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Ivanacara adoketa tankmates

skoram

Active Member
Messages
135
I am planning to purchase a pair of Ivanacara adoketa for a 50 gallon tank that is currently stocked with 15 marbled hatchetfish, but am concerned that the adoketa may show aggression towards and/or kill the hatchetfish.

Can anyone confirm this? I have read various reports stating that they must be kept in a species only tank, others saying that they do fine with pencilfish, and yet others saying it depends on the size of the tank and decorations.

The adoketa in question are wild from Sao Gabriel, and I believe still somewhat young at about 6 cm (2.36 inches) in length.
 

Mike Wise

Moderator
Staff member
5 Year Member
Messages
11,202
Location
Denver, Colorado, U.S.A.
My experience is that this species is very territorial and show inter- and intraspecific species aggression to other bottom-dwelling fish. The only exception is if you have 2 specimens who form a compatible pair bond. Fish that don't intrude in their territory (in your case, the entire bottom of the tank) should be OK. Most surface-dwelling fish should be OK. Of course, this mean you need someplace for these fish to hide on the odd occasions when they are attacked.
 

skoram

Active Member
Messages
135
Thank you for the feedback Mike. I talked to the owner of the store selling the adoketa last night and he said the hatchetfish would not be safe. I am much, much more inclined to believe you over him but I wonder if I should remove most of them first as a precaution?
 

skoram

Active Member
Messages
135
Hi Mike. I purchased the I. adoketa yesterday but could not clearly identify any bonded pairs. There were about 20-30 of them in a 50-ish gallon tank. They were all around 5-6 cm so still somewhat young, I believe. Coloration was quite good on many of them though, as should be the case given the price I paid.

The pair I purchased have been in my 50 gallon for a little over 24 hours now, and I was able to observe them for most of the afternoon and evening today. Thus far it seems they spend about 70% of their time apart in different parts of the tank. When they are together, they generally seem to get along, although the male will occasionally dive at the female and chase her around for very brief periods. He does not seem that aggressive towards her though. Of course, these are very limited observations and only time will tell if they are truly compatible.
 

joopsg

New Member
5 Year Member
Messages
27
The only fish safe in my adoketa tank is a 4 inch L183. Any other fish is either eaten or bitten to death.
 

skoram

Active Member
Messages
135
The only fish safe in my adoketa tank is a 4 inch L183. Any other fish is either eaten or bitten to death.

This seems to be the case for a lot of people with I. adoketa. Can you share how large your tank is and what kind of decorations? Despite these reports, there are still a lot of sites that claim adoketa are "peaceful" cichlids. I'm really curious as to why there are such strong contradictions. Based on my own experience, these are far less peaceful than any other cichlid I've owned.
 

joopsg

New Member
5 Year Member
Messages
27
I am keeping the pair in a 18 x 12 x 12 inches tank. I have to upgrade their tank to 18 x 18 x 12 inches
 

skoram

Active Member
Messages
135
I am keeping the pair in a 18 x 12 x 12 inches tank. I have to upgrade their tank to 18 x 18 x 12 inches
yea I think a 10G could be a bit too small for I. adoketa, especially with tankmates. I'm keeping my pair in 50G alone at the moment.
 

peathenster

New Member
Messages
5
Interesting...I've kept dozens of pairs in the past several years with P. scalare, young Geophagus, rams, etc. Never seem any con- or interspecfiic aggression. Even when they were guarding eggs or free swimming fry there was never any injuries. Maybe I got all the mellow ones? :)

Edit - I should add that I kept them in 55g-75g tanks with other mates, and as pairs in 20g-30g tanks.
 

skoram

Active Member
Messages
135
Interesting...I've kept dozens of pairs in the past several years with P. scalare, young Geophagus, rams, etc. Never seem any con- or interspecfiic aggression. Even when they were guarding eggs or free swimming fry there was never any injuries. Maybe I got all the mellow ones? :)

Edit - I should add that I kept them in 55g-75g tanks with other mates, and as pairs in 20g-30g tanks.

Yea, I definitely think tank size, decorations and individual personality are all factors. If you are lucky and have "friendly" fish then they may get along fine with mates even in smaller quarters. As such, I don't think it's reliable to compare the way fish behave in very different circumstances. However, if 10 people, who all raised I. adoketa in similarly sized tanks, all reported aggression towards tankmates, then it's probably reliable to say that adoketa are more aggressive than Apistos.
 
Last edited:

Fayej

New Member
5 Year Member
Messages
13
Hi Mike. I purchased the I. adoketa yesterday but could not clearly identify any bonded pairs. There were about 20-30 of them in a 50-ish gallon tank. They were all around 5-6 cm so still somewhat young, I believe. Coloration was quite good on many of them though, as should be the case given the price I paid.

The pair I purchased have been in my 50 gallon for a little over 24 hours now, and I was able to observe them for most of the afternoon and evening today. Thus far it seems they spend about 70% of their time apart in different parts of the tank. When they are together, they generally seem to get along, although the male will occasionally dive at the female and chase her around for very brief periods. He does not seem that aggressive towards her though. Of course, these are very limited observations and only time will tell if they are truly compatible.
Where are you located, I've been looking for this fish, you must live in Europe....
 

skoram

Active Member
Messages
135
Where are you located, I've been looking for this fish, you must live in Europe....

Actually I'm in Seoul, Korea. There are, perhaps not surprisingly, many Koreans who have a strong interest in rare Apistogramma and importers who cater to this demand. Ivanacara adoketa is a similar species so these are sometimes brought in as well.
 

MickeM

Active Member
5 Year Member
Messages
441
Location
STOCKHOLM , SWEDEN
Hi skoram + all..

My experience is that the mix of fishes + mix of plants + mix of decor/scenery + size/hight of the tank makes a huge difference in the resulsts of fish-behaviours/tolerance..

The size/maturity/amount of the fishes is ofcourse one thing to add in "the equation"..
The 2nd tank-mix-comb you make , may not work the same ..compared to the 1st mix you`ve successfully had before..!!!
Often (in my opinion!) , an experienced couple with a common positive spawning-history, makes a "better" and more calm pair!!
"First-timers" may fight more !!

I have kept both Apistos and common Nannacaras with several surface-living fishes in different sizes.. ( Often Pseudoepiplatys/Epiplatys-species)..
The times without really tough behaviour was the times I often kept many (8-15) individuals of Apistos/Nannac. (often young ones- 3cm<) + several individuals of the other fishes.. Always in tanks with loads of sight-barriers in form of roots+plants...

Some weeks ago I experienced the total opposite result!!
My Apistog. cf. ortegai-female (2,5cm) with fry killed 2 of my 3 Epiplatys spilargyreius( 4cm)...+ also killing the father of her own fry... and one extra Apisto-female!!! (Many cichlid-males are quite satisfied/lazy in tanks with no apparent enemies/rivals..)
This happened in a tank that is quite dense-planted/decorated... and the tank is 115 cm long with many hidingplaces + 80-90 % of the surface covered with floating plants + !!!!!
I guess that this time.. the lack of other fishes to compete against + the low water-span/hight to the surface( 20-25cm) was the reason for her unlimited aggression when defending her fry.. (lacking of "safe-zones" for the others..)

I have successfully kept other Nannacaras/Apistos with fry in smaller tanks ..at least for shorter periods(2weeks or so).. but then often with higher distance to the surface..(35-40cm)
So this may also be a key-factor for prevention of aggressions in some cases..? (Probably since Apistos and maybe Nannacaras too, rarely prefer to live/swim in the surface-area if not needed/ forced to..)

Often ..in space-limited tanks...the female aggressions in these situations are a serious threat to males without "normal natural dutys" to fulfill !!!
And.. a sudden water change that may kick-start/induce new spawning behaviours can also create increased female defending-aggressions!!!..(if she have eggs/fry!!!) .. while the male just wants to start spawn once again!!

I must mention that the surviving Epiplatys was a male... and that he also may have contributed to the aggression toward other fishes!!
But he showed to be an excellent father!!
I found 10-15 of his fry in the floating plants when netting him+ the Apisto-female up !!
But at the time of the casualties, there were no small Epiplatys fry yet... The 3 Epiplatys was put in some days before the Apistos spawned!!
 

Bart Hazes

Active Member
Messages
228
I have the opportunity to acquire some I. adoketa and was reading this thread with interest, in particular the issue around aggression. In the Cichlid Atlas, Uwe Romer describes them as "a very curious, 'tame' fish when it is kept in the company of other fishes. However, pairwise maintenance is contraindicated - outside the reproductive period, the inferior individual is attacked and pursued with extraordinary viciousness. Provided a small group is maintained in a large aquarium at least 150 cm in length, I. adoketa is very social although quarrels can be expected until a social hierarchy is established."
Dispersion of aggression in larger groups is common and also what I have experienced in several cases. MikeM's comments about the impact of tank height is also well taken. Many of my tanks are 25-30 cm high which is plenty for the dwarf cichlids I keep but does not allow other fish to 'escape up' because even the tank surface is close enough to the bottom to be within the aggressors no-trespass zone. The tank I would put the I. adoketa in is 120x60x25cm with lots of plants and driftwood and probably some Tucanoichthys tucano dithers (they are syntopic with I. adoketa). But out of respect for fish well-being (and for my wallet as these are pricey fish) I am still hesitant to give this a try.
Anyone else who has kept these in a larger group? If so how many. I'd probably go for 5 or 6.
 

Mbkemp

Member
Messages
45
I am also interested in this fish. Wet spot did not have them. Any other reliable sources in the us?


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