Sunset dwarf cichlid

Apistogramma atahualpa

Also known as Sunset apisto, Inca apisto

FreshwaterFish

Care at a glance

Temperature: 75–82°F (24–28°C)
pH: 4.8–6.5
Adult size: 2.2 in (5.5 cm)
Minimum tank: 16 gal (60 L)
Temperament: Mostly peaceful
Social behavior: Social
Swim level: Bottom
Difficulty: Medium
Breeding: Medium
Rarity: Rare
Origin: Rio Nanay basin near Iquitos, Loreto, Peru
Family: Cichlidae

Overview

House a pair in 60 liters or more with at least two caves, since females claim tight territories around their spawning site. It eats small live and frozen foods readily and learns to take sinking prepared food. Calm midwater dithers like pencilfish help the pair feel safe enough to stay out. Soft water is not optional for breeding; eggs fail in hard water.

In the wild

The sunset apisto lives in the Rio Nanay system near Iquitos, Peru, a blackwater river over white sand where the fish shelters in banks of sunken leaves. Keep it on sand with a deep leaf layer, wood tangles, and soft acidic water at 24 to 28 degrees Celsius, pH 4.8 to 6.5. Dim, tannin-stained water shows the orange body color that earned the common name.

Good to know

Apistogramma atahualpa was described by Uwe Römer in 1997 and named for Atahualpa, the last Inca emperor. Males reach about 5.5 centimeters with a smoky orange body and a bold dark shoulder blotch; the hobby traded it as the sunset apisto before description. Females turn brilliant yellow with a black chest band when guarding fry.

Did you know

Brooding females do sentry duty from inside a leaf-litter cave and will headbutt fingers, siphons, and fish many times their size.

Tank mates

Sunset dwarf cichlid is a mostly peaceful, social species that keeps to the bottom. These picks match on water type, temperature, pH, size and temperament.