Apistogramma borellii "opal"

[HoldenOn]

@Wills, thoughts on this matter?

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

Yep, but I mean elevated temp in terms of this tank, the current stock (and the apistogramma borellii) prefer much cooler water, in the 68-72°F range. (20°C-22°C)

In terms of setting up a new tank, I'd be happy to, and I'll totally do it if they need that. Same with returning them .

It's awesome that you're seeking opinions and that you'd be prepared to add another tank to keep them if it doesn't work, or to return them. I hope it does work for you! But definitely good to seek other opinions. Think @Colin_T and @itiwhetu might have kept apistos before.

 

[Gypsum]

I wouldn't say A. borellii 'prefer' cooler water. Most of the breeding reports on apistogramma.com (the forum for apisto nerds, so worth investigating) suggest that people are spawning them at 25/26C. But they can cope with it. Seriouslyfish and other sites say that 20/22C is at the low end of the range for the tetras and corys, so you could raise it to 24-ish if you fancied.

I've now got four tanks, due to rearranging things, changing my fishkeeping goals, and some poor stocking choices.

 

[HoldenOn]

I wouldn't say A. borellii 'prefer' cooler water. Most of the breeding reports on apistogramma.com (the forum for apisto nerds, so worth investigating) suggest that people are spawning them at 25/26C. But they can cope with it. Seriouslyfish and other sites say that 20/22C is at the low end of the range for the tetras and corys, so you could raise it to 24-ish if you fancied.

For most corydoras and tetras yes, but not the ones I'm keeping. Peppered corydoras and black skirt tetras prefer it cooler, that I know for sure. I'm not 100% on the apisto temp. because I don't actually have them in the tank, but I will be checking out that website, thanks!

The reason I say they like it cooler is because I have researched their actual environment and point of origin. This species of apisto originates from the lower Rio Paraná basins. This basin is the coldest out of the rio de plata, sometimes reaching as cold as 60°F. While they may spawn more often in the heat (as you said), I assume this is mainly because they associate the heat with summer, or spawning time. This doesn't mean that they should be kept for long terms at said temperature. The corydoras I would be keeping with them are actually from the exact same area of the same basin, meaning these species have almost identical water requirements. The back skirt tetras are from a branch of the same river, and need very similar water, if not the same water parameters.

 

[Gypsum]

The black skirts can be fin nippers, so I would be mindful of that as well.

 

[HoldenOn]

The black skirts can be fin nippers, so I would be mindful of that as well.

They keep it to themselves when in a larger shoal, and usually only nip things in their territory.

 

[mbsqw1d]

Not had experience with apistos, but did keep a ram with cories (bronze) once in a 125l. The ram pretty much kept to the front right corner of the tank and would chase any fish away from its patch. This just meant the cories would have to scoot away. The cories were never harmed, unlike recently, how the barbs would chase them around and not allow them to escape and thus end up being nipped.

 

[HoldenOn]

I think I'm going to go for it. I'll talk to my parents about being prepared for another tank . I'd love to hear other members ideas or thoughts. I think with some more plants and a couple terra-cotta pots and dragon stone, I'll have plenty of places to hide and sight breaks.

 

[AilyNC]

I think I'm going to go for it. I'll talk to my parents about being prepared for another tank . I'd love to hear other members ideas or thoughts. I think with some more plants and a couple terra-cotta pots and dragon stone, I'll have plenty of places to hide and sight breaks.

I think you set up is key there. Lots of plants & places to hide.

 

[Gypsum]

If you don't care about breeding, you could get two or three of the same sex. At one point, I had a couple females living with killifish, c. habrosus, c. pygmaeus, cherry barbs, and some otos, and they were never any trouble. They're only aggressive when guarding eggs/fry.

 

[HoldenOn]

If you don't care about breeding, you could get two or three of the same sex. At one point, I had a couple females living with killifish, c. habrosus, c. pygmaeus, cherry barbs, and some otos, and they were never any trouble. They're only aggressive when guarding eggs/fry.

That could be nice. I'm not opposed to fry, and my LFS takes donations. I might see what they have next time the fish are in stock .

 

[Gypsum]

With your set-up, a single sex group would be ideal and fairer on the fish. Because they care for their young, they can get stressed when there are things around that want to eat the fry/eggs, which includes tetras larger than neons and corys. And yeah, they might all live in the same river system in the wild, but the Amazon Basin is big. A 29g tank is not.

The jury seemed out on whether or not the dwarf corydoras species would be okay dithers, but I decided to not bother and just shifted the apistos.

 

[HoldenOn]

Before making any final decisions I'd love to hear back from @Wills, and when he gets better, @Byron. This isn't something I'll be doing next week, and I'll put a lot of though into it. Thanks to everyone who has replied so far .

 

[Retired Viking]

I think it sounds great and look forward to seeing photos, I like the look of dragon stone.

 

[HoldenOn]

I think it sounds great and look forward to seeing photos, I like the look of dragon stone.

It's very nice. Gives dimension and texture.