I saw some apistogramm cacatuoides at the lfs. How would a couple of those get along with the angel in the 40 gallon? What if the apistos paired off? Would that spell trouble for the angel? What about getting two of the same sex, so there is no breeding? What do you think of these different scenarios?

There was also something that looked an awful lot like an apisto at the lfs, just a bit bigger. I can't remember what it was called though, and I misplaced the paper where I wrote down the name. Any idea what it may have been?

Don't worry, the A. Cacatuoides will get along very nicely with the Angels. They are very peaceful even during breeding season. Yes, they will defend their eggs and fry of course but it is more a scare tactic then anything else.

Good luck Good Job

I wound up getting these apistos. The lfs wasn't sure which kind they were, but they were a little bigger than the cacatuoides. I figure bigger is better when it comes to having a good size angel as your tankmate. I'm afraid though, that they might all be males. It was so hard to tell any differences at the store. I bought four, hoping by luck that I'd have at least a pair, and then I'd trade back the others. Do you think if I do have all males that they will kill each other, or do they need a female to compete for?

Looks like you have Apistogramma agassizii yellow variety.

I agree with Joel and I'm afraid that you got yourself 2 males.

They all looked the same at the lfs. I think they got a male heavy shipment. I actually bought four of these guys, hoping to get lucky and have a pair.

If you aren't happy with the two males of this variant, take them back and trade them for a pair of cacatuoides. They should be easier to sex visually, and I don't think you'll be sorry. I don't see my female alot, but she has a cave over in the corner of the tank, and pretty much stays there. My male is all over the place, but is very peaceful with my angels and rams.

Kim

Hi Kim. I bought the agassizi about an hour after the store had opened. I'm going to go back later in the day today, and see if the fish look any different after the tank lights have been on for several hours. Maybe they weren't fully awake yesterday and that's why it was hard to tell differences. The cacatuoides were about an inch big, and they too did not have any real obvious differences. Certainly none of them looked like your beautiful one in the pics.

Worst case scenario, I'll keep the four I have, let them grow out a bit, and if they truly are all males (which they seem to be) I'll keep the prettiest of the bunch.

My male is about 3 inches, and I don't have a clue when they start to mature enough to sex visually. The female has a totally different body shape than the male.

Are your Apistos getting along okay? I can't see my male being very tolerant of any other males in the tank that are like him.

Kim

My apistos are still pretty small, about 1 1/4 inches. They occasionally flare at each other, and posture, but no actual nipping yet. I went back to the lfs yesterday. The apisto tanks looked like they were coming down with something bacterial. Out of the cacatuoides, there was only one fish that I could say was a female due to being noticeably smaller, and noticeably different coloration pattern. The agasizzis were all exactly alike that I could see.

I've been reading a lot on-line about apistos, and it seems that the sex of the fry can be skewed pretty easily by the temperature they are raised in. One person had 100% female fry from low temps. So it does seem plausible that there is not a 50/50 mix of the sexes at the lfs.

The apistos are in my 10 gallon quarantine tank right now. They'll stay there for a few weeks before I transfer them to the 40 gallon. I'm thinking I'll just put all four in the 40 gallon, and if or when it gets to the point of serious aggression, I'll just trade some back. Even if I end up with just one nice looking male apisto, that'll be fine. In all honesty, if I'm going to have a fry tank in the future, I'd be more interested in raising the goby babies. You should see mama goby's mouthful right now. Pretty cute. She should be passing the developing fry to dad sometime around Friday.

That is great that she's still holding, Kelly! Hopefully, you will get to witness the "changing of the guard". I can see the female chasing the male around now, saying "Hold on, you have to take this one too!"

Kim