Dwarf cichlids in 54 liter aquarium.

[Jens]

Hi, my first post..

Was wondering if I in my 54 liter (11 Uk gallon, 14 US gallon) aquarium with currently 1+1 apistogramma cacatuoides adds 1+1 Mikrogeophagus ramirezi?

Can it be OK under the right circumstances or is it totally unreasonable?

/Jens

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[dw1305]

Hi all,
Welcome Jens,

Hi, my first post..

Was wondering if I in my 54 liter (11 Uk gallon, 14 US gallon) aquarium with currently 1+1 apistogramma cacatuoides adds 1+1 Mikrogeophagus ramirezi?

Can it be OK under the right circumstances or is it totally unreasonable?

No, it isn't really a big enough tank. They would also be better in slightly different water conditions.

Actually it would depend a little bit on the floor area of the tank, and decoration, whether it is even big enough for a pair of Apistogramma cacatuoides.

Have a look at <"Dwarf Cichlids: Aquarium care">.

cheers Darrel

 

[Jens]

So basically with my fish tank size maximum in terms of dwarf cichlids is 1 male?

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[dw1305]

Hi all,

So basically with my fish tank size maximum in terms of dwarf cichlids is 1 male?

You may be all right with a male and female.

It depends on the floor area of the tank (rather than the volume), the species of Cichlid and how much cover there is. In a cube type tank there is a smaller floor area for the same water volume when compared to a less high tank. Apistogramma usually only visit the upper reaches of the tank if there is nowhere else safe for them, so tank height is relatively unimportant to them.

Can we see a photo of the tank? It would make making suggestions easier.

I have tanks where there is very little open water, they are filled with wood, plants and dead leaves (this tank is 60 x 30 x 38cm).

Also Apistogramma cacatuoides is a fairly mellow Apistogramma and if there are places for the fish to hide you can probably keep a pair even if they spawn. After they've spawned the female became aggressive to the male (and before they've spawned the male may be aggressive to the female). You would definitely need to have a grow-out tank available for the fry.

cheers Darrel

 

[Jens]

Hi all,
You may be all right with a male and female.

It depends on the floor area of the tank (rather than the volume), the species of Cichlid and how much cover there is. In a cube type tank there is a smaller floor area for the same water volume when compared to a less high tank. Apistogramma usually only visit the upper reaches of the tank if there is nowhere else safe for them, so tank height is relatively unimportant to them.

Can we see a photo of the tank? It would make making suggestions easier.

I have tanks where there is very little open water, they are filled with wood, plants and dead leaves (this tank is 60 x 30 x 38cm).

Also Apistogramma cacatuoides is a fairly mellow Apistogramma and if there are places for the fish to hide you can probably keep a pair even if they spawn. After they've spawned the female became aggressive to the male (and before they've spawned the male may be aggressive to the female). You would definitely need to have a grow-out tank available for the fry.

cheers Darrel

Hi again!

Thanks for the comprehensive answer! I could upload a picture, but we decided to buy a bigger tank. 80 cm 100 litre.

At least it's bigger. I guess another pair is questionable also in that one, but at least the cacatuoides gets more space.

Maybe I leave them alone in the 54 liter if they seem to like it.. and go for something else in the 100 liter. Most likely apistogramma or something other dwarf cichlids

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[dw1305]

Hi all,

.... I guess another pair is questionable also in that one, but at least the cacatuoides gets more space.

There is nothing to stop you adding more females and having a single male, multiple females, harem. The females need about 30 x 30 cm of floor area each (with at least one cave in it) with some space left for the male. The female female interactions are quite interesting with fry stealing and territorial boundary displays.

cheers Darrel

 

[Siggi]

Hi all,There is nothing to stop you adding more females and having a single male, multiple females, harem. The females need about 30 x 30 cm of floor area each (with at least one cave in it) with some space left for the male.

Some Apistogramma species pair up, don't make harems. In these cases, once the pairs are established they can case the remaining females to exhaustion, to death even...

I know this is an old thread, but I thought it might be relevant.

 

[dw1305]

Hi all,

Some Apistogramma species pair up, don't make harems. In these cases, once the pairs are established they can case the remaining females to exhaustion, to death even...

Yes, this was specifically for A. cacatuoides, nijsseni group Apistogramma are pair forming.

cheers Darrel

 

[Riippasaarni]

Right.. I know agassiz's are kept in harems, but in my opinion they do as well in pairs but only if the pair is right. Here's my older couple. At least it seems so.