• Hello guest! Are you an Apistogramma enthusiast? If so we invite you to join our community and see what it has to offer. Our site is specifically designed for you and it's a great place for Apisto enthusiasts to meet online. Once you join you'll be able to post messages, upload pictures of your fish and tanks and have a great time with other Apisto enthusiasts. Sign up today!

How fragile are apistos?

Joshaeus

Member
5 Year Member
Messages
42
Hi everyone! I am planning on getting Apistogramma borellii next month. However, I was chatting with another aquariumist today, and he acknowledged that he could never get his apistos to last more than a month before dying. My question is...how fragile are apistos (and A. borellii in particular)? I was going to keep a pair in a 10 gallon tank and do twice weekly 20% water changes. Thanks
icon_smile.gif
 

Mike Wise

Moderator
Staff member
5 Year Member
Messages
11,202
Location
Denver, Colorado, U.S.A.
I presently have some 4 - 5 year old A. sp. abacaxis females and an A. bitaeniata male of the same age. If given the right conditions - and you buy good quality fish - they should live 2 - 3 years at least.
 

Bart Hazes

Active Member
Messages
228
Apistogramma come from a wide range of habitats and although some are sensitive many are much more tolerant. A. borellii for example comes from far South in South America where water temperature can range from tropical to well below room temp. Water conditions, salts and pH, are also variable in their natural habitat making them more tolerant than for instance some of the upper Rio Negro or Orinoco species that come for very soft acidic and often black water. Apistogramma trifasciata is found in the same waters as A. borelli, as is the less commonly available A. commbrae, and all are rather tolerant species. Some of the Apistos from the Andean foothills have also been found in the wild in water with pH well over 7 and they may experience seasonal swing between wet & dry season, again making them more tolerant. Then there are the cultivated strains like cacatuoides that are supposed to be well-adapted to tank conditions, although I don't have personal experience with them.

Apistos are not guppies and if you have hard and basic tap water you may need to stay away from some species. But otherwise I don't consider apistos to be fragile.
 

yukondog

Well-Known Member
5 Year Member
Messages
664
Location
N.W. Fl.
I don't find them fragile at all, but I have soft water and have not kept that many different ones, only Hongsloi, Borellii, Cacatuid, Agassizii and Bitaeniata and have not had any problems other than loosing one of my male [Rostrich] Hongsloi to lock jaw last week and my male Borellii jumping out.
 

Members online

Forum statistics

Threads
17,916
Messages
116,205
Members
13,028
Latest member
JaconieMalonie

Latest profile posts

Josh wrote on anewbie's profile.
Testing
EDO
Longtime fish enthusiast for over 70years......keen on Apistos now. How do I post videos?
Looking for some help with fighting electric blue rams :(
Partial updated Peruvian list have more than this. Please PM FOR ANY QUESTIONS so hard to post with all the ads poping up every 2 seconds….
Top