Need an ID please!

[DH247]

Well, while getting some live food from a LFS today (Btw... Daryl, if you need live blackworms or starter cultures of microworms head over to Noah's Pet Ark on W Broadway just west of Mcdonald St) I came across a tank with some Apistos in it. One was a female Cacatoides, another a male Eunotus (or something similar), and 2 slender bodied apistos. I grabbed em up knowing that they were not usual fare. The guy who dropped em off didn't know what they were. I think they may be either young Meinkeni or Pertensis... I'm pretty sure I have a pair. Both exhibit similar markings, one much more pronounced than the other. As well, the 'female' was showing a fair amount of yellow colouring in the LFS tank. Let me know what you think they are, and whether they are a pair or not. I will try to get better pics as they settle in.

The male:

The 'Female':

 

[Mike Wise]

I think that we will need more photos, when they are not in plastic bags. The first photo might be A. sp. Xingu, but I am not positive. The second fish has an unusually broad lateral band, possibly a species in the agassizii-lineage??

 

[DH247]

The only thing that leads me away from the 2nd being of aggie lineage is the faint pattern on the tail. It is the same as the first fish... I will try to get better photos soon. They are still rather shy. The broad lateral band has me baffled... It was also interesting to note that when stressed both looked very similar in terms of body colouration. They were almost black with 4 lighter 'slices' across the body... More pics to come soon! Thanks Mike.

 

[DH247]

All right. A couple more photos. They are starting to get settled in and are showing a touch more colour. A touch of peach on the male's cheeks and some more red in the dorsal fin. As well, the female is now chasing off any thing in the general vicinity of her territory. She is also showing strong yellow colouration with a single predominant spot on her side. I was looking at A. sp. White Seam in CA1. The caudal spot (oval) and separated front dorsal spines are in line with the description along with the black edging around each scale. I will try to get a few other photos soon.

The male:

The female:

 

[DH247]

PS - I apologize for the dirty glass! It's been a hellacious week at school!

 

[Mike Wise]

Based on the new photos, I am fairly certain that the male is A. sp. Xingu. This is a highly polychromatic species that has appeared under a number of names: A. sp. Xingu; Xingu Red-lobes; Gold Nugget; Samaúma; sp. aff. Peixoto (Rio Purus); Vielfleck/Multi-spot; Pineapple; Amapa Guttata.

Your female appears to be an agassizii-group species. It has an extraordinarily wide lateral band that extends well into the tail fin. This fish looks more like A. sp. Abacaxis than any other species.

 

[DH247]

Thanks Mike! I'm on the hunt for a few more fish now.... Are there any more photos I can take to help with the id of the female? It would be nice to figure out exactly what she is.

 

[Tom C]

She looks like A. sp. “Abacaxis†to me too.

Females in my tanks:

and in breeding dress:

 

[DH247]

I think she is definitely abacaxis..... She looks almost identical to the your first pic Tom. Thanks. Any chance on shipping a pair of those to Vancouver??? :tongue: Thanks very much for the ID help ya'll!

 

[Tom C]

......Any chance on shipping a pair of those to Vancouver??? :tongue:

Just drop in when you are in Norway, and I'll give you some :biggrin:

In Montreal you have Oliver Lucanus and his Belowwater.com. They use to have a lot of rare Apistogramma species for sale....worth a try ?

 

[Apistomaster]

Oliver's retail prices are quite high but he would be your best prospect in Canada for finding here a mate.

 

[Apistomaster]

Oliver's retail prices are quite high but he would be your best prospect in Canada for finding them mates.

 

[DH247]

Hahaha! Thanks Tom! I'll let you know when I'll be coming by :tongue: I do hope to make it to that part of the world someday!

Yeah, I was a touch too late to get some from another importer here in Vancouver. They are all spoken for.... However, that means that some will be in Vancouver. So if anyone gets tired of them or has fry I'll be there! Plus I will keep trying... Maybe I'll get lucky with something from TFG when they bring in another order...

I think Starforsaken, myself and hopefully a couple others from the VGA will try an order from Oliver towards the summer... Still on the drawing board though. Who knows what will happen!