Agassizi Questions

[Minders]

I've had a pair of Agassizi for about a month or so now. It's been fascinating watching them settle in and establish themselves in my tank. The first thing they did was show the Emporer Tetras who the new bosses were and moved into what was one of my male Emporers "patch". In the last week or so, they've developed an intolerance for my corys and chase them well away if they get near "their spot". They now seem to be chasing just about anyone that comes near - though they don't do it as fervently as they do with the corys. Sometimes they chase, sometimes they don't. And the fish they chase doesn't even have to come to close to their home. They can be hovering in the water above them and the female (usually) will chase them until she's happy they're far enough away.

What I was wondering is, how do I know what is just ordinary behaviour for these fish, and what is characteristic of them wanting to breed? The pair seem to get along fine, and they will always raise their fins when they approach each other, though there's been no other posturing, or shimmying, etc, like I would expect from my other fish. They seem to stay together under the leaves which cover their favourite rock. I have a small rock over which lives two Anubias Nana plants and the Agassizi's live under there.

My pH is stable at between 7.6-7.8. Are they likely to breed in this level of pH? All other water parameters (Amm, Nitrite/ate) are zero (apart from a slight nitrate reading which is how it comes out of the tap).

 

[freddy]

Minders

Like most apisto species they like soft acid water.
I have found my agas's like the PH around 6.0-6.5(some people say lower)
Get down to there,then give them a good feed of brine shrimp or blood worms and see what happens

 

[Randall]

Agassizi Behavior

Dear Minders,

It sounds to me like your A. agassizi are simply acting like A. agassizi. Territorial aggession is usually harmless posturing consisting of some display and chasing. To cut down on the aggession you're witnessing, you can move your fish to larger quarters or introduce somemore dithers (small tetras, pencil fish, etc.).

To breed your agassizi, you'll need softer, more acidic water. Please search the forum for "peat" or "peat conditioning," and a slew of information should pop up.

Good luck with them; agassizi are fascinating fish.

All the best,

Randall Kohn

 

[apistodave]

One way to tell that its spawning behavior is if the female turns yellow of course, also his aggression will turn outward to the other fish in the tank and hers will turn more towards him. Good luck with the agassizi, I dont know why but they have always been something of a problem for me

 

[Minders]

My female IS yellow... but then she always was, so I'm not sure what to think... I will say though, she has certainly grown since I've had her. She was quite a slim little thing and she's turning into a robust little lady. They get bloodworms twice a week, and unlike a lot of posts that I've read, mine seem to like flakes OK too. As long as they're the right size. They like the smaller pieces, I guess they're easier to chew.

Oh well... I will just watch and see what they do. Trying to guess what it all means is part of the fun! :wink: