ID please (sold as A. meinkeni)

[curviceps]

Hi - I have 1m and 2f apistogrammas, which were labelled as A. meinkeni (wild). The male has a lyrate tail, which did not match the round tail found under meinkeni in Cichlid Atlas 1.

Could you please id them?


Male:

Female 1:

Female 2:

 

[a.d.wood]

Hi there,

It's Apistogramma sp. Erdfresser/Eartheater (A155).

Is there any chance these fish came into Australia through Aquarium Glaser of Germany???? as it's the 3rd batch of fish I've seen sold as Apistogramma meinkeni that are actually A. sp Erdfresser. The previous 2 batches came from Aquarium Glaser (about 4 weeks between deliveries).

Andrew

 

[curviceps]

Thanks Andrew. The LFS from whom I bought these does import from Germany indeed, although I am not sure whether they are specifically from Aquarium Glaser.

I also bought some A. sp Masken from them which were mislabelled as Winkelfleck (I think it was from the same batch as these non-meikenis). So far, they haven't been getting the names right!

Anyway, are the A. spsp. Erdfresser/Eartheaters known by other names (I couldn't find these names in Cichlid Atlas 1 and 2, so perhaps they are refered to by other names in these books).

Cheers
Tim

 

[a.d.wood]

Hi Tim,

I'm almost certain they are from Aquarium Glaser, I've also got the Apistogramma sp. Masken that were queried as Apistogramma sp. Winkelfleck that were part of the same Glaser delivery.

With regards Apistogramma sp. Erdfresser, it also goes under the name Apistogramma sp. Porto Velho. If you look in CA 1, pg 878, Romer has identified this name as a synonym for Apistogramma pulchra, checking the Datz reference though, the following statment is made:

Has been mistakenly identified as A. pulchra. The status of the different forms, separated by the presence or absence of the lateral spot, still has to be clarified.

And just to check, are your A. sp. Masken the same as mine:

Male
www.biddulph.ndo.co.uk/web_pics/ap_sp_masken_male_001.jpg

Female
www.biddulph.ndo.co.uk/web_pics/ap_sp_masken_female_001.jpg

Andrew

 

[curviceps]

Thanks Andrew. Since there isn't a lot of information out there about the Apistogramma sp. Erdfresser, would you happen to know what sort of water it likes, ie pH, temperature, blackwater or whitewater...

Yes, my A. sp. Maskens (both males) do look like the male in your picture. Here's a pic of mine:

Cheers
Tim

 

[a.d.wood]

Hi Tim,

Datz lists them as belonging to the Apistogramma pertensis group (and complex), distribution is Rio Purus at Porto Velho, Amazonas, Brazil.

As to the conditions they are found in in the wild, I'm not sure. However my own pair are breeding in pH 5'ish, GH and KH undetectable, temp at 26 degrees C (water is filtered through peat prior to use so is heavily tannin stained).

Andrew

 

[curviceps]

Hi Andrew, are you Erdfressers breeding well? I had my first spawn a few days ago. Just a few eggs, and the female was super aggressive. So I decided to remove the eggs and hope she'd settle down, but even after a few days, she's still hunting down the male, who is hiding in a corner now... How was your female - was she any more aggressive than what you'd expect?

cheers