may be wrong but I do not see any plants that require high light. If it we my tank I would add some floating plants to shade parts of the tank. As for N. eques your tank's depth should be fine. I've collected this species in 12"/30cm water in Peru - and bred N. unifasciatus in a small tank only 10"/25cm deep.

 

[SplatoonSamus]

Ok, I think I’m going to put some tetras in the 20 gal and evanutually make a tank a blackwater tank do some pencilfish and an apistogramma

 

[SplatoonSamus]

Would dwarf pencilfish work in the tank or Beckfordi or should I go to tetra

 

[Mike Wise]

Since you don't plan to breed apistos in the tank either species should be fine.