Looking for A. borellii company

[DutchyIvo]

Hi there,

I have a 125 liter tank, currenty inhabited by :
- a pair of A. borellii 'opal'
- 6 cory-catfish
- 5 hatchetfish (was 8)
- 10 Nannostomus marginatus
- some leftover cherry shrimp and snail eating snails.

This combination was made after seeking advice on a general aquatic forum. Probably this is why at the time no-one told us that Apistogramma and cory-catfish are not the best combination one could think of.
I want to improve on the stocking of this tank, by moving the Cory-catfish elsewhere. My question is: would there be a compatible replacement? I searched on the internet and have a few options I would like to hear your thoughts on:
- an Otocinclus species
- L010a
- some other elongated catfish (Sturisoma, rineloricaria, hemiloricaria, ...?)
- a 2nd borellii female.

A picture of the tank is below:

Gr. Ivo

 

[Mike Wise]

The first question that you need to ask: "is this a community tank or a breeding tank?" If you are not interested in breeding, then the cory cats are fine. Just don't expect many offspring of the A. borellii to survive. If this is a breeding tank, then add another female and enjoy watching the females steal fry from each other.

 

[DutchyIvo]

Thank you for your fast response!

It's a community tank. Off course it would be nice if some of the offspring survives, but that's not our goal.

We read somewhere cory cats can be too 'noisy' for the more quiet A. borellii, so that it wouldn't be a good combination of species to begin with. That's why we're moving the cory catfish to another tank and want to replace it with another (more quiet) ground living species, or a second borellii female.

 

[Apistomaster]

Otocinclus are probably your best bet as far as any catfish tank mates.
I have raised L10a and Sturisoma aureum. Both are carnivorous more than herbivorous while technically being omnivores.
Sturisoma normally do not enter confined spaces but the smaller L10a often uses pieces of 1/2" i.d. PVC pipe as spawning places.
Mine usually spawn in front of the pipe's opening placing their eggs in a patch of sand free glass. That is not how they spawn for most people but that is how mine do it. The male lies in the cave with his head over the egg patch.
I haven't seen mine enter a typical inverted flower pot style Apistogramma spawning cave but depending on the entrance and size of specimens I wouldn't put it past them. They have a good sense of smell and may notice the presence of eggs and make a special effort to eat them. It's worth at least trying them because it would make for an interesting tank. Give the L10a suitable spawning tubes; you may be able to breed both in the same set up. I have often found it possible to breed two different species of fish in the same tank.

 

[DutchyIvo]

Hello Apistomaster,

Thanks for your thoughts. Based on the size of the tank (31.5" x 13.8") I found out basically any Sturisoma will become too large. L010a would be a better option based on size.

In our tank we now have 4 caves: two 1.4" PVC pipe (8" long), one 'Cichlid breeding cave small' (3.1"x2"x1.2") (this one) and one 'Cichlid breeding cave medium (3"x2"x1.2") (this one). Do you expect an L010a to claim one of those caves?

Would you suggest adding some extra caves that fit the L010a better? Here, here and here there's a lot of options.

Does an L010a 'understand' the borellii female will have a territory when there are eggs in a cave? We heard from some quite experienced Dwarf cichlid fanatics that the basic reason Apisto and Cory-catfish might prove to be incompatible is the fact that Cory-cats don't 'understand' the concept of an Apisto territory, and thus returning to the Apisto's private space time and time again, leading to attacks by the Apisto female. Would this also be the case with an L010a, or does that one stay away when chased?

Regards,
Ivo

 

[Apistomaster]

Hi DutchyIvo,
Sorry but I did not bother to look at the various caves. However, L10a have a strong preference for narrow tubes or closed end tube caves of about 0.125 cm/1/2 inch inside diameter and about 15 cm/6 inches long. I have never seen them bother with exploring the inside of a typical Apistogramma type breeding cavern with their small openings. I think it is possible to build each one their preferred refuges and keep and breed them together successfully. Adult L10a would probably leave Apistos alone. Young small L10a would likely explore inside any refuge they can enter and would not be greatly deterred by a guarding Apistogramma female. Conversely, if I also want L10a fry a good chance to survive the adult Apistogramma I would dump in and make some heaps out of hollow ceramic filter bio-media for their fry to hide until they are too large to be bothered by adult Apistogramma.
I have 8 L10a and I would attempt to breed any Apistogramma sp I get next in the 20 gal Long which is about 31 X 31 X 93 cm.
I have been focused on breeding wild type smaller fancy Plecos and other Loricardae in the past 8 years.
I do occassionally get an Apistogramma or other S.A. Dwarf Cichlids.
I haven't been as involved with breeding fish much as of late. I have quite a few colonies being maintained because my level of interest will no doubt return. I've been breeding fish for exactly 5 decades now. Once in awhile I have to take breaks.