This is a fairly common aquarium plant which is easy to find, but that can have very interesting characteristics, such as a wide adaptability to various aquarium conditions and the possibility of growing above ground.

Description of Hydrocotyle leucocephala

Hydrocotyle leucocephala is a plant of the Apiaceae family, the same family as carrots, caraway, parsnips and parsley.
Incidentally, if you try to chop up some Hydrocotyle leaves, the smell will be very pleasant and similar to that of parsley – but don’t use it in cooking!

The etymology of the name comes from hydor (water), kotyle (navel) and leuco-cephala (white head, referring to the inflorescence).

The English common name, on the other hand, is “Brazilian pennywort“.
From its English name, we can guess that it is a South American plant: in fact it is widespread from the south of Mexico to the north of Argentina.

Hydrocotyle is an amphibious, crawling plant that can live submerged, floating and partly emerged, in conditions of high humidity.
Thin, light green, rounded roots and leaves with diameters of up to 5-8 cm grow from each node.

In particular conditions, it can produce inflorescences on a peduncle about ten centimetres long.

Cultivation of Hydrocotyle leucocephala

Hydrocotyle leucocephala is very easy to find; practically every aquarium shop has at least a few specimens.
It is also possible to obtain new plants from the prunings of other enthusiasts: a small branch is enough to get you started.

In both cases, you are almost always starting with a submerged culture, so the plant will not have too many difficulties acclimatising.

Fertilisation

H. leucocephala is not fussy about nutrients.
Obviously it cannot grow without nutrients, but it will adapt its growth speed and leaf size according to the presence of nutrients.

In particular, if a lot of macro nutrients are present (especially nitrogen such as nitrate), it can take up a lot, especially if it is close to the surface or with emerged leaves.

I would also point out that the plant can be a very good indicator of magnesium deficiency: if the old leaves of the plant start to turn brown at the edges, it is highly likely that this element is missing.

It is also good to know that the plant, being very fast, can make other, slower plants deficient in nutrients (especially the aforementioned magnesium).

Carbon dioxide (CO₂) is not essential for its growth, especially if there are emerged leaves. However, a good presence of carbon can improve the growth of the submerged parts.

Finally, contrary to most other plants, the roots that Hydrocotyle emits from each node are not a sign of nutrient deficiency: they are always present.

The emerged part, if present, has no roots on the nodes.

Growth and propagation

Hydrocotyle leucocephala always tends to grow upwards, to reach the surface and grow floating, with emerged leaves, getting the maximum benefit in terms of exposure to light and carbon dioxide.

This can be prevented by cutting back any branches that tend to stick out of the water, forcing the plant to grow submerged.

However, if you have an open aquarium, Hydrocotyle can, in my opinion, make the most of its beauty with its emerged part.

To bring the plant to the surface, I have observed that pulling a branch of the plant out of the water rarely works.
Instead, I recommend waiting for the plant itself to decide to emerge.

If it does, the success of the emerged part is almost guaranteed (the only pitfalls are a too dry environment or proximity to lamps, which can burn the leaves with the heat produced).

Once emerged, the branches tend to lose their submerged leaves, as they become almost useless, being shaded by the emerged leaves and the latter having a much greater advantage in terms of light and carbon.

To avoid this, I recommend keeping some branches submerged by cutting them off before they emerge from the water. By doing this, these branches with leaves will hide the leafless branches that have emerged.

As far as propagation is concerned, nothing could be easier. Simply cut off a small branch, preferably submerged, keeping at least 3-4 nodes and you will have a new plant.

Location

Because of the way it grows, the ideal position is on the rear or on the sides of the tank.
In particular, if you have an open aquarium, with the lateral position it is easy to obtain a good development of the emerged part, as you can see in the photos above.

I would not recommend frontal positioning, as H. leucocephala will block the view of the aquarium, unless you grow it as a lawn (in which case you will need excellent light output, CO₂ and fertilisation).

For a lawn or frontal position, I would recommend the species Hydrocotyle tripartita, which has a more horizontal growth than H. leucocephala.

Conclusion

This is an extremely common plant, but if kept well (in an open aquarium, partly emerged!) it can give great satisfaction for very little expense.

It helps a lot with the absorption of waste substances and it is an excellent indicator for the deficiency of the nutrient magnesium (for which there are tests, but they are uncommon and relatively expensive).

It is also suitable for newbies, as long as even basic fertilisation is provided. As you become more familiar with the fertilisation and the plant, you can make it grow better and better.

Bibliography

Aquarium Plants, Christel Kasselmann, Krieger Publishing Company, Malabar, Florida, 2003.

L'articolo Hydrocotyle leucocephala proviene da Acquario.top.

What does this mean?
Let’s see!

Exchange capacity

Substrates and soils contain net (i.e. non-equilibrium) electrical charges.
Depending on the type of resulting net charge – positive or negative – we will have different exchange capacities.

Cation exchange capacity (CSC – CEC)

Substrates containing particles known as aluminosilicates, i.e. crystals composed of aluminium (Al) and silicon (Si), or organic matter, have a predominantly negative electrical charge, which attracts positively charged particles, also known as cations.

There are basically two reasons for the presence of these negative charges:

1. breakage of the outer layers of the silicates that make them up, with exposure of the “edges”, which are usually negatively charged;
2. substitution within the structure of the silicates by certain cations, such as Mg²⁺, of other more charged cations, such as Al³⁺.

These negative charges, as we mentioned earlier, are able to attract positively charged ions (cations), such as the ammonium ion NH⁴⁺ or calcium and magnesium ions (Ca²⁺ and K⁺).

Cations are not attracted randomly: they are attracted with different strengths, depending on valence and other parameters (hydrated ionic radius etc) and those present in greater quantities are attracted more.

For example, some of the nutrients bind in this order:

H⁺ ≥ Al³⁺ > Ca²⁺ > Mg2+ > NH⁴⁺ = K⁺ > Na

H = hydrogen, Al = aluminium, Ca = calcium, Mg = magnesium, NH4+ = ammonium, K = potassium, Na = sodium

… where on the left are the most easily exchanged elements.
This series is a type of lyotropic series.

Similarly, some transition metals tend to follow this order:

Cu²⁺ > Ni²⁺ > Fe²⁺ > Mn²⁺

Cu = copper, Ni = nickel, Fe = iron, Mn = manganese

How is the exchange capacity measured?

The total amount of negative charge in a substrate is called the cation exchange capacity (CSC).

The CSC is commonly measured in milliequivalents [meq] per unit weight; one meq is equivalent to 6×10²⁰ (6 followed by 20 zeros) negative charges.

Below are some typical values for some substrates. To give a yardstick, in agriculture a soil with a CSC of more than 15-20 meq/100 grams is considered to have a good exchange capacity:

• sand 3-5 meq/100 grams
• clay soil 10-15 meq/100 grams
• silt 15-25 meq/100 grams
• clay 20-50 meq/100 grams
• zeolite 200-400 meq/100 grams
• humus 300-500 meq/100 grams (decreases with increasing pH)

To give an example in words, a substrate with a CSC of 10 meq/100 grams has 60 followed by twenty zeros negative charges per 100 grams!

Anion exchange capacity (CSA – AEC)

Contrary to what we have seen so far, different types of substrate, containing aluminium and silicon in amorphous (non-crystallised) form and iron or aluminium oxides, have a predominantly positive electrical charge, capable of attracting negatively charged particles, also known as anions.

Examples of anions are the sulphate ion (SO₄^2-), the nitrate ion (NO₃^–), the phosphate ion (PO₄^3-), the chloride ion (Cl^–) or the hydrogen carbonate ion (HCO₃^–, bicarbonate).

The behaviour is quite similar to that of cations, only the sign of the charge changes (negative, instead of positive).

Along the lines of the affinity order of cations, the binding order of some anions is as follows:

NO₃^– < Cl^– < SO₄^2- < PO₄^3-

Nitrates < Chlorides < Sulphates < Phosphates

i.e. nitrates are weakly bound, whereas phosphates are more strongly bound (and the exchange is therefore more burdensome).

The anion exchange capacity is always measured in meq/quantity of substrate or soil, similar to the CSC.

In reality, the anion exchange capacity is generally lower than the cation exchange capacity, so that only the latter is often mentioned. However, (at least) both are present and the anion exchange capacity is generally sufficient for the substrate to retain some anions, such as sulphates or phosphates.

Exchange capacity and aquarium plants

What is the point of all this discussion about exchange capacity?

When a substrate has a high exchange capacity it would be intuitive to think that it binds nutrients to itself and does not make them available to plants.

In reality, the forces of attraction between substrate and nutrients are relatively weak, allowing an exchange between the nutrients in the water, the nutrients on the surface of the substrate particles and the plant roots.

How a substrate facilitates nutrient uptake

When the roots of the plants move through the substrate, they either encounter the nutrient directly and take it up or they have to wait for it to arrive somehow.

A substrate with a good exchange capacity facilitates this work: the substrate has various nutrients loosely bound to it, which the plants can absorb and exchange more easily than fetching them from the water.

Taking up dissolved nutrient ions from the water, on the other hand, requires much more energy from the plants and some of them may not be able to do this at all.

How to manage a bottom with exchange capacity in an aquarium?

Many aquarium substrates have exchange capacity, such as fertile substrates with an organic or clay component or so-called allophanic substrates (a rather inappropriate term, as allophanic may be a component of these substrates but is practically never the only one), such as some ADA, Elos or Prodibio substrates or the common Akadama (bonsai soil), to name but a few.

Initial release and uptake

These bottoms tend to absorb nutrients as soon as they are placed in the aquarium, lowering measurable levels in the water.

It is common, for example, to observe significant decreases in carbonate hardness (absorption of carbonates), phosphates or iron.

Depending on the specific composition of the substrate, we may also see releases; iron and nitrate releases are not uncommon.
For example, ADA bottoms tend to release ammonium or nitrate initially; conversely, some batches of Akadama release iron.

The fact is that the substrate absorbs cations and anions from the water column and binds them to the particles in it.
If there was already some element being exchanged, it may be that by order of affinity this will be ‘displaced’ by other elements, so we have the releases measured above, in addition to the absorptions.

Fertilisation management

In the first period after set up, fertilisation must be carried out with particular care, both because the “active” bottom alters the expected values in the column as a result of its exchanges, and because the aquarium has just started, the plants have just been introduced and the various balances (chemical, biological, etc.) have yet to form.

It will therefore be necessary to take due account of what is being added and to observe the response of the plants, in addition to the test results (which can be misleading in these cases).

For example, many substrates tend to zero phosphates in the water: if we only looked at the tests, we would have to put a lot back in immediately.

However, phosphates are bound to the substrate and plants can take them up. Sometimes it can happen that the substrate releases, so if we have an increase in phosphate in an aquarium without having added it and we had previously measured an uptake, it is most likely that this phosphate is returned from the substrate.

Nutrient storage capability

It is also good to remember that these bottoms have a sort of nutrient storage capacity, but should not be bombarded with nutrients to saturate them quickly: the risk of sudden releases is high and risky. It is better to proceed with proper fertilisation over time, observing the plants and their possible signs of deficiencies or problems.

Finally, as far as durability is concerned, with time and the attainment of various balances the bottom will apparently stop exchanging, so we will no longer measure sharp drops in carbonates, phosphates or ammonium releases, just to name a few common phenomena.
This does not mean, however, that the soil has lost its exchange capacity, quite the contrary: a good balance between exchanged elements has been achieved.

This is different for so-called fertile soils, which lose their fertility over time as plants absorb the fertilisers they contain (iron, potassium, trace elements…). However, the component of these fertile grounds with exchange capacity – if present – retains its properties: if necessary, the fertiliser component can be replenished using sticks, tabs or fertilising spheres.

Credits

CSC diagram: By Kyle MoJo – Own work, CC0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=62069074

Allophane: By Rob Lavinsky, iRocks.com – CC-BY-SA-3.0, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=15277038

L'articolo Substrate exchange capacity proviene da Acquario.top.

Let’s start right away!

The purpose of the filter

The purpose of aquarium filters is – as the name suggests – to filter the water.

There are usually three types of filtration in aquaria:

1. mechanical filtration
2. chemical filtration
3. biological filtration.

As we will see later, not all types of filter guarantee all three types of filtration at the same time and not all types of filtering are necessary.

Let us see them in detail.

Types of filtration in freshwater aquaria

Mechanical filtration

Mechanical filtration consists of removing suspended solids: fish droppings, dead leaves, food scraps, dust from the bottom, debris, sediment… and more!

This type of filtration is usually achieved by means of synthetic filter materials of different types, which are able to block particles of various sizes. The most commonly used filtering materials in aquaria for mechanical filtration are sponges and perlon wool (or wadding); the former blocks coarse materials while the latter blocks finer materials.

Chemical filtration

Chemical filtration consists in the removal of dissolved chemical compounds in the water, e.g. ammonium, silicates, phosphates, drugs, fertilisers, dyes, etc.

It is usually achieved by means of certain materials or substances that are placed in the filter; without going into detail about how they work and the advisability of using them, in aquaria the most commonly used materials for chemical filtration are zeolite and anti-something resins (anti-nitrate, anti-phosphate, anti-silicate…).

Activated carbon

Activated carbon, on the other hand, performs mechanical-chemical filtering: its action is comparable to that of a mechanical filtering material with a space between the “meshes” of a size similar to that of the molecules, with an additional capacity to block the molecules by adsorbing them.

In other words, with adsorption, activated carbon not only blocks the filtered particles in its ‘mesh’ but also binds them to itself almost permanently (very special conditions are required for activated carbon to release the adsorbed substances; such conditions are extremely rare in aquaria).

Activated carbon removes many substances dissolved in the water, e.g. drugs, antibiotics, chelators, fertilisers and colouring agents, such as tannins, humic acids and similar substances released by wood.

Biological filtration

Biological filtration involves the processing by appropriate bacterial colonies mainly of nitrogen from fish metabolism and the decomposition of living matter.

Although it is called “biological filtration”, it is not a direct action by filters, which are only a favourable place for the bacterial colonies to settle: they will filter the water biologically.

In order to promote bacterial settlement – and therefore biological filtration – materials with a large available surface area are usually used. These are extremely porous materials that offer bacteria surfaces of tens of square metres in just a few grams of material. The most common are hollow cylinders of sintered glass, i.e. subjected to high pressure to maintain its shape, or other porous materials (ceramic, volcanic lapillus…).

There are also filter media with a different shape than the ones in the previous picture; just think of JBL’s Micromec (spheres) or Sera’s Mini-Siporax (shaped like a tablet).

Complex-shaped objects have also been developed to provide as much surface area as possible in relation to volume, such as bio-balls or the internal surfaces of some filters.

Lastly, some bacteria prefer to settle on sponges, so a sponge with a fairly dense weave that provides both mechanical and biological filtration can also be provided.

Position of filtering materials

The order of filtration is important; the water coming from the aquarium should meet the filter materials as follows:

1. materials for mechanical filtration;
2. materials for chemical filtration;
3. biological filtration materials;
4. (optional) other materials for mechanical filtration.

The reason for this order is simple: mechanical filtration removes all the coarse residues that may foul the next stages (resins, biological support…) – and we do not want this to happen.

In fact, washing the resins is counterproductive, as we are going to wear them out; while washing the biological media may be harmful, as washing them removes the bacteria that we have worked so hard and patiently to establish.

Adding filter media

It is possible to add additional filtering stages; for example, it is not uncommon to find an additional mechanical stage after chemical filtration or after biological filtration, which we indicated in number 4 of the list on the previous section.

The purpose of this additional stage (not a replacement for the first one!) is to block any particles released by the resins or biological media themselves.

Placement of materials in the spaces

The positioning of the materials within the filter spaces is very important: the filtering materials must, in fact, completely cover their section in the filter, as the water is slug: it prefers to pass where it encounters the least resistance.

If we put a sponge smaller than the filter section, the water will pass mainly through the edges without being filtered; a sponge of the right size, on the other hand, will force all the water through.
The same applies to the biological supports, bio-balls, perlon wool etc.

A diagram will make this clearer:

Are all stages of filtration really necessary in an aquarium?

It should be pointed out that not all types of filtration are necessary: not only to save money on their purchase but also because they are unnecessary (if not harmful).

With the right choice of filling water and good aquarium management (correct set-up, population, feeding, fertilisation and maintenance) you can avoid the use of chemical filtration, as well as active carbon: we will only use these materials when really necessary.

With good management, the use of resins will be almost superfluous, while activated carbon will only be used in very specific cases, for example after a treatment with medication or when it is necessary to reset the aquarium, removing fertilisers, chelators, allelopathic substances and whatever else is present in the water.

UV-C lamps

I would like to devote one last brief paragraph to UV-C lamps (ultraviolet type C), otherwise known as a sterilising or germicidal lamp.

Some filters, especially external ones, are in fact equipped with it as standard, while sometimes a UV-C lamp is proposed to accompany the main filter.

This lamp kills all life forms that pass in front of it, e.g. algae and bacteria. Without going into too much detail here, the UV-C lamp should usually only be used in specific cases of necessity: its continuous use may be useless, if not harmful, as a permanently switched-on UV-C lamp may lead to the selection of hyper-resistant organisms and a weakening of the immune system of fish, which become used to a “too clean” water.

Credits

Basic scheme of a filter: By Fred the Oysteri, GFDL, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=36395503
Activated carbon: By Self (en:User:Ravedave) – Self (en:User:Ravedave), CC BY 2.5, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1038326

L'articolo Types of filtration in aquaria proviene da Acquario.top.

Easy-Life was founded in 1998 in the Netherlands and has since developed a unique separate element fertilisation protocol, which consists of a base fertiliser to be supplemented as required.

Let us now look at the components of this protocol.

Trace elements supplements

Easy-Life Profito

Profito is the basic product in the protocol and should be dosed regularly, adjusting slightly the doses according to the response of the plants.
It contains trace elements and chelated iron, magnesium and potassium.

Profito composition: 1% potassium oxide (= 0.83% potassium), 0.31% magnesium oxide (= 0.18% magnesium), 0.24% iron, 0.1% manganese, 0.02% boron, 0.003% copper, 0.003% aluminium, 0.003% cobalt, 0.003% nickel, 0.003% lithium, 0.003% vanadium, 0.002% zinc, 0.002% molybdenum, 0.002% selenium, 0.002% tellurium, 0.002% niobium, 0.001% scandium.
Chelating agents: EDTA, DTPA, NTA.

Dosage: 10 ml per 100 litres, once a week. It is advisable to increase or decrease the dosage by 40% according to plant response. It is also possible to dose 1/7 of the weekly dose daily.

Easy-Life Ferro

Ferro, as the name suggests (in Italian, Ferro means Iron), is a chelated iron supplement. It also contains a small percentage of potassium.
It should be used in cases where an iron deficiency is detected, for example when the leaves turn yellow (chlorosis).

Ferro composition: 1% iron chelated with DTPA, 0.35% potassium oxide (= 0.29% potassium).

Dosage: 5 ml per 100 litres, equivalent to 0.5 mg/l iron, every week until the deficiency is resolved.

Macro-nutrients supplements

Easy-Life Nitro

This is a nitrate and potassium supplement; it is in fact a solution of potassium nitrate.
Unlike other protocols, Nitro does not use ammonia or urea nitrogen, so the nitrate supply is fully and immediately detectable by a nitrate test.

Nitro composition: 17.5% potassium nitrate.

Dosage: 2 ml per 100 litres increase nitrate by 2 mg/l and potassium by 1.3 mg/l. Try to maintain a nitrate concentration around 10-20 mg/l.

Easy-Life Fosfo

Fosfo is a phosphate supplement. Use in case of slow growth or stunted plants.

Fosfo composition: 0.1% potassium phosphate.

Dosage: 2 ml per 100 litres increases phosphate by 0.1 mg/l. Try to maintain a phosphate concentration between 0.5 and 1 mg/l.

Easy-Life Kalium-Potassium

Kalium-Potassium supplements potassium. Use it if the potassium already introduced with Profito, Iron or Nitro is insufficient: white or discoloured leaves at the top of the plant or holes in the leaves are symptoms of potassium deficiency.

Kalium-Potassium composition: 10% potassium sulphate.

Dosage: 10 ml per 100 litres increases potassium by 4 mg/l. Use weekly until deficiency is resolved.

Other components

Easy-Life Root Sticks

Root Sticks are sticks of clay, naturally rich in iron, enriched with trace elements, to be buried in the substrate.
They are particularly suitable for root-feeding plants such as Cryptocoryne, Echinodorus or Nymphaea lotus. They can be broken up.

Root Sticks composition: not declared by manufacturer, but it is likely that the sticks contain iron and trace elements.

Dosage: apply one piece of stick every 10 cm approx. A stick may last several months.

Easy-Life EasyCarbo

EasyCarbo is a carbon supplement. It is a solution of glutaraldehyde, a carbon compound that is taken up by plants to synthesise the sugars they need.

Composition of EasyCarbo: glutaraldehyde solution.

Dosage: 1 to 4 ml per day per 100 litres, depending on the needs of the plants. Do not exceed the recommended dosage.

L'articolo Easy-Life fertilizers: a complete guide proviene da Acquario.top.

Distribution of Apistogramma bitaeniata

A. bitaeniata has a wide distribution: it could be found in Perù, Colombia and Brasil, in Rio Ucaya, Rio Nanay. Rio Ampiyacu (Perù), in the region near Leticia (Colombia) and in Rio Madeira, Rio Solimoes and Lake Tefé (Brasil).

Natural Habitat of Apistogramma bitaeniata

A. bitaeniata lives in shallow streams with a very slow flow. The river bed of these small channels is fully covered by a deep litter of dead leafs and branch: decomposing, all this organic matter releases tannins and humic acids which give to the water a quite dark black color and a very high acidity.

Another typical characteristic of the original habitat is that the substrate is composed mainly by fine sand, mud and decomposed organic matter/detritus, indeed the mouth of this cichlids (such as all the others member of the Apistogramma genus) evolved to sift the sand through the gills, looking for food.

Some pics by Tom Christoffersen of the Peruvian part of the Rio Nanay where he collected some specimens of A. bitaeniata:

And in the Rio Ampiyacu drainage:

Morphology

The scientific name of this awesome cichlid comes from Latin; ‘bi’ stands for “double” and “taenia” for “stripe/belt” (in fact one of the common/commercial name of A. bitaeniata is two striped Apisto).

This appellation fits perfectly because, unlike many others Apistogramma, A. bitaeniata presents a second stripe under the main lateral band; this band origins from the gill and ends just under the caudal spot. It can be more or less visible in relation to the humor/behaviour of the fish; the second stripe is presented both in males and females.

Pics of male and female where the two stripes are clearly visible:

As mentioned in the introduction another feature of this species is the high poly-chromatism, particularly evident in male specimens, so much that the patterning/colouration feature is not a decisive trait to identify the location of the specimens.

As we could see from the following pictures, Apistogramma bitaeniata males can present different color pattern, appreciable in particular on the ventral, caudal and dorsal fins.

Sexual dimorphism of Apistogramma bitaeniata

As well as in the entire Apistogramma genus, the male is considerably larger than the female and shows brighter colors with a lyrate caudal fin against the female specimens that present the caudal fins without extensions and a magnificent lyre-tail with prominent extensions, absent in females.

Noteworthy is the fact that, contrary to other Apistos, the ventral fins of the female of A. bitaeniata end with a hint of extension of neutral/white color; however, nothing comparable to the extensions of the male’s ventral fins, that could reach and overcome two cm and that can show colors ranging from blue to orange (depend from the poly-chromatism of the species).

Moreover, the male shows the first three or four rays of the dorsal fin elongated and a coloration pattern composed by longitudinal bands, alternating a yellowish band (at the base of the fin) to blueish (in the body of the fin) to terminate with again a yellowish color.

Male and female in comparison:

Typical behavior of Apistogramma bitaeniata

Apistogramma bitaeniata, if compared to other dwarf cichlids, is quite aggressive and for this reason, in my opinion, this is not a species for who is at the beginning with the Apisto world. It’s not the best choice for Apisto beginners!

Reproduction of Apistogramma bitaeniata

To stimulate the reproduction in A. bitaeniata it’s necessary to gradually lower the pH and the electric conductibility; if the fishes are wild caught, lower values are absolutely needed.

By the way, a low pH and a <100 μS/cm conductibility are recommended, not just for breeding purposes, but even for a correct housing of these animals. Otherwise, they are going to be fragile, very susceptible to various disease and quite dull colored.

In my experience with wild-caught (WC) fish I’ve obtained the courtship and the deposition spawning with pH 5.0 and a conductibility around 70 μS/cm but, unfortunately, the eggs did not hatch.
I think that the main reason are the fact that was the first spawn for those fishes and the fact that the female was quite old (around 4 years).

Here we can see a video of the courtship:

Regarding,reproduced fish, we can attest to values of pH around 5.5 with a temperature around 26 °C; with these parameters  Eddy Spriet has obtained the deposition and the hatch of the major part of the eggs.

Extra specific behavior

When keeping Apistogramma bitaeniata we have to keep in mind not only the intra-specific but also the extra-specific aggressiveness.

I saw full grow A. bitaeniata male attacking Nannostomus beckfordi (not the smaller and shier between all the Nannostomus species) to reach the food and even taking side against adult P. scalare.

The tank for Apistogramma bitaeniata

The tank must provide a soil composed only by sugar size sand and a lot of wood that acts as visual barrier.

From the following video you could see the typical Apistogramma behavior: sifting the sand all day long.

Regarding plants, I suggest to use floating and semi-emerged plants, as the high level of tannins in the water and the soft light will not favor plant development.

For the hardscape is possible to use wood and stones (strictly not calcareous and with non-cutting edges).

Water color and caves for Apistogramma bitaeniata

I remind that this species lives in black water so, if the tank offers a good amber coloration, the fishes will benefit from it.
In the tank coconut half-shells or other caves (as savu pods) can’t be missing: fishes will use as spawning sites.

My own tank

I wouldn’t recommend to take it as a proper example because it’s quite small (only 60×40 cm of base) with the following values: pH 5.5, not detectable hardness, conductibility 70 μS/cm.

I think that this tank is too small because, in particular at the beginning, I’ve had several difficulties to manage the aggressiveness of the specimens especially by the male.

As you can see from the photos, I had to create lots of visual barriers with net divisions of the territory using wood and large leaf plats (Echinodorus spp.).
In addition, I had to add hiding places to allow fishes to hide in the event that the situation escalate too much.

With a tank long at least 80 cm everything would certainly been more manageable easier.

Tank dimensions for Apistogramma bitaeniata

Due to the high aggressiveness, I recommend an aquarium long at least 80 cm. In this case, it is possible to introduce dither fishes as Copella spp. or Nannostomus spp.

I do not recommend large characids – as most of the Hyphessobrycon genre – due to their predatory instinct.

Water parameters for Apistogramma bitaeniata

As you have by now understood A. bitaeniata isn’t the easiest Apisto species.

In addition to what has been said so far, the chemistry of the water is important as all the other aspects addressed: this animal likes extremely acidic water with pH between 4 and 6 with the lowest possible conductibility, but always under 90 μS/cm.

In the natural habitat the reported value is near 0: samples taken by Tom Christoffersen, in the dry season, report pH 4.71, conductibility 12 μS/cm and temperature 26.6 °C.

Lowering the pH will stimulate the reproduction. Another trick to make our fishes live better and longer is to adopt a seasonality similar to the one that there is in the nature.

Temperature

A. bitaeniata comes from tropical basin so, in our tanks, I would suggest to maintain a temperature between 23 °C and 29 °C.

Apistogramma bitaeniata diet

In my experience, I can say that wild specimens, even after a period of initial acclimatization, will continue to be reluctant to accept dry food, preferring, by far, frozen and alive food.

Another recommendation is to variate the diet as much as possible, by integrating with vegetables such as blanched peas or courgettes, because in nature their diet is not purely protein based, as evidenced in several studies.

About aquarium strain specimens, although difficult to find, they will accept the various packaged foods – which will in any case have to be of good quality – right from the start, however, it would be good practice to provide, at least a couple of times a week frozen/alive to have a more balanced and as varied diet as possible.

To stimulate fishes to spawn increase the quantity of proteins in the diet by administrating more frozen and alive food.

Taxonomy

Due to the wide spread of this species in South American waterways and its polychromatism, a DATZ code has been assigned to the different strains of the species, or from A211 to A216.

More specifically:

• A213 corresponds to A. cf. bitaeniata collected in the Rio Tefé
• A214 to A. cf. bitaeniata from Lake Manacapuru
• A215 for A. cf. bitaeniata from the Brazilian regions

However, more recent studies (2016) have led to the discovery of specimens of Apistogramma bitaeniata originating from two distinct sections of the Rio Apaporis basin, showing the caudal spot separated from the lateral band currently labeled as Apistogramma sp. “D9” and Apistogramma sp. “D14” – no DATZ code for them by now.

Bibliography and credits

Römer Uwe, Cichlid Atlas Vol. 1, Mergus Verlag, 2001.

Apistogramma bitaeniata on Seriously Fish

Apistogramma bitaeniata su Fishbase

We thank Eddy Spriet for providing information about reproduction.

We are grateful to Tom Christoffersen for granting us permission to use some of his beautiful photographs. These photos are taken from his articles Collecting A. bitaeniata in Pebas and Apistogramma (cf.) bitaeniata.
These photos can be reused only with the permission of their Author, who holds all their rights and property.

L'articolo Apistogramma bitaeniata proviene da Acquario.top.