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OK. Two questions: Are any of the others that might be suitable for my tank female heavy? If I got a pair now, could I add another female later (your next shipment?)?
I'm female heavy on the A. alacrina and could easily send a trio or even more females. I'm also slightly female heavy on the sp. Melgar and the "cruzi" Peru (which aren't true cruzi). I'm VERY female heavy on the barlowi red face but that's not a harem spawning fish so that doesn't do you much good!
I'm not sure when the next shipment of Peru Apsitos will be. I don't have the tank space right now to bring an order in and I've been pushing off both Zaire (West Africa) and a Rift Lake cichlid order. But yes, I might be able to add additional females later. You would need to really scarmble the tank decorations when the time came though as any females you already have would have well established territories and most likely pound on any new females entering the tank.
Can you post pictures of the 3 species you mention (A. alacrina, sp. Melgar and the "cruzi" Peru). What does this comment mean: the "cruzi" Peru (which aren't true cruzi).
What would be the trio pricing for each (i don't think I have floor space for more than a trio in my 30 g)? From your comments, it sounds like it is far better to get the fish settled in together.
Which brings up an interesting point. What happens if one of the fish dies? It sounds like replacing a female could be bad. How about replacing a male?
I'll get trio pricing added to the list at the start of this thread but figure it will add $10-$15 to "up-grade" to a trio on the fish I mentioned.
The fish that came in as cruzi are not really cruzi. As of right now I do not have an I.D. on them but it has been suggested that it MIGHT be A. cf. eunotus Spaltenfleck/Split-spot but that is unconfirmed at this point. It's actually very common for wild Apistos to be shipped under one name and turn out to be anther species all together.
Yes, adding Apistos to an estabilshed pair can be tricky but it can be done. I always try to start out with the group I want just to make things easier, but that of course isn't always possible!
Great pictures! The colors appear to be light blue and green, very subdued. Is that the "normal" color for the Apistogramma cf. alacrina? Do the change as they become aclimated to their new environment and have less stress?
I am drawn to blues and reds and am leaning towards a trio of Melgar. Like you said, the biggest problem is picking out what species!!
The male I pulled out and set-up shows more of a yellow hue to him. But he is actively courting the 2 females in with him so he is presenting different colors because of it.
I've been so hung up on your wild offerings that I discarded the notion of your tank raised trio. Do you have a picture of your a. panduro. They may be a better match for my novice experience and tap water tank.
Crap, i missed your comment on the black chins. I really like the pictures of them that i have seen on other sites. A quick question, I really want these critters to be as happy as possible. You made a comment:
"I keep the Apistos I have for sale in 7.6pH and 300ppm water and they do just fine. For long term keeping and breeding I'll play with the water and adjust the pH and hardness as needed with R.O. water, tanins from wood and leaves, and the like."
To make wilds really happy and healthy should I be thinking about doing something to help my tank water pH and hardness? Or would I do that just for breeding.
It's the difference between surviving and thriving. Most fish will live in a HUGE range of conditions assuming that the quality of the water is good. The chemistry is secondary. Stable clean water is priority one. Once you have that taken care of you can consider moving unto adjusting the chemistry of the water.
Are you looking to breed the Apistos you get or keep them in a community setting and hope they breed? If it's the first, get the water figured out before you get fish. If it's the second, don't worry to much about the water as the chances of raising fry in a community tank are on the small side. Unless you are able to remove the fry from the community tank to a fry only tank you realisticly won't have more then the casual spawn and fry to watch and enjoy anyway.
Very nice. I'm in for the trio of black chin. Let me know the details for payment and shipping. I need to get some gear to hatch bbs so I have some chow when the arrive.