This is a nice Apisto that doesn't seem to get a lot of press. Very much like the A. cacatuoides that are very popular, at least in the more colorful strains, this subtle-hued little fish seems easy to keep and breed.
The particular fish that I'll talk about are a yellow strain, somewhat more colorful than others I've seen. It's the same basic shape as A. cacatuoides, although the lips are not quite as thick, and the forward spike of the dorsal fin isn't as high. The yellow coloration is more dominant during spawning in both sexes, with the male displaying bight yellow sides and lower fins, and orange and black on the dorsal fin. The female is bright solid yellow with black markings.
I was housing five pairs of these fish as part of a business venture, and while I was deciding whether to try and raise some, the largest of the females presented me with a large patch of eggs on the underside of a flower pot. The fish hadn't been with me long; about two weeks, and had eaten anything offered them; frozen beef heart, brine shrimp, blood worms, live black worms, white worms, chopped earth worms, and several prepared dry foods.
As soon as I discovered the eggs, I moved them to an eight gallon tank with water from the main tank; pH of 6.0 and very little hardness. Neither tank was heated. The breeding tank stayed at about 75 degrees and the fry tank stayed at 76 or 77.
In three days the eggs hatched and in eight more about 45 fry were swimming around the tank. The mortality rate was low, and the fry grew fairly quickly for apistos. The young fish fed well on baby brine shrimp and micro worms, and by one month they were three eighths of an inch, by two months about a half and inch.
With their attractive colors and ease of maintenance, these should be a common and popular apisto in the future.