please id this apisto, sold as norberti!

[deaver]

Hey guys and gals, anybody id this male. It was sold to me early summer 2014 as an apistogramma norberti, but just noticed the tail has 2 points like a wild a. Cacatuoid. I've breed these twice now and the fry are doing great (2 different females both purchased at the same time as the male, same tank). I'll take more pics just ask, thanks so much!

 

[aquaticclarity]

Not norberti. Possibly cacatuoides. Pictures that show the details of the fish a little more are needed to confirm if they are cacatuoides or one of the similar species.

 

[deaver]

The male is very shy round the camera, but I'll upload a pic asap. Thanks .

 

[Amazoniensis]

it looks like A. cacatuoides

 

[deaver]

more pics

 

[Frank Hättich]

I would say it's a peruvian form of A. cacatuoides.

 

[Tom C]

I'm sorry to say so, but your substrate is one of the least customized to Apistogramma I've ever seen. It even looks sharp!
So I repeat what I've posted earlier:

Apistogramma belong to the tribe Geophagini, which means that they "eat earth". This is a very frequent and natural behavior, they will normally sift the substrate almost all day long.

I strongly believe that most Apistogramma species won't thrive in the long term without fine sand on the bottom.

Frank Schäfer (Aquarium Glaser, Germany), wrote not long ago:
"Especially the sand is important and the meaning of it often underestimated.
In fact the sand is more important than the water chemistry (hardness, pH).
In the wild, these fish feed mainly on particles they find in the sand.
To find them the fish takes a mouth full of sand, chews the sand and releases the sand through the gill openings.
Food particles attach on special anatomical structures on the gill arches and can be swallowed subsequently.
In case an Apistogramma can find no sand it comes in a situation comparably to humans that get no opportunity to clean their teeth.
This may work for a while, but in most cases sooner or later one becomes sick of it."

This is one of the habitats where I have collected Apistogramma:

Sand almost as fine as flour, and leaf litter.

And this is how Apistos look like most of the time, when they have the right substrate, when they let the fine sand out again:

 

[deaver]

you know tom, i get what your saying, but quite frankly i didn't even think about it till you brought it up. my other apisto tanks, 1 has regular gravel and the other has play sand, course i have flourite in 3 - 10 gallons. what would you suggest i switch it too, play or pool filter sand?

 

[Mike Wise]

Your specimen has a rather unusual caudal fin pattern for A. cacatuoides.

 

[deaver]

apistogramma juruensis perhaps?

 

[Frank Hättich]

unlike this fish, A. juruensis (as well as A. allpahuayo that is sometimes sold under the name A. juruensis) has a caudal spot that is cleary separated from the lateral band.

 

[Tom C]

.....what would you suggest i switch it too, play or pool filter sand?

I live in Norway, and I'm sorry but I don't know the properties of the sand types you mention.
It's important that the sand is fine, rounded (not sharp/crushed), and that it does not affect the water parameters negatively.

Your specimen has a rather unusual caudal fin pattern for A. cacatuoides.

The caudal fin pattern reminds me of the pattern of some populations of A. (cf.) luelingi (except for the lack of a black or black-ringed yellow or reddish stripes or spots on the upper edge of the fin)...

 

[deaver]

I currently have had 2 of 3 spawns happen in that substrate, so i have to wait to change it over. May just go with pool filter sand, its fine and is rather clean. Just set up a tank with small round gravel, its a 6 foot 40ga, too soon to move the apistogramma gephyra. Gonna do a little research first, last time i used playsand it was a painstaking process

 

[deaver]

Got some nice sand from local beach, shoved it from an area nice ways inland so its been flushed with loads of fresh rain water, gonna test it and cycle it before adding apistos.

 

[deaver]

Will post pic

 

[aquaticclarity]

I hope this wasn't sand from an ocean. That will be made up of coral and shell bits! The opposite of what Apistos want.

 

[deaver]

Ive been keeping apistogramma on and off for 15yrs. I will be testing it for kH, gh, ph. I will also be doing a test run with some convicts. It has no shell or coral, i live i newfoundland not florida. Its dark sand, my favorite lfs uses it for their tanks. Where i bought the fish from. Its black or graphite color. I am more than aware of the risks, hense why im gonna take it very slow. Definitly interested in your input and thanks for replying. I'll be updating this post, check back later to see my success or failure. I just hate to look of white sand, gotta give a try.

 

[deaver]

Sand has 0 effect on my water parameters. Tested for copper and none there. Put my othr wild pair of apisto cacatuiodies in there, boom, spawning activity. Pic to come!

 

[deaver]

A little mirror therapy in the beach sand. They're doin awesome but really shy from the move.