Recommendations on breeding setup

[depthc]

I plan to get myself a pair or two of apistogramma cactuoides. My question is what is a good setup for breeding?

As of now i plan to use a 45g tall to breed my apistos. It will be bare bottom with one or two large sponge filters and maybe even a powerfilter or two for good measure.

Then I would like to put lots and lots of spawning medium in the tank. Modified terra cotta pots, driftwood, rocks, java moss, and whatever else i think of. I wanna clutter the space with plenty of objects so i can house 2 pairs of apistos with minimal incidents. The tanks dimensions are 36"L x 12"W x 24"H. Will this be ample to house two pairs peacefully?

Thanks for any suggestions and please share with me your breeding setups also.

.dc

 

[ervis]

...The tanks dimensions are 36"L x 12"W x 24"H. Will this be ample to house two pairs peacefully?

Thanks for any suggestions and please share with me your breeding setups also.

.dc

That size of tank should be fine for two pairs. I'm using a 20g long with the same length and width. Here's some pictures of the fish, and I just added the tank pics to the bottom of the page.

http://www.geocities.com/erviservy/Borellii_Breeding2.htm
steve

 

[depthc]

Wow thanks ervis for that. It was fun reading up on your new spawn. Keep me updated, Ill visit that page every so often to check.

Well as of now i have the tank set up with tons of caves and its bare bottom. Im not sure how much i like the idea of a barebottom tank now and its quiet unattractive. But its not to late to start over.

I havent bid on any apistos yet and thought that it may be a lot easier to do so after the holiday just incase there were any problems shipping this time of year.

So do you think i should redo the tank to better suit the fish?

Here is what it currently looks like :

http://dcaqua.t35.com//images/45g_apisto640x480.jpg

I also have 2 other caves ordered off of cichlidbreeding.com that should be here sometime this week. I have tons of different caves, i think 11 is the total.

Also were could i pick up some silica sand? Ive used playsand in the past and i have to say i didnt really like the texture of it and it wasnt as great looking as i had imagined. Thanks.

.dc

 

[depthc]

Well IMO the tank looks much better after I've added some pool filter sand. This sand is much better than any playsand I've tried and it looks great. Here is what the tank looks like now :

http://dcaqua.t35.com/images/45g_apisto_12_16_04_640x480.jpg

Sometime this weekend i might put and order in for 2 females and 1 male triple reds with Ray McCaleb. Hes got some great looking cacatuoides for a reasonable price.

.dc

 

[Sallywally]

Well IMO the tank looks much better after I've added some pool filter sand. This sand is much better than any playsand I've tried and it looks great. Here is what the tank looks like now :

http://dcaqua.t35.com/images/45g_apisto_12_16_04_640x480.jpg

Sometime this weekend i might put and order in for 2 females and 1 male triple reds with Ray McCaleb. Hes got some great looking cacatuoides for a reasonable price.

.dc

I received 4 of Ray's apisto cacatuoides last week. I have his F1's. 1 male, 1 mature female, and 2 young females. They are stunning! His shipping practices are impeccable, and my fish arrived in wonderful condition. The 2 mature ones ate the first evening after arrival and by the next day all 4 were feeding well. The 2 smaller females are naturally a bit more shy than the mature pair, but they are growing and gaining confidence on a daily basis. I highly recommend Ray for 1st class apistos. I will certainly be getting more from him after I get a couple of more tanks ready the first of the year.

 

[Griz]

depthc, my experience with cacatoides is limited, I have 1m/2f in a 33 gal but the footprint is the same as your tank: 36x12x18. Based on what I have observed with my fish, I think 2 pairs is likely to work if you really fill up the tank with structure.

Keep us posted

 

[depthc]

Thanks for your replies.

Currently im running a Whisper powerfilter on the tank. Its the dual type not just the single compartment type filter, Whisper 4 i believe. And i was just wondering if this would be a problem with fry, well obviously it will but how should i go about it? Should i put a sponge over the intake or should i just run a sponge filter in the tank. Ive got a Lustar Hydro-sponge 3 in transit off Big als and im unsure if i should use that instead. Id rather not because it would take up tank floor space and be on the sand which ive never seen done in any other setups. So any tips on how i should go about filtering? Thanks.

sally - can i ask what size tank youve got your 4 cac's in? And how are they doing, any babies?

Griz - ive been pondering my original thoughts on two pairs for this tank. Now ive looked at it and assesed the tank i think it would be much more comftorable with 1 male and two females. I think this is what i will do.

Im also thinking that id get a pair of triple reds and a YG female to see what i can get out of the deal. Ive been brushing up on my genetics knowldege lately and I really want to experience some of this first hand. Also if anyone can point me to any other good genetic links that would be nice. Ive already read the one on the site and ive also got it in text from a AFM subscription.

Ill be waiting until after the holidays to put in my order with ray. He also mentioned that the site will be updated/changed up a bit over the holidays so check out that when its finished also.

.dc

 

[Sallywally]

dc,
they are currently in a 29 gallon tank. I will be moving them to a 38 gallon (36 inch long) tank in the next month or so, once I get it set back up and cycled.
The largest female was in full breeding color when I received her, but has since toned down a bit. The other 2 females are still juveniles and showing no signs as of yet. No skirmishes or other problems so far, but I am anxious to go ahead and get them moved to the larger tank before the juvenile females hit maturity. To be honest, I hope they don't breed until I get them moved to the larger tank.
All are active and feeding quite well. Initially I thought I may have lost the smallest one as I did not see her for a couple of days, but she had just found herself a nice secure cave and wasn't venturing out much. Now she is out quite a bit, especially if she thinks I may be putting food in again :lol:

 

[David]

I am setting up an apisto breeding tank as well. i was wondering if a substrate is necessary. I've noticed that they like to dig a hole in there for their fry. But I'd prefer to have a tank without substrate, since it's easier to maintain.

 

[fishboy20]

Yes you can breed apistos without any substrate. That is all I use so I can celan the tank easier. Some species need more cover without a substrate though as they can be skittish. The best thing to do is paint the tank on all sides except the viewing side and place some caves (driftwood, flowerpots, etc.) for cover. I think using sand would give the tank a natural look as well if you wanted any sort of substrate. I really have gotten away from using gravel as it takes too long to clean.