Cockatoo Cichlid Breeding Advice?

[Joeman2000]

Does anyone have any advice? I have 2 ten gallon tanks that are empty and have just started cycling one of them. Is a ten gallon enough for a pair or trio? If not what is a good size tank? My limit( because of space issues) is most likely a 20 high.How do you condition the pair? What is the preferred spawning site? And my ph is 7.2-7.4 will i need to lower this or will it be fine?

 

[attibones]

These guys are similar to the ram in terms of needs for space. I'd say that a thirty gallon is minimum. With this species, long is better than high because they need floor space for patrolling as they are lower level fish.

As far as breeding, all I know is that you need plenty of caves and rocks, plants, and superb water quality. You should be feeding a wide variety of quality food including live foods such as daphnea and some works or larvae. For rams, your need a pH of about 6.5-6.8. As these fish are quite similar, I'd say they need a lower pH, but I'm not positive on that. I very well could be wrong.

 

[Essjay]

My cockatoo apistos spawn regularly in a pH of 7.4, but my hardness is 7 german degrees (with an API tester, it's 5 according to the water company) which could account for it. They are fed New Life Spectrum flakes and pellets with frozen live food once a week. They spawn in a cave - sometimes an upturned terracotta plantpot with a hole cut out of the rim, other times they choose a hollow in a piece of wood. The tank has hollow decorations covered in java fern and anubias as well as silk plants, though the hollow decorations are too open for the apistos to choose. The eggs never last long as this is in a community tank.
 
 
<- this is the female in breeding mood.