Males of this species have highly developed fins. The dorsal fin's first three to five rays are elongated and stand out among the others. The dorsal tip comes to a sharp, elongated point. The caudal fin is forked and the anal fin's tip comes to a point. Females, by contrast, have less elaborate fins. The male's coloring depends on its population, and thus can be varied. The most common variety has a brown to gray body coloring. The belly is golden-brown as are the anal, pelvic, and dorsal fins. The anal fin is edged with a blue-green fringe, as are the pelvic fins. The pointed dorsal rays are tipped with orange, that become green before reaching the main part of the fin, which is gold. The body is marked with one lateral stripe that extends from the eye to the caudal fin. Below this stripe are three shorter lines. Depending on the mood of the fish, five to seven broad bands are visible on the upper back. The eye is marked with a stripe that extends down to the corner of the gill cover. The tail green with a series of red spots on the upper lobe. Females are much drabber in color. The males usually grow to 3.5" (9 cm), and the females to 2" (5 cm).
These fish are from South America where they reside in the Yavari River
along border of Brazil and Peru. They prefer shallow, still to slow-moving bodies of water with leaf litter as a substrate. This species
inhabits clear and white water bodies of water and prefers the bottom of
the tank.
The tank should be at least 30 gallons (114 L). Use a cover of floating
plants to diffuse the lighting. The substrate should be dark. The tank
should be heavily planted with many hiding areas among rocks, wood,
and roots. Cover the tank well. Water parameters recommended for this
species would be pH 6.2-7.7 (6.7), 5-16 dH (10), with temperatures of
75-81°F (24-27°C)
This fish is a territorial fish that can be combined with other
Apistogramma species, catfish, and schooling fish of the upper
swimming levels. Males form harems, thus one male should be kept with
several males. Males are pugnacious during the spawning season and
may attack other fish in the tank-including the females. Other tankmates
would include such fish as Corydoras , tetras, pencilfish, hatchetfish,
Loricarids, Apistogramma. They prefer food such as crustaceans, insects,
insect larvae; flakes; pellets; tablets; finely chopped meat.
When breeding this fish, use water with a pH from 6.8-7.2, a water
hardness of 10 dH, and a temperature 79-84°F (26-29°C). Each female
should be provided with a cave or over-turned flower pot to defend. The
females lay up to 100 eggs on the ceiling of the site. The female guards
the eggs, while the male guards the harem territory. The eggs hatch after
three to four days. Start feeding with roftiers, after a week or two, the fry
can be fed with nauplii. As the fry grow, they may change from one
mother to another. They can be fairly difficult to breed.
The Cockatoo Dwarf Cichlid requires frequent partial water changes in
order to prosper. Several different color variations have been exported
including a popular red-spotted form. Well-maintained water leads to the
beautiful colors that this fish is known to develop.
The Cockatoo Dwarf Cichlid is among the hardiest of all Apistogramma
species.
*This article was written by Cichlid Lover from our forum and may not be copied or reproduced without written permission from her.