# Male Apisto - Centerpiece Fish for 10g?



## DBlauj (Apr 17, 2012)

In a well planted 10 any of the three you mentioned would be fine. I would suggest no more then a pair given the tank space though.


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## 10gallonplanted (Oct 31, 2010)

Hello aquastudent! I'm a subscriber  why not go with a German ram? But a lone male a apisto would do fine in a10g with the neons but throwing a female in there might be a different story. Maybe someone who had experience with a pair with chime in since I've only kept males.


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## AquaStudent (Jan 4, 2011)

How bad does the breeding aggression tend to be from apistos?

I'd be concerned about getting a pair because in that space I'm not sure if I could keep anything else in the tank.

Thanks for your response (that was quick!)


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## 10gallonplanted (Oct 31, 2010)

Most of it is just chasing the other fish away from what I have read. But once again I have never bred them.


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## DBlauj (Apr 17, 2012)

The important part to remember is how well your tank is planted. Male Apistos will lay claim to a territory and if the female is not ready to breed he will chase her away from his territory until she is ready. In a 10 gallon this could be harmful and even fatal given the tank space but if well planted to break the line of sight often times no real harm is done. In my experience I was not able to breed Apistos in 10 gallons but my tanks were not heavily planted as well. My tanks consisted of java fern/moss, Anubis, leaf litter and dwarf water lettuce along with malyasian and manzanita drift wood. With my set up the males were quite aggressive towards the females and with such a small tank the females were often running and hiding. I have since opted my 10's for 20 gallon longs and it seems to be a better layout for them. If you plan on just one male Apisto a 10 would be fine, well planted 10 gallon might work for pairs from what I have heard. I've kept eight different species and of Apistogrammas both Agassizii and Cacatuoides (they can get nasty in a small tank) but not Borelli yet. I have heard they are smaller species when full grown so a 10 gallon might work with a pair of these. Give Apistos a shot you will not be disappointed as they are lovely fish.


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## ADJAquariums (Jul 5, 2012)

An Apisto might be pushing it in a 10, I think it could be done but theres got to be a lot to keep him occupied (i.e. Plants, and places to explore, Other fish?)


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## AquaStudent (Jan 4, 2011)

Thanks for the input guys! I recognize you 10gallonplanted  I was planning on doing a video tonight to announce the end of the contest and that I plan to have a winner by the end of the week and to see what others think about an apisto  Have you entered? You still have a couple of hours to get your entry in.

I'll upload an image of the tank in its current state. That way there's no bias towards heavy/light planting from me 

I probably wouldn't go with a pair unless I find a really good deal on one anyway because I don't really have the space to grow the fry up. Soon though, very soon 

What are your favorite species of apistos?

@DBlauJ - I completely understand what you're saying about the limited number of hiding spots in a 10g. That makes complete sense. It'd be much trickier getting away if there's nowhere to run.

How nasty are apistos to other fish? Chasing other fish out of their territory could go many ways. They may have a large territory (for a 10g) that means there aren't any places the other fish can relax in or that it's just "harmless" chasing. It seems...very risky


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## DBlauj (Apr 17, 2012)

Community wise they are peaceful. Mine take no notice to my tetras, pencil fish and ottos. Only time Apistos get nasty is if a female has eggs or fry. Males don't care too much for other fish.


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## 10gallonplanted (Oct 31, 2010)

Yeah I will enter to night! I have been putting it off due to the fact that my shrimpandinvertz account being hacked.. But I will! You have me a lucky reminder. 

Posted mine!


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## Paragon (Jan 16, 2011)

Sort of as an aside: depending on where you are, mbuna breeding may be good or may be a dud. I can't get rid of most of my spawn, mostly because I'm in a city area. However, since you're in upstate NY, you may be able to get a decent price. Be warned that you'll need at least a 55 gallon. There are no mbunas that will be even slightly okay in a 10g!


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## Grifter (Aug 23, 2011)

My triple red apisto rules my 29g with a single angelfish ( rescued ) and there is no way id have him in a 10g . hes less than a year old and close to 10cm long. 
German blue rams or gold rams would be ok impo


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## AquaStudent (Jan 4, 2011)

I wasn't saying try breeding mbuna in a 10g. I'm looking for a centerpiece fish for my planted 10g.

I have a 55 gallon mixed AC tank (not really ideal for breeding though).

@Grifter - That's a huge Triple Red! I thought they topped out at 8 cm. That's crazy. Is there anything else in the 29 other than the angel and apisto?


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## pmcarbrey (Jan 19, 2013)

I'd recommend against an apisto in a 10. The tank is too small to house one comfortably and due to their proclivity for claiming a territory even when alone it is all too likely your other fish will suffer.


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## AquaStudent (Jan 4, 2011)

Here are shots of the tank as it looks right now. It could use an artist's touch (which will probably not come from me anytime soon).


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## DBlauj (Apr 17, 2012)

The set up of your tank looks fine for one male Apisto. If cardinals (from the looks of the pics) are all that you plan to keep as tank mates the male Apisto will loose interest in picking on them as they are too quick for him. It looks well enough planted to occupy an Apistos interest to search for food.


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## AquaStudent (Jan 4, 2011)

They are actually neons (but pretty much the same as Cards).

I'm planning on one of these weekends completely taking everything out of the tank and sifting the gravel. It's been slowly collecting debris and even with lots of gravel vacing I can't get it clean. So I'll do it the easy way (and wait till my roommates make pasta before making pasta again).

Everything will go back into the tank and hopefully with a bit more organization 

I like how one of the requirements should be lots of "decoration" to give the fish obstacles to search for food around. To me that means this fish actually has a brain! I feel like that's not common enough with freshwater nano setups.


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## msawdey (Apr 6, 2009)

ya.. for apistos or Rams, go with something larger than a 10. I had 2 gold rams in my 10 previously and they battled. Apistos may be the same thing.

Have you thought an a dwarf puffer with a few mini cories? Or...... you get just go buy a 20 gallon


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## Grifter (Aug 23, 2011)

AquaStudent said:


> That's a huge Triple Red! I thought they topped out at 8 cm. That's crazy. Is there anything else in the 29 other than the angel and apisto?


Yip gold ram / blue ram / 5 julii corys breeding group and a few neons <-( food )


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## AquaStudent (Jan 4, 2011)

That breeding group of cories must be awesome. Have you successfully raised a spawn?


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## Grifter (Aug 23, 2011)

AquaStudent said:


> That breeding group of cories must be awesome. Have you successfully raised a spawn?


normally only get 2-5 of each spawn , rest get eaten as eggs or early


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## AquaStudent (Jan 4, 2011)

If they spawn relatively often that's not too bad.

That's very neat though.


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## mnemenoi (May 28, 2012)

What about a pair of Checkerboards? I have seen many folks keep them successfully in 10 gallons with dese foliage and wood. Just another option to consider.


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## Indychus (Feb 21, 2013)

In the wild, they have oberved over 1000 apistos in an area of 9 square meters... that's an extremely dense population. While you _could_ keep a single apisto in a 10, you would be depriving yourself of the social interactions, territorial disputes, and personality that apistos have. Not to mention the adverse health effects of keeping a fish that is normally highly social alone. If you want to keep apistos, you ideally need a tank large enough to house several dozen of them.

In addition to a larger tank, you should seriously consider leaf litter for substrate and black water. They live in areas with leaf litter over a meter deep and dark water.


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## AquaStudent (Jan 4, 2011)

Those are very good points Indy. The social interactions are a huge factor in them.

This may be a naiive question but how distant are tank raised strains from their wild counterparts? Is the social interaction as crucial in more "domesticated" (if that word is appropriate in this sense. I can't convince myself that it is the best word but I can't think of another) than they are in more natural instances.

The best option would be to closely emulate nature but more often than not home aquariums are either subnatural or supernatural (a good example, in my opinion, is c02 injection).

Just some thoughts


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## Indychus (Feb 21, 2013)

Well none of them live in glass rectangles in nature, so you can only do so much. Personally, I research as much as possible, then compare their native habitat to what I am able to provide. I don't get too hung up on it though, it's just nice to know what their wild counterparts prefer. The best way to see what works is just to throw one in the 10 and see what happens. All cichlids are very intelligent, so you will be able to tell if he is satisfied or not easily.

Also, you should take my advice with a grain of salt... I am setting up a Tanganyaki / Malawi mixed tank that is against "the books" in almost every way, and I have never kept a cichlid tank prior to this one. But I have done exhaustive research on many cichlids in an effort to be sure that my set up works. I considered apisto at first, but the African cichlids are just too interesting for me to pass up.


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## AquaStudent (Jan 4, 2011)

The way I normally do things is to do some research to see what people have done before and try and decide if I want to expand into something new.

I actually have a 55 gallon mixed African Cichlid community (and I'm currently growing out some Tangs to join them). You don't know it doesn't work until you try it.

I have about 5 weeks left in my undergraduate career (which in that time I will probably not get much sleep trying to either find a job, get into grad school, take exams, and knocking out my thesis so any additions will probably wait until Summer anyway (which I may then upgrade to a 29g). So since my time is so limited I'll probably end up waiting. No need to rush things now.

It's good to hear what experiences other people have had and to do the research now. It's good to take some mental leave from schoolwork


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