Re: Egg colour!!

[Mike & Diane Wise <apistowise@bewellnet.com>]

I feel I must correct some misconceptions in this message before they are
repeated as gospel truths.

As Bob says egg color is primarily a function of the mother's food. I have had
successful hatches of white, gray, greenish white, orange, and red cacatuoides
eggs. White fuzzy eggs are another matter altogether!

Female A. cacatuoides WILL eat fungused eggs. This is how they keep the fungused
ones from infecting nearby healthy eggs. Humans consider some fungi as food, why
not fish?

pH does have some effect on sex ratios of apistos but, as stated many times on
this list in the past, temperature is the primary factor in determining sex
ratios in this genus. When pH does apply, the tendency is to have more males with
decreasing (acidic) pH values.

I am surprised at the problems being experienced with A. cacatuoides! This is a
fish that normally is considered a beginner's apisto. Probably the easiest way to
breed them is to use a pair in a tank with 24" x 12" (60 cm x 30 cm) bottom area.
Provide 2 - 3 hiding places for each fish (male & female). Break up the tank so
that there are no open views of one side from the other. If your male continually
harasses the female add a similar sized male cichlid of another species
(Laetacara work well) as a target fish. Add water with a pH of 6.5 - 7.2,  a
hardness <10º dH and around 79ºF (26ºC). Do weekly water changes and gravel
cleaning. Feed a varied diet of flakes, pellets, frozen and even some live foods.
Your fish should breed soon if sexually mature. Once you see the female in yellow
& black brood colors, remove the male & any other fish in the tank. If this
doesn't work after a few tries I would consider finding another male because it
would seem yours is shooting "blanks". I have heard that many of the highly
colored domestic forms of A. cacatuoides have an unusually high proportion of
infertile males. If this is the case, maybe wild cacatuoides would be a better
bet as a first apisto. Another possibility is the presence of heavy metals in
your tap water. I was told recently at a trout rearing facility near me that
trout couldn't be hatched at the facility because the high (but safe for human
consumption) levels of zinc in the water prevented the trout eggs from hatching.
Maybe the same is possible for apistos??

Mike Wise

"Beaudry, Kyle : SEN" wrote:

> I have an A. cacatuoides harem in my 55g.
> Both females have lost three clutches of eggs in my tank in the last four
> weeks.
> Every time they lay the eggs are a red-orange colour with a sort of opaque
> coating.
> They are both very vigilant in their guarding of the eggs and cave, only
> coming out to feed.
> And even then they don't eat very mych.
> In one case the eggs got fungus bad and she either spit them down to the
> subtrate or ate them, can't be sure which.
> However, I am a little reluctant to think she ate fungused eggs.
> At any rate, the first time both females laid eggs the clutches ranged from
> 20 to 30 eggs.
> On each subsequant clutch, for each female that number increased
> significantly.
> Now, each of their last clutches contained approx. 50 - 60 eggs.
>
> As for hubby, same situation, mine live in a peaceful dwarf community and
> dad seems to love nothing but chase other fish. My suspicions lead me to
> beleive that the eggs are not getting fertilized, in that each clutch only
> lasts three to four days at most. However, I am now going to try and lower
> the temperature on the tank to about 76-78 F. It is currently 81F and has
> been stable there for all of the previous batches of eggs.
>
> Lastly, you didn't ask but I will mention that the lower the pH the higher
> the likelyhood of geting more female fry if they hatch successfully.
>
> Best of luck in future attempts.
> Kyle
>
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