would the apistos breed?

[GuppyBreeder180604]

long time no see tff. I have a spare 15-gallon tank and a cave, and I want to keep a pair of Apistogramma cacatuoides, the thing is that I was wondering if I could keep like 4 or so dwarf rainbows as dither fish but still have the apistos breed. I also have a spare 5-gallon to breed said rainbows under control separately.
the possible species I have in mind are:
. Iriatherina werneri
. pseudomugil signifer
. Marosatherina ladigesi
. Melanotaenia praecox

which one would work better and would the apistos still feel comfortable enough to breed?
I haven't been able to find too much info on wether or not dwarf rainbows are a good dither or if the apistos will still breed in their presence.

 

[Colin_T]

. pseudomugil signifer
. Marosatherina ladigesi
. Melanotaenia praecox

These 3 species of rainbowfish need tanks that are at least 30 inches long and preferably 3ft or longer. They also do best in water with a GH around 200ppm+ and a pH above 7.0.

Apistogrammas come from water with a GH below 100ppm and a pH below 7.0. Captive bred fish will tolerate higher GH and pH but they aren't the most compatible tank mates.

Iriatherina werneri does come from soft acid water and is peaceful enough to live with Apistogrammas. However, they might get bashed by the cichlids.

All rainbowfish do best in groups consisting of at least 8 individuals and more is better.

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A lot of rainbowfish like Melanotaenia praecox carry Fish Tuberculosis (TB). You can't tell if they have the disease until they are about to die. Then it's too late. You also can't treat the disease so make sure any rainbowfish you get come from a reputable source. There is a guy in America called Gary Lange. He collects rainbowfish from the wild and breeds them, then sells the eggs or young. His fish should be free of TB. He is in the American Rainbowfish Association and a Google search might give you his contact details.

Iriatherina werneri and Pseudomugil species don't normally have it.

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The following link has all the known species of rainbowfish from Australia and New Guinea. It might interest you.

Melanotaeniidae and Pseudomugilidae

A website dedicated to Rainbowfishes of Australia and New Guinea

rainbowfish.angfaqld.org.au

 

[GaryE]

Been there, done that.... shouldn't have.

I had a lot of extra blue eyes and I took a chance on having them in with cacatuoides. But when Apistos pair, their first job is to clear all threats to their nest. If a threat doesn't leave, then in their approach, that threat has decided to stay and feast. Small fish can't get out of the zone in a shallow 15, or even in a 20, and their sticking around means they must die.

In Apisto world, defending the babies comes first, even before the eggs are laid.

 

[GuppyBreeder180604]

Thanks a lot for the info, now i see why they weren't talked about in the apisto forums lol.
But what about pencil fish then? I hear they need much smaller shoals, do well in as small as 10-gallon tanks and for what i read they are the most commonly used dithers for apistos. And when the pair gets close to spawning i move them to the spare 5 gallon for a month or so until the fry move to their grow out tank.
How does that one sound?

 

[Byron]

Pencilfish (Nannostomus species)need substantial groups, they are shoaling fish and the minimum for most any of these is 9-10, more being better where space permits. They are often used as dither fish for dwarf cichlids because most species remain in the upper half of the water column whereas dwarf cichlids prefer the lower half. You need good floating plants, like Ceratopteris (Water Sprite) being about the best, followed by Frogbit and Water Lettuce. The pencils remain among the floating plant roots and leaves, the cichlids down below.

It is up to you, but I would not necessarily remove the cichlids to spawn them. They will do a good job of protecting the fry, and the pencils are not likely to make an issue. Both fish sleep at night. Fish that are nocturnal or semi-nocturnal like cories and most catfish and loricariids are the ones that get eggs and fry at night when the parents cannot protect them.