The attractive Apistogramma sp. Oregon comes from the wider surroundings of Iquitos in Peru. Don’t ask us why this one is called “Oregon” – we don’t know that either. It belongs to the closer relationship of A. nijsseni, but differs clearly from this species by the bulky body structure, the large tail spot and a group of black spots on the lower half of the caudal peduncle.
This beautiful fish is quite hardy and adaptable, but it has been shown that for long-term care and breeding, very soft water with a pH of 5-6 is most favorable. In hard water with higher pH, the fish first become paler and then start to care. It is still unclear whether the soft acidic water is actually a physiological necessity or whether the animals – like so many fish from comparable habitats – just cannot tolerate the higher bacterial load in harder and more alkaline water.
According to the information available so far, A. sp. Oregon is known from only one forest pool. This does not necessarily mean that it does not exist elsewhere, but it has not been found so far. Therefore imports of the animals occur only in large time intervals, breeders should strive for them.
For our customers: the fish have code 625112 on our stocklist. Please note that we supply exclusively to wholesalers.
Literature
Römer, U. & D. P. Soares (2019): Beiträge zur Biologie von Apistogramma-Arten: Apistogramma sp. „Oregon“, ein selten gepflegter Zwergbuntbarsch aus dem peruanischen Amazonas-Tiefland in Loreto. DCG-Informationen 50 (8): 174-183
Text & photos: Frank Schäfer
