A few Q's about Apistogramma's

[StrangeDejavu]

Hi all,

First post here. I keep a variety of fish and shrimp and have always wanted Apistos. I have a 20 long that I hope to set up soon with manzanita, floating plants and leaf litter. I'm currently on the fence over stock, it's between wild Bettas or an Apisto pair. Since i'm posting here, you can see which side i'm leaning.

So my LFS has access to a decent list of Apisto's via special order. Among that list are two variations of Apistogramma agassizii- "Blue" and "Rio Tefe Blue". Googling "Rio Tefe Blue" also gives results of "Tefe Pearl Blue". What are the differences between these three? Are they all the same fish with different colors bred in? Do they all have the same water parameter requirements?

Speaking of water parameters, our water here in Florida is pretty hard. 7.6 pH, 10 KH, 13 GH out the tap. Is this good enough for this fish to thrive in? I'm not interested in breeding them, but do enjoy watching the courting/breeding process of fish.

And lastly: if my water is unsuitable for Agassizzii, then are there other species that would be a good fit for my water? To just "tolerate" the hardness isn't acceptable to me- I want the fish to thrive.

Thanks in advance!

 

[abrooks12376]

Hey there! Name looks familiar. Tpt? Anyways. I could be wrong but here.. most apistos are going to prefer a little softer water. You could stock with cactoides as they're rather forgiving or cut your tap with ro/distilled. Almond leaves will help a bit too. Florida seems to be pretty void of apistos from what I've read in other forums?

 

[Mike Wise]

The names "Rio Tefe Blue" and "Tefe Pearl Blue" are trade names and are descriptive only. The fish could be the same species/strain or different species/strains. The Rio Tefé contains 2 different agassizii-complex species. Your tap water isn't ideal, but with care most whitewater species (like A. cacatuoides) and clearwaters species (like A. agassizii) should be OK. Avoid blackwater species, however.

 

[StrangeDejavu]

abrooks12376- Yes sir, I thought I recognized your name as well. Florida is definitely lacking in the Apisto department. A few months ago I took a Saturday and decided to do a fish store marathon. I visited every non-box store in my county and around me and not a single store carried them. It's either special order or online for us.

Mike Wise- Thanks, that makes sense. Our water sucks, I suppose I have all the limestone to thank for that. I'm going to give it some more thought, but if I go the Apisto route for sure then I may just invest in an RO/DI unit.

 

[abrooks12376]

Not necessarily.. while it would make the most sense.. say you set up a species only 20 long. You'd be into a weekly 6-8 gal wc?? I do that on mine anyways. If you cut it than you'd be needing 4 gals of ro or distilled. My lfs sells it at 50 cents a gal.. that's not to bad if you don't mind the weekly trip??

 

[dw1305]

Hi all,

Speaking of water parameters, our water here in Florida is pretty hard. 7.6 pH, 10 KH, 13 GH out the tap. Is this good enough for this fish to thrive in? I'm not interested in breeding them, but do enjoy watching the courting/breeding process of fish.

And lastly: if my water is unsuitable for Agassizzii, then are there other species that would be a good fit for my water? To just "tolerate" the hardness isn't acceptable to me- I want the fish to thrive.

Is collecting rain-water an option?

cheers Darrel

 

[abrooks12376]

Hi all, Is collecting rain-water an option?

cheers Darrel

That's a great idea! Florida has no shortage of random storms!

 

[StrangeDejavu]

I've given the rainwater idea thought in the past but being in the city, toxins, chemicals and pesticides are a concern. I like the LFS RO/Tap idea, that's definitely an option. $4 would get me two weeks worth and i'd only have to make a trip to the LFS twice a month. Definitely worth thinking about. Thanks for the ideas, guys.

 

[Mike Wise]

There is really no problem using rainwater. Just don't collect for the first 15 minutes. By then all pollutents should be washed out of the rain and off of the collecting surfaces (roof). My problem is I live in Denver where it rarely rains for more than 15 minutes at a time.

 

[Linus_Cello]

What about collecting rainwater and sticking a piece of poly filter/polyfil to absorb any chemicals?

 

[dw1305]

Hi all,

What about collecting rainwater and sticking a piece of poly filter/polyfil to absorb any chemicals?

With the disclaimer that I've always live in a rural part of the UK (where it rains a lot), but I've used rain-water without any problem since the 1970's.

I use a really simple technique to monitor water quality, it is the <"Daphnia Bioassay"> (last post).

The Skeptical Aquarist has a <"good article"> on rain-water.

cheers Darrel