Apistogramma staecki

By Pet Zone SD Team • November 2026

Overview

Apistogramma staecki is a small Bolivian dwarf cichlid whose real story, like its reciprocal namesake, is in its name rather than its coloration. Ingo Koslowski described it in 1985, in a paper titled "Descriptions of new species of Apistogramma from the Rio Mamoré system in Bolivia" (Bonner Zoologische Beiträge 36) — the very paper that, five pages later, also described a second new species, this site's own A. linkei. Both fish were collected on the same Bolivian expedition by two aquarists working together, Wolfgang Staeck and Horst Linke, and Koslowski named one species for each man. The ETYFish Project's etymology database confirms it from both sides: this species' entry credits Wolfgang Staeck (b. 1939), a biologist and cichlid aquarist, "who collected type with Horst Linke" — while the matching linkei entry honors Linke, who collected type with Staeck. It's a rare case in the genus of a fully reciprocal dedication, not just one fish named after whoever happened to find it.

Despite that shared origin story, cichlidae.com (Cichlid Room Companion) places the two species in two different taxonomic groups. Linkei sits in the genus's "Regani" group, documented elsewhere on this site. Staecki instead belongs to the "Cacatuoides" group — the same group named for, and built around, this site's own most commonly kept species, A. cacatuoides. Two fish named for each other in the same paper, on the same expedition, don't necessarily end up taxonomic neighbors.

Natural Habitat

Aquatic Republic's data sheet, citing the original description, places the type locality south of Trinidad, Bolivia. Both Aquatic Republic and Aqualog agree on the species' broader distribution: the Mamoré and Guaporé (Iténez) river basins, within the Amazon basin, spanning Bolivia and bordering Brazil. Neither source gives vegetation, substrate, or water-color detail (blackwater vs. clearwater) for the actual collection sites, so treat general soft, slightly acidic South American lowland stream conditions as the working assumption rather than a confirmed biotope.

Tank Setup

• Tank size: Aqualog recommends a minimum tank length of 60 to 100cm (roughly a 20-gallon long upward). No source gives a specific gallon-volume minimum beyond that footprint.
• Substrate & décor: No species-specific decor guidance exists in the sources checked for this guide. Aquatic Republic's breeding-tank advice calls for a simple spawning surface such as an upturned small plant pot — the same low-cost approach used for several other apistos on this site. Soft sand with driftwood and leaf litter is a safe general default; see our tank setup guide.
• Water chemistry: Aqualog's general range is pH 5.0–7.0 at 22–26°C. Aquatic Republic and Aqualog's breeding-specific water tightens to pH 6.0–6.5, soft, around 5 dH. See our water parameters guide for building soft, slightly acidic water safely.
• Filtration & flow: No source gives species-specific filtration guidance. Gentle flow and stable, mature water are a safe default for any lesser-documented apisto — see our water quality guide.

Feeding

Both Aqualog and Aquatic Republic give genus-standard feeding guidance: offer food that reaches the bottom third of the tank, such as sinking flakes and granules, as a daily base diet. Live or frozen foods — bloodworm and brine shrimp are both named — are recommended specifically for conditioning a breeding pair. No source gives anything species-specific beyond this; see our general feeding guide for broader conditioning strategy.

Temperament & Compatibility

Aqualog's profile describes the species as sociable and diurnal, and specifically recommends keeping it in pairs. No source rates aggression, territoriality, or compatibility with other dwarf cichlids in any detail. Treat it like a typical small apisto — calm tankmates, no other Apistogramma species in the same tank to avoid hybridization — until a keeper with firsthand experience documents more.

Breeding

Staecki is a cave spawner, consistent with every other species on this site. For the breeding tank specifically, Aquatic Republic recommends one male with several females rather than a single fixed pair, with a dedicated breeding surface such as a small upturned plant pot. Water should be nudged toward pH 6.0–6.5 and soft hardness (~5 dH) to help trigger spawning. The clearest real-world account found for this guide comes from a 2002 apistogramma.com forum thread, where a keeper named Neil reported breeding the species successfully at a pH of roughly 6.3 to 6.5 using mostly RO water. His clutches were not particularly large, which he suspected might mean the species wants even softer, more acidic water than he was providing — a genuine open question rather than a settled answer. Follow our general breeding guide for the broader conditioning-to-fry process.

Sourcing Notes

This is one of the harder species on this site to actually track down with confidence. The only substantive hobbyist documentation found for this guide is that same 2002 apistogramma.com forum thread — useful for breeding notes, but it predates any current market by more than two decades, and no source checked turns up a specific recent import or confirmed current commercial availability. Unlike this site's A. linkei, which at least carries a cited IUCN Least Concern rating, staecki has never been formally evaluated at all (see FAQ below) — meaning its scarcity in the hobby may simply reflect obscurity rather than any documented decline. If you find staecki offered today, ask specifically about import recency and stock history, the same caution warranted for its reciprocal namesake. See our general sourcing guide for broader guidance on verifying identification and stock quality.

Final Thoughts

Staecki won't win anyone over with color or availability — it's a small, thinly-documented Bolivian apisto that's been scarce in hobby records for decades. What it offers instead is one half of one of the more genuinely charming naming stories in the genus: two men who collected fish together in Bolivia in the 1980s each got a species named for the other's collecting partner, described five pages apart in the very same paper. If you want an established, far more available species to start with, try cacatuoides or borellii. If the taxonomic threads that connect this genus together are what draw you in, staecki sits in the "Cacatuoides" group alongside this site's own flagship species, while its naming partner linkei sits a group over in "Regani" — a reminder that a shared name doesn't always mean a shared taxonomic neighborhood.

Frequently Asked Questions

What makes Apistogramma staecki's name historically notable?

It's the other half of a matched pair. The ETYFish Project's etymology database says Ingo Koslowski named this species in honor of Wolfgang Staeck (b. 1939), a biologist and cichlid aquarist, "who collected type with Horst Linke" — and ETYFish's matching entry for this site's A. linkei says the reverse: that fish honors Linke, who collected type with Staeck. Both species come from the same Koslowski 1985 paper, "Descriptions of new species of Apistogramma from the Rio Mamoré system in Bolivia" (Bonner Zoologische Beiträge 36), with staecki described first (p. 146) and linkei five pages later (p. 151) — specimens the two men collected together on the same Bolivian expedition. Each man got a fish named for the other's collecting partner, a genuinely reciprocal dedication that's unusual even by this genus's own name-the-collector habits.

How big does Apistogramma staecki get?

Sources split sharply by measurement method. Aquatic Republic's data sheet, citing the original description, gives just 21mm (0.8in) standard length — a genuinely tiny fish on paper. Aqualog's practical aquarium figures run much larger: about 5cm (2in) total length for males and 4cm (1.6in) for females. Standard length (snout to the base of the tail) and total length (snout to the tip of the tail fin) measure different things on the same fish, not a contradiction, but the gap here is wide enough that a keeper expecting a true half-inch adult will be surprised — budget for something closer to 1.5–2 inches nose-to-tail-tip in practice.

What water parameters does Apistogramma staecki need?

Aqualog's general aquarium guidance gives a fairly wide range — pH 5.0 to 7.0 at 22 to 26°C (72 to 79°F). Aquatic Republic and Aqualog agree on tighter, breeding-specific water: slightly acidic (pH 6.0 to 6.5) and soft, around 5 dH. Read that as two different jobs: the broader range for everyday keeping, tightened toward the breeding figures only when conditioning a pair. See our water parameters guide for building soft, slightly acidic water safely.

Is Apistogramma staecki endangered?

Unknown — and that's a real gap, not a clean answer. Both cichlidae.com and Aquatic Republic list its IUCN status as "Not Evaluated." That's a genuinely different documentation story than this site's own A. linkei, the species it was named alongside in 1985: linkei carries a cited Least Concern assessment, while staecki has never been formally reviewed at all, despite being described in the same paper on the same expedition. Two species with matched naming histories don't necessarily get matched conservation attention.

Why is Apistogramma staecki hard to find in the hobby today?

The most substantive hobbyist documentation found for this guide is a single apistogramma.com forum thread from August 2002, in which a keeper named Neil described successfully breeding the species at a pH of roughly 6.3 to 6.5 in mostly RO water, with clutches he described as not particularly large — he suspected the species wanted even softer, more acidic water than he was providing. No source checked for this guide, from that 2002 thread forward, documents a specific recent import or current commercial availability. Treat it the same way as this site's A. linkei: a fish worth asking hard provenance questions about if you do find it offered, since recent, verifiable trade history for this species is thin.