Elizabeth's Dwarf Cichlid
Apistogramma elizabethae
Cichlidae
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About
Of all the Apistogramma in this catalogue, this is the one with no easy version. Seriously Fish uses a phrase for it that it does not use for its relatives — the tank needs 'negligible carbonate hardness and very low general hardness' — and publishes a band of pH 4.0–6.0 at 18–54 ppm, which is one to three degrees of general hardness. FishBase agrees at pH 5.0–6.0 and dH up to 3; AquaInfo goes lower still with pH 4.5–6 and GH 0–4. That is not a preference, it is the specification: the rio Uaupés and rio Içana are upper rio Negro blackwater, and a fish from there in Lithuanian tap water is a fish being slowly ruined. Reverse osmosis is the entry ticket. The second warning is subtler. On almost every Apistogramma page Seriously Fish opens the behaviour section with a line about captive-raised fish being fine for a community tank. On this one it does not. It says instead that the species is 'Best maintained alone or with small “dither” fishes such as Nannostomus spp.' — no community sentence, tank-bred or otherwise. And the hard part is not the spawning: 'While spawning this species is not difficult under the correct conditions, raising the fry during the early weeks of life may present difficulties since they’re highly sensitive to changes in water chemistry.' The advice that follows is regular but never large water changes, which is the opposite reflex to most fishkeeping. What you get for the trouble is a slender, agassizii-shaped fish — the name is not an accident, it honours Elizabeth Cabot Cary Agassiz, whose husband got the other one — with a male whose tail changes shape as he ages, rounded as a juvenile, lyre-shaped as a subadult and lanceolate when adult, and a female who turns brilliant yellow with black spots over her brood. Several wild colour forms exist: more blue on the head from the Içana, a reddish population near Tucana traded as 'super red', plus yellowish and greenish fish. None of them should be mixed. A note on size, because the sources are far apart: Seriously Fish gives 40–50 mm standard length, FishBase 4.0 cm SL, and AquaInfo 8 cm. Standard length stops at the tail base, and an adult male's lanceolate tail adds a good deal to that, so we gate at 6.5 cm and treat the 8 cm figure as the outlier it is.
Care
One male to two or three females, in a tank of about a metre and 100 litres — AquaInfo's minimum, and the room each female needs for a cave inside the male's territory. Seriously Fish will accept a 45 × 30 cm base for a single pair, so a species tank for two is a legitimate smaller option; a harem is not. Fine sand, wood, half coconuts or pots, a real layer of dried leaves, dim light and gentle flow, with Microsorum, Taxiphyllum, Cryptocoryne and floating Ceratopteris as the plants that grow there. The chemistry is the whole job: pH 4.5–6 at 24–27 °C with hardness at or below about 3 °dGH, which in Lithuania means an RO unit and remineralised water, and leaves and alder cones for the tannins rather than peat. Change water regularly and never in large amounts — this is the species where a big Saturday water change is the thing that kills the fry. Keep it alone or with pencilfish; not with other Apistogramma, and not with the colour form from the next river. AquaInfo is a shade gentler — it will live with other small, quiet fish, just not with anything busy or larger — but Seriously Fish's silence about a community tank is the safer reading of a fish this expensive to get wrong. Feed several small meals of live and frozen food daily. The common mistake is buying a rare, expensive fish on the strength of a photograph and putting it in the community tank that already works: it will fade, it will not breed, and the fault will be blamed on the fish.
Diet
Carnivorous micropredator on small bottom invertebrates that works over decaying leaf litter. Daphnia, Artemia and small live and frozen foods several times a day; AquaInfo specifically advises against mosquito larvae and tubifex for this species, where Seriously Fish's genus-level advice includes bloodworm.
Tankmate compatibility
Gets along with (1)
Possible with care (368)
Avoid (49)
Computed by the AquaSage engine for a spacious reference tank — always check the full verdict for your exact setup in the calculator.
Telling males from females
What works for this species, most reliable first.
- Extended finsStrong · from about 8 months, and later in a suppressed male
On many cichlids and killifish the male's dorsal and anal fins draw out into trailing points as he matures, while the female's stay rounded.
- VentingA hint only · only on a mature fish, easiest when she is in breeding condition
The method breeders use when the answer has to be right. Hold the fish upside down in a wet hand or soft net and look at the two openings ahead of the anal fin. The forward one is the anus; the one behind it is what you are reading.
- Adult sizeA hint only · only across animals of the same age
In many cichlids, catfish and loaches one sex simply grows larger — usually the male, though there are well-known reversals.
Also in these lists
Similar species
Same category and the closest water parameters — if this species isn't quite it, start here.
Sold in Lithuania
These Lithuanian shops listed this species in their public catalogue (checked August 8, 2026). Stock moves — ask before you travel.
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Frequently asked questions
- What tank size does a Elizabeth's Dwarf Cichlid need?
- A Elizabeth's Dwarf Cichlid needs an aquarium of at least 100 litres (26.4 US gallons) with a footprint at least 100 cm (39.4 in) long — for this species, swimming length matters as much as raw volume.
- What water parameters does a Elizabeth's Dwarf Cichlid need?
- Elizabeth's Dwarf Cichlid does best at 22–29 °C (71.6–84.2 °F), pH 4–6.5 and a general hardness of 0–3 °dGH.
- What group size does a Elizabeth's Dwarf Cichlid need?
- Elizabeth's Dwarf Cichlid is a social species — keep a group of at least 3 so natural behaviour emerges and stress stays low.
- Is the Elizabeth's Dwarf Cichlid suitable for beginners?
- Elizabeth's Dwarf Cichlid is a demanding species best attempted with some experience — it needs stable, closely watched conditions to thrive.