Justmeingardner
Member
- Messages
- 32
- Location
- Gardner, MA
Hi all! New here, and as thread title says, coming back after long time away. I used to keep some Central Americans, some dwarfs, community tanks, etc. Now, am interested strictly in dwarf cichlids because of tank/space restraints...lol. I have kept a couple west africans in the past, but have now decided to try my hand at apistos.
My first tank is a 20L (waiting for a 30L to finish cycling), and I received my first fish 2 days ago. Four wild-caught Apistogramma eunotus and four (of six that shipped) flameback bleeding heart tetras. All seem to be doing well, but I had a couple ?s maybe somebody with more experience can help with.
1) All 4 eunotus are overall gray with black vertical striping. The smaller fish (at least one or two of) have blue on face and sky blue pectorals, They are roughly 1". The dominant fish (1 3/4") shows only a tiny bit of yellow? at tips of pectorals and light blue/white under chin. Very drab. Isn't the dominant fish normally more colorful? Sorry no pics.
2) Do apistogramma change colors according to environment? I have black sand in tank...am wondering if they would display better against a lighter color?
3) The largest fish is very territorial, not tolerating any of the others. He doesn't have to be able to see them, but actively seeks them out to harass. There are LOTS of hiding places and tank has lots of plants. Am thinking of moving him to the 30L (by himself, for now) to see if the others can catch up in size (getting more food, not being harassed constantly, etc.) The other 3 eunotus are much closer in size as well, so am hoping for less aggression.
4) I know Ted Judy uses mirror therapy to help with pair bonding, was wondering if anybody had ever tried it to reduce intraspecific (or conspecific) aggression? Am thinking it might only work while mirror was in tank and result in high stress level in dominant fish. Just a thought, any ideas? Thanks in advance, and I'm glad to be here, able to avail myself of so much knowledge. Mark
My first tank is a 20L (waiting for a 30L to finish cycling), and I received my first fish 2 days ago. Four wild-caught Apistogramma eunotus and four (of six that shipped) flameback bleeding heart tetras. All seem to be doing well, but I had a couple ?s maybe somebody with more experience can help with.
1) All 4 eunotus are overall gray with black vertical striping. The smaller fish (at least one or two of) have blue on face and sky blue pectorals, They are roughly 1". The dominant fish (1 3/4") shows only a tiny bit of yellow? at tips of pectorals and light blue/white under chin. Very drab. Isn't the dominant fish normally more colorful? Sorry no pics.
2) Do apistogramma change colors according to environment? I have black sand in tank...am wondering if they would display better against a lighter color?
3) The largest fish is very territorial, not tolerating any of the others. He doesn't have to be able to see them, but actively seeks them out to harass. There are LOTS of hiding places and tank has lots of plants. Am thinking of moving him to the 30L (by himself, for now) to see if the others can catch up in size (getting more food, not being harassed constantly, etc.) The other 3 eunotus are much closer in size as well, so am hoping for less aggression.
4) I know Ted Judy uses mirror therapy to help with pair bonding, was wondering if anybody had ever tried it to reduce intraspecific (or conspecific) aggression? Am thinking it might only work while mirror was in tank and result in high stress level in dominant fish. Just a thought, any ideas? Thanks in advance, and I'm glad to be here, able to avail myself of so much knowledge. Mark