Blue Apistogramma Cacatuoides

[MJDean]

I just picked up four pairs of F1 Blue Apistogramma Cacatuoides. They're very young, but they are really attractive. They have a nice blue sheen on all of their unpaired fins. They're eating well ( brine shrimp, bloodworms and frozen Cyclopeze ) and seem to be thriving in my 50 gallon tank. There's plenty of driftwood caves and the tank is densly planted. Tankmates are nice schools of Green Neon and Ember Tetras.

Can anyone tell me anything about these fish ? I assume they are some type of geographic variant of the Cacatuoides that we are used to seeing ? I haven't been able to find much information on the internet.

[Darrell Ullisch]

Never heard of a "Blue" cacatuoides, but there are some similar species in the complex that might fit that description. Got any photos?

[Mike Wise]

If you got these fish from Dave Soares (Aquabid), then they are a pretty blue-finned (yellow body) wild population - but not truly Blue Cacatuoides. The Blue Cac - both wild populations and domestic forms - have a mostly blue overall body color as well as the fins. Google "Apistogramma cacatuoides Blau" for pictures of real blue cacatuoides. Your fish can be kept and bred like any other population/strain of A. cacatuoides.

[MJDean]

Mr Wise. I did in fact get these fish from David Soares. Thank you for the information. Anything else you can tell me about them ?

[MJDean]

I looked in my tank tonight and discovered that one pair has already spawned under a piece of overhanging driftwood.

[Mike Wise]

I really don't know anything about your population. My guess is that Dave got them from Dr. Römer. Dr. Römer does most of his research in the Iquitos area. I have collected similar looking fish from near Leticia, Colombia, the Río Curaray near Santa Clotilde, Peru, and the Río Putumayo near Estrecho, Peru.