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Apistogramma Macmasteri
Apistogramma macmasteri
Also known as: macmaster's apisto, red-line apisto
Colourful, classic apisto. Demands soft warm acidic water and one pair per tank. Pick borellii first if your tap is hard.
Apistogramma Macmasteri tank mates · 100L tank size hub
semi-aggressive · intermediate care
Sources & confidencehigh · partially verified · beginner: caution
Checked against several solid care sources that mostly agree. Numbers here are a careful starting point. Your tap water, tank size, and habits decide the rest. How we evaluate.
Best for: Soft warm-water planted tanks 100L or more for experienced cichlid keepers wanting breeding colour and spawning behaviour.
Avoid if: Hard alkaline tap water, tanks under 80L, or any other bottom-territory cichlid in the same tank.
Common mistakeBuying a male-only macmasteri for colour without a female or harem plan is how keepers invent a chronically stressed, dull fish. Males need the breeding dynamic and soft-water caves to settle. Do not park a lone show male in hard community water and expect the shop colour to hold.
Top things that go wrong
- Shrimp & snails. Shrimp are a gamble with this fish; some ignore them, some clear a colony in days.
What most shops don't tell you
- 1.Myth: macmasteri are peaceful nano community cichlids that colour up alone in any planted tank. Reality: they are dwarf cichlids that need soft water, caves, and a proper male–female plan — a lone male in hard tap water fades and frets.
- 2.Keeping with German blue rams 'because they look similar'. Both are dwarf cichlids and the macmasteri usually wins. The ram dies of stress within weeks.
- 3.Bare 60L with no cover. The pair never bonds because there is no defensible territory; the male eventually pins the female into the filter intake.
- 4.Pick this apisto for the colour, not for the ease. A pair wants 100L with cover lines and warm soft water. Tap with TDS over 250 stresses adults within months. Most successful keepers run RO blended down to a target.
About this species
Macmasteri males show a red band along the dorsal and tail edges that intensifies in display. The species comes from the Meta basin in Colombia and wants warm acidic water (5.5 to 7.0 pH, 24 to 29 C). A larger dwarf cichlid than borellii or agassizii, with a stronger territorial drive at spawning.
- Checkerboard cichlid100L min · same group, comparable tank size
- Cockatoo / crested Apistogramma100L min · same group, comparable tank size
- Kribensis100L min · same group, comparable tank size
- Bolivian Ram110L min · same group, comparable tank size
- Agassiz’s dwarf cichlid80L min · same group, comparable tank size
- Apistogramma Borellii80L min · same group, comparable tank size
- Apistogramma Trifasciata80L min · same group, comparable tank size
- Angelfish150L min · same fish family
- Agassiz’s dwarf cichlidalso intermediate semi-aggressive, similar tank size
- American Flagfishalso intermediate semi-aggressive, similar tank size
- Angelfishalso intermediate semi-aggressive, similar tank size
- Apistogramma Borelliialso intermediate semi-aggressive, similar tank size
- Apistogramma Trifasciataalso intermediate semi-aggressive, similar tank size
- Cockatoo / crested Apistogrammaalso intermediate semi-aggressive, similar tank size
No reverse lookups listed yet.
Plan grid
Key limits are above. Here: pH band, swim level, bioload, and activity.
Swim zones
Care snapshot
Quick compare before you buy. Not a score of how “good” the fish is.
- Beginner ease38
- Peacefulness44
- Community fit22
- Small-tank fit100
- Hardiness54
- Energy54
Numbers are deterministic planning indices from Fishori fields — not a scientific score of your individual fish.
Example setups
Starting points only. Run the pair checker for every fish you add.
Avoid “one of everything” baskets — Apistogramma Macmasteri belongs in a plan built around territory, line-of-sight breaks, and matched water chemistry.
Compatibility
Tank mates for Apistogramma Macmasteri
No unconditional “safe” tank mates are listed for Apistogramma Macmasteri — this shortlist has CAUTION pairings that need specific conditions and RISKY pairings to avoid. Conditional (CAUTION — read the pair page before buying): Corydoras Catfish, Dwarf Gourami, German Blue Ram, Neon Tetra, Otocinclus. Avoid (RISKY): Jack Dempsey, Oscar. Every name links to a live pair check — the lists are a shortlist, not a stocking plan.
Usually safer
Open a pair page with this fish as the starting point.
None listed. Use the pair checker before mixing.
Needs planning
Read the blocking rule on each pair page before experimenting.
Usually avoid
Do-not-stock combinations on conservative hobby rules.
No safe-mate list on this record yet. Use the fish index to find species with similar care, then run a pair check before you buy.
Behaviour and temperament
Apistogramma macmasteri are semi-aggressive dwarf cichlids that stay calm toward midwater schoolers and lean hard on rival males near caves. A single male with females is the plan that fails least often. Stress shows as continuous chasing or washed-out colour when chemistry or stocking is wrong.
What sets them off
- spawning site
- rival dwarf cichlids
- fry defence
Fin nipping: Not a habitual fin-nipper; stressed or crowded individuals can still test fins.
Predation: Not a predator toward similarly sized community fish; fry and dwarf shrimp are still fair game for most species.
Territory: Holds a patch (cave, corner, or surface). Break sight lines so neighbours can pass.
Planted tanks: excellent — easy plant ideas
In the glass: typical and warning signs
- A male holds caves and flares at rivals while females forage leaf litter.
- Courtship and fry guarding are normal ownership, not instant grounds for breakup.
- A dull, pacing male with no female plan is stocking stress before mystery disease.
- Washed-out colour in hard alkaline water usually means chemistry first.
- Two males in sight of each other will often fight to injury.
- Spawn defence can temporarily push peaceful tetras out of the bottom third.
- Remove the losing male the same day fins tear or appetite collapses.
- Rehome if the tank cannot give soft water, cover, and a single-male plan.
Fish behaviour can vary between individuals and tank setups. Always observe new fish closely after introduction.
Water, food, and grouping
Hardness
soft
Diet
carnivore
Apistogramma macmasteri are small bottom carnivores that take frozen foods and fine sinking pellets once settled. Flake that never reaches the sand leaves them thin while midwater fish look fine. Offer baby brine, daphnia, or bloodworm a few times a week after lights soften, and confirm the pair reaches food under leaf litter or caves.
Shrimp & snails
Shrimp are a gamble with this fish; some ignore them, some clear a colony in days.
One pair per tank under 200L. Harem arrangements (one male, three females) need 120L or more with caves in opposite ends.
- 100L tank with at least 80 cm of length and broken sightlines (driftwood, plant clumps, cave clusters).
- Soft acidic water (pH 5.5 to 7.0, soft hardness). Hard tap stresses adults and prevents spawning.
- Live or frozen food rotation; macmasteri will accept pellets but breeds reliably only with worms and brine shrimp.
- Acceptance that one pair per tank is the rule. No other dwarf cichlids in the same volume.
- Tank volume meets or exceeds 100L published minimum for adults.
- Heater can hold 24–29°C without cooking cooler-water tank mates.
Explore and stocking hubs
Tank-mates hub, matching guides, category peers, and litre stocking lists around this species’ minimum tank.
Plan with tools
Check mates as pairs first, then add this fish in the tank builder for the full stocking.
Filtration & heating
A 100L minimum tank needs a filter rated for at least 400L/hr turnover and a heater to hold 24–29°C reliably.
Plant suggestions
Apistogramma Macmasteri does well in planted tanks. Plants compatible with 24–29°C and pH 5.5–7:
Research: partially verified · Confidence: high · 2 linked source(s). We do not invent citations.
How Fishori evaluates compatibility (same logic as pair and tank tools).
- Seriously Fish. Apistogramma macmasteri
Primary: species page covering Meta basin habitat, soft acidic water requirement, and the strong territorial behaviour at spawning sites.
- Practical Fishkeeping. Macmaster's Apistogramma
Secondary: editor coverage of colour variants (gold, red-mask) and the strong line-breeding of the species in the hobby.
Evidence notes
- Macmasteri is one of the more colour-stable apistos in the hobby. Tank-bred specimens hold the red line well and a bonded pair can spawn monthly in good conditions.
- Aggression at spawning is notable even by apisto standards. A spawning female will chase tank mates two or three times her size away from the cave, including the male between broods.
Featured compatibility checks
Curated pair pages for Apistogramma Macmasteri. Each opens a full verdict — not just a list label.
Common questions about Apistogramma Macmasteri
- How big do Apistogramma Macmasteri get?
- Apistogramma Macmasteri adults reach about 7 cm. Shop fish look smaller; stock for the adult length.
- What size tank does Apistogramma Macmasteri need?
- 100L is the planning floor for adult swimming space and bioload. A 120L+ tank is the more comfortable long-term footprint. Length and depth matter as much as raw litres for active or territorial fish.
- Are Apistogramma Macmasteri aggressive?
- Apistogramma macmasteri are semi-aggressive dwarf cichlids that stay calm toward midwater schoolers and lean hard on rival males near caves. A single male with females is the plan that fails least often. Stress shows as continuous chasing or washed-out colour when chemistry or stocking is wrong.
- What is the most common mistake with Apistogramma Macmasteri?
- Buying a male-only macmasteri for colour without a female or harem plan is how keepers invent a chronically stressed, dull fish. Males need the breeding dynamic and soft-water caves to settle. Do not park a lone show male in hard community water and expect the shop colour to hold.
- What fish can live with Apistogramma Macmasteri?
- This profile currently has no curated unconditional safe-mates shortlist for Apistogramma Macmasteri. Other species may still return GOOD in the pair checker, so check the exact pair rather than treating this shortlist as exhaustive. Corydoras Catfish, Dwarf Gourami, German Blue Ram, Neon Tetra are conditional (CAUTION): workable only with the specific conditions on each pair page. Avoid Jack Dempsey, Oscar (RISKY). Run the pair checker for your exact water and tank size before stocking.