Not furry, but we like them anyway.
Agassiz's Dwarf Cichlid
Apistogramma agassizii (Steindachner, 1875)
Also called Agassiz Zwergbuntbarsch, Agassizi's dwarf cichlid
From South America: the Amazon-Solimoes basin, from Peru's Ucayali and Maranon rivers through Brazil to the Capim River basin.123
At a glance the quick version
Looks how to spot one
Small, slender dwarf cichlid
A compact, elongated little cichlid; males grow bigger, brighter and carry longer, more flowing fins than the smaller females.23
Personality what they are like
Territorial but generally manageable; tank-bred fish fit well into a calm community of small, peaceful species.23
Daily activity how busy a day looks
Moves around the lower levels of the tank, patrolling a small territory among plants, wood and leaf litter.21
Grooming and care the hands-on bits
Offer caves, wood and plants as visual breaks, plus some leaf litter, and keep the water clean with regular partial changes.32
Home where they are happiest
Warm, soft, acidic water of about 22 to 29 C, pH roughly 5 to 7 (lower for wild fish) and up to about 10-12 dGH, in a tank with a base of at least 60 x 30 cm for a pair.21
Food basics what goes in the bowl
Mostly a meat eater that picks small invertebrates off the bottom; give live or frozen brine shrimp, daphnia and bloodworm, plus good pellets.21
Company who they like around
Often kept as one male with several females; tetras and other small schooling fish make good company, but avoid other dwarf cichlids.132
The story where it all began
Franz Steindachner described the species in 1875 and named it after the Swiss-American naturalist Louis Agassiz. It is widely sold in the aquarium trade, with many selectively bred colour forms.13
Fun facts for the dinner table
- 1
Its name honours Louis Agassiz, the Swiss-American zoologist and geologist.3
- 2
The female lays her eggs on the ceiling of a cave and can produce up to about 150 eggs in one spawning.1
- 3
It has an unusually wide range for an Apistogramma, and scientists suspect it may actually be several closely related species.3
- 4
Wild fish in forest streams eat mostly adult insects, while those near pastures prefer insect larvae.3
Recognised by the official bits
- IUCN Red List
- Least Concern (assessed 30 November 2020)1
- Taxonomy
- Described by Steindachner in 1875; family Cichlidae, part of the Apistogramma trifasciata lineage1
- DATZ A-number system
- Locality and colour forms are tracked under the German DATZ 'A' numbering2
The care rhythm Furry Diary remembers it for you
A typical home-care rhythm for a Agassiz's Dwarf Cichlid. It is our own starting plan, not a vet's advice, and you can change every line in the app.
- FeedingSmall amounts once or twice a dayevery day
- Temperature checkevery day
- Water changeAbout 25% of the waterevery week
- Water testevery week
- Glass cleanevery week
- Filter rinseRinse in old tank water, never tap waterevery month
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The breed atlas is free for everyone, with a source on every fact, and it will never show ads. If it helped you, a small tip keeps the research going. Any amount is lovely, and no is a perfectly fine answer too.
Where this comes from
Every breed page shows where each fact comes from. If we got something wrong, sorry, we are pet people, not a science magazine. Tell us at [email protected] and we will fix it.
- FishBase: Apistogramma agassizii fishbase.seused for distribution, size, water parameters, IUCN, breeding, aquarium notes
- Seriously Fish: Apistogramma agassizii seriouslyfish.comused for size, water parameters, tank size, diet, behaviour, colour forms
- Wikipedia: Apistogramma agassizii en.wikipedia.orgused for etymology, distribution, diet in the wild, tankmates
Checked 2026-09-30. Text is written in our own words from these sources.