| Cockatoo Cichlid 
Photo By: Søren Mandrup Hansen
Apistogramma cacatuoides This fish now comes in many colour forms. They come from S America, and are quite short lived at 2 to 3 yrs. Both sexes are territorial and they do best when kept in a species tank with one male and 5 or 6 females. Each female will then claim a small territory within the males larger territory. They prefer live food but they will adapt and eat flake food or freezdried food. The pH should be around 7 and the DH around 10. There is a big difference between the sexes, the males are much bigger and have larger fins and the females have a yellowish caste to them which becomes more pronounced when caring for the young. There must be several caves in the aquarium at least one per fish. To breed these fish, I used a 2ft tank with fine sand on the bottom and several small plant pots laid on their side for caves. There was also a few pieces of bogwood placed in the tank for helping the fish to feel secure. A double sponge filter was used for filtration. And the water was pH 6.5, DH 4 ,KH4, Temp 80f. A single pair was put in the tank and fed on frozen blood worm, freeze dried tubifex, and a frozen Discus food. After being in the tank for 6 days the pair spawned on the inside of one of the flower pots. The female then became very aggresive towards the male so he was removed. The female took on the task of caring for the eggs and refused to leave them even for food that was more than a few inches away. When the eggs hatched the female moved the fry to a small hollow in the sand but still inside the flowerpot. they were kept there until the fry became free swimming approximately 7 days after the eggs were laid. The female then lead the shoal of fry around the tank allowing them to feed in one spot before moving them on. The fry must have live food or they will starve. I started them off on micro worms, and then on to newly hatched brine shrimp after a few days. And initally the food was placed right in the middle of the fry using a medical srynge and a piece of air pipe. These fish are easy to spawn but the fry can be difficult to raise. They will not eat powdered flake or liquid fry food. Back to Species Selection | 
