• 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!

New Pair. Can I add a second female?

guntherwheeler4

New Member
Messages
7
Bought a pair of viejita's(so they claim) from the LFS yesterday. After doing some more research I was thinking I should maybe add another female.
1. Would this help increase chances of breeding?
2. Is it safe to add another female without rearranging the tank since it has only been 2 days?
I know this is probably been asked a million times, but I just figured it is easier than sifting through tons of threads.
 

guntherwheeler4

New Member
Messages
7
Its a 20 gallon long. They dont seem to be getting along very well. The female was getting chased around quite a bit yesterday, and now today she is just hiding. I am pretty sure she is a female as she is much smaller, and has no color on her caudal fin. I was not able to get a picture of the female, but did get one of the male.
71119.jpeg
 

guntherwheeler4

New Member
Messages
7
Not enough information, I'm afraid. Nice looking male A. macmasteri BTW.
Ya I kind of figured it was a macmasteri. It was funny because the pet store had these labeled as viejitas and the tank right next to them was macmasteri. I assume they were just from different variations of the macmasteri.

As far as needing more info, I think my problem is that I do not have proper caves for the female to hide in. I was going to get a couple setup after work today. Right now there is only one cave( a shot glass buried under some leaf litter) and she doesnt seem to like that. He is still bugging her quite a bit, and she will not leave her area behind the heater for very long. Kind of thinking thats gonna be her home...

The main reason I am asking about adding the second female is that if it will help my chances in breeding them, I would prefer getting another now, as I do not know how long they will have these at the pet store. Very rare to see them around here, and I would hate to miss my chance. I was thinking of going out there today and grabbing another, along with a couple proper caves. Just wanted to make sure they dont attack the new one. Does that seem like a good idea?

Here is the best picture I could get of the female(not, and a picture of the whole tank.
20210405_142014.jpg
20210405_142212.jpg
 

anewbie

Well-Known Member
Messages
1,365
fyi coconut shells make nice cave as does arching driftwood stuffed with soft plants like java moss.
 

guntherwheeler4

New Member
Messages
7
So I got another female, which was for sure a female this time. Very yellow, and her and my dominant Male have paired off. I am still very curious about my other one. Possibly a sneaker.

Here's another pic of it
20210406_201802.jpg
 

MacZ

Well-Known Member
Messages
2,958
Location
Germany
So I got another female, which was for sure a female this time. Very yellow, and her and my dominant Male have paired off. I am still very curious about my other one. Possibly a sneaker.

Here's another pic of itView attachment 10234

I would probably adress the popeye on this fish, too. It's on both sides, won't end well if untreated. Maybe turn up the waterchanges in volume and frequenzy for a while.
 

guntherwheeler4

New Member
Messages
7
I would probably adress the popeye on this fish, too. It's on both sides, won't end well if untreated. Maybe turn up the waterchanges in volume and frequenzy for a while.
Thanks for the heads up! Never had a fish with it before.
I went ahead and treated the tank with kanaplex for the last week, and am doing more water changes.
Seems like the new female I got and the dominant male have paired off, and now the other unknown fish just hangs out alone in a cave. My new female has yet to use any of the caves I have built. She is a picky eater, but seems to be eating well (frozen brine shrimp). I have been slowly switching to using ro water as my water here is a tad bit on the hard side. Will she be more likely to spawn if I remove that third unknown fish? They dont seem to be having any problems, just want to provide optimal conditions.
 

yukondog

Well-Known Member
5 Year Member
Messages
664
Location
N.W. Fl.
Myself, I would return the one with problems and get another female, can you set a tank up for just her?
 

guntherwheeler4

New Member
Messages
7
Myself, I would return the one with problems and get another female, can you set a tank up for just her?
So I threw the other female/male with the popeye in their own tank and I now just have the one pair in my 20 long.

Good news is the female is very ready to spawn and has been trying all day to get the male to fertilize her eggs, but he just wont. She has been chasing him around and flashing him all day. Is there a reason he doesnt seem to want to fertilize? I credit her willingness to spawn by adding lots of leaf litter and ro water changes. Temp is 80-82 F. Also, when will I know that he has fertilized? Once she stops trying to attract him I assume.
 

Members online

Forum statistics

Threads
17,915
Messages
116,199
Members
13,027
Latest member
tonc61

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