Banded dwarf cichlid
The two- stripe dwarf cichlid ( Apistogramma bitaeniata ) is a cichlid from the South American subfamily Cichlinae and belongs to the genus Apistogramma. The nature of the specific epithet " bitaeniata " was first described by the French ichthyologist Jacques Pellegrin in 1936 is derived from the Latin from ( "bi" = " two "; " taeniatus " = " banded ")..
Features
While males are up to 8 cm long, the females stay smaller with up to 5 cm. Apistogramma bitaeniata comes in the colors blue, yellow and sometimes red, as well as combinations of these variants before. The animals have a light background mostly two more or less pronounced, dark longitudinal stripes on. Males have a mottled, striking zweizipfelige tail ( caudal ). Females are less conspicuous colored than males and their Beflossung is less intense, the caudal is trimmed. During the reproductive phase, the female assumes a lemon yellow color.
Reproduction
The female mounted 40 to 60 eggs on the ceiling of a breeding cave, which are fertilized by a male by Zufecheln of semen. The larvae hatch after about 4 days and free swimming after another 5 to 6 days. Breeding experiments in the hobby are often successful.
Breeding behavior
The male defends the breeding grounds, but is not tolerated in the immediate vicinity of the brood. The direct parental care takes only the female which defends the eggs and the larvae aggressive. The free-swimming larvae are based on color and behavior of the mother. Rapid head movements or rapid progression swimming are eg a signal for danger, whereupon the larvae freeze and fall to the ground. When breeding in aquariums is to observe how female conspecifics without offspring imitate and try to push away their larvae swarm the mother a mother in their coloring.
Food
In principle, the two- stripe dwarf cichlid feeding omnivorous ( omnivorous ), preferably but animal food is.
Dissemination
The range of the species extends from the Brazilian Rio Tefé / Lake Tefé the Amazon up to the region around the Peruvian city of Iquitos. In addition, the two- stripe dwarf cichlid is found in the rivers Napo and Yavari. It inhabits mixed and black water and locate the shallows. The waters of its biotopes is very soft (<1 ° dH) and slightly acidic, the pH is just below the neutral mark 7
Synonyms
- Apistogramma pertense var bitaeniata
- Apistogramma sweglesi Meineken, 1961
- Apistogramma klausewitzi Meineken, 1962
- Apistogramma kleei Meineken