Apistogramma cacatuoides (cockatoo dwarf cichlid)

The cockatoo dwarf cichlid, Apistogramma cacatuoides, comes from the upper Amazon basin in Peru, western Brazil and Colombia. Males reach about 7.5 cm and females 5 cm. Line-bred forms are sold as double red, triple red, orange flash, gold and others.

It spawns in caves and crevices; the female alone guards the eggs and fry and can turn on the male in a small tank. Keep it at 22–29 °C in soft, acidic water, roughly pH 5–6. See our guide to keeping tropical fish through a New England winter.

Part of our Rare aquarium fish. Also: Apistogramma agassizii · Apistogramma macmasteri · Endler's livebearer (pure strain) · Nothobranchius rachovii (bluefin killifish) · Aphyosemion australe (lyretail killifish) · Fundulopanchax gardneri (steel-blue killifish) · Corydoras sterbai (Sterba's cory) · Corydoras adolfoi (Adolfo's cory) · Pseudomugil gertrudae (spotted blue-eye) · Betta macrostoma (Brunei beauty) · Scarlet badis (Dario dario) · Celestial pearl danio (Danio margaritatus) · Boraras brigittae (mosquito rasbora).

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