# Need to ID my fish.. plz help



## meme (Apr 6, 2012)

Can someone tell me what kind of fish these are and if they get along? I bought them all when they were very small. Thanks sooo much.. 
#1 This one has little speckles on it.. like peach colored? or light orange.








#2 this one is turning lime greenish and a little redish on the top fin








#3 This one looks like a goldfish with white/blue-ish tip on the bottom fin








#4 This one is very dark with some vertical striping and white on the top of his fin. Hes very shy.. as you can tell.








#5 This one i think was pregnant because its mouth was bulged out and she wouldnt eat. I came home from work one day and the bulge was gone and no babies =/


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## nmcichlid-aholic (Mar 23, 2011)

#1: Labidochromis joanjohnsonae (sometimes called exasperatus)
#2: Maybe Astatotilapia calliptera, or a different variety of Victoria basin cichlid
#3: "Dragon's blood" or fire-fish peacock (a man-made hybrid - behaves similarly to Aulonocara types)
#4: can't tell from that photo
#5: maybe a Pseudotropheus socolofi showing bars due to stress (common in juveniles), or a hybrid. Hard to tell.

Hope that helps.


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## ILCichlid (Feb 27, 2012)

3 is an overfed Red Zebra
4 is possibly a midnight mloto but hard to tell for sure with the picture.
5 is either a stressed socofoli or a hybrid.


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## brinkles (Jan 30, 2011)

I'll mostly agree with the previous posts:
1. joanjohnsonae
2. possibly astatotilapia, but definitely not the malawian "A. calliptera". 
3. overfed zebra
4. ?
5. might be a Ps. "elongatus" unknown variant


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## nmcichlid-aholic (Mar 23, 2011)

ILCichlid said:


> 3 is an overfed Red Zebra


Don't you think the head and mouth are shaped differently than that typically seen on Metriaclima estherae? Compare the broad snout and mouth set lower on the face of this red zebra - 
http://www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/species.php?id=1730 to the more pointed, narrower face/head of the fish in question. I still think it is a fire-fish hybrid, but yes, it is certainly overfed! As are most of the others shown.


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## ILCichlid (Feb 27, 2012)

Nope, it's just warped by being overfed. There is no peacock of any sort in it.

Also, Dragonsblood aren't exactly a man made hybrid. They are not a mix of two species but actually just a line bred version of a red peacock.


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## 13razorbackfan (Sep 28, 2011)

Holy cow!!!! Those fish need to go on a diet and quick especially the fish in the first three pics. May consider cutting down on feeding and letting them fast for a few days at least.


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## nmcichlid-aholic (Mar 23, 2011)

ILCichlid said:


> Nope, it's just warped by being overfed. There is no peacock of any sort in it.
> 
> Also, Dragonsblood aren't exactly a man made hybrid. They are not a mix of two species but actually just a line bred version of a red peacock.


I'm pretty sure that's not accurate. I didn't write the profile, but I have read it...
http://www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/species.php?id=1315
German red and rubescens are red, line bred strains of Aulonocara species, but the "Dragonsblood", "Firefish", "Strawberry", "Ruby Crystal", "Golden Peacock", or whatever you want to call them are most certainly hybrid fish created by humans. And I would bet the fish in the original post is one of those, since in all the fat fish I've seen, I've never seen one change the structure of it's skull from eating too much...


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## Mcdaphnia (Dec 16, 2003)

#3 I'll vote for fire fish too. Look at the eye. It is closer to the forehead of the fish than the eye's diameter, suggesting peacock heritage. Red zebras and such have an eye that is set back further from the forehead.

Tell me I'm wrong but I always thought the red peacock was a man made fish. I thought some Germans accepted the credit/blame for it. If you line breed a man made fish, it would stay man made, it seems to me.


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## 13razorbackfan (Sep 28, 2011)

nmcichlid-aholic said:


> ILCichlid said:
> 
> 
> > Nope, it's just warped by being overfed. There is no peacock of any sort in it.
> ...


I agree....this is what I thought as well...the ruby red, german red, rubescens, etc...were all line bred for red from pure aulonocara species.

I am pretty sure the firefish, dragons blood, sunburst, etc...are all hybrids.


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## ILCichlid (Feb 27, 2012)

Nope, Dragon's blood or Ruby Crystal are just a line bred color variation of the Ruby Red.

Ruby Red's and German red's are just a line bred version of Aulonocara sp. "Stuartgranti Chipoka which have a few color variations of yellows, orange, red.

A man from the Netherlands began line breeding the brightest orange/red versions of the species till after a few generations of fry he had finally reached a really bright red version. When it was imported into the United States, the origional guy who imported them here named them "Ruben Red's" after his last name so that is why you'll sometimes see that name on Ruby Red's.

A man from Germany began line breeding the darkest color variations of the red till he eventually got the real dark red that you find in specimens today.

All of the Red Peacocks are Auloncara sp. "Stuartgranti chipoka and not hybrids. They were just specifically line bred to achieve the colors they have.


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## 24Tropheus (Jun 21, 2006)

ILCichlid said:


> Nope, Dragon's blood or Ruby Crystal are just a line bred color variation of the Ruby Red.
> 
> Ruby Red's and German red's are just a line bred version of Aulonocara sp. "Stuartgranti Chipoka which have a few color variations of yellows, orange, red.
> 
> ...


All right except........................................................................................
Can you prove this on the Dragons blood?
All references/books I can find say Dragons blood are hybrid.
"Ruby Crystal" are albino German red (and bred/made far later) so yep technicaly not (for sure) hybrid but for sure man made/selected form.

The two should not be confused this way.

All the best James

PS saying German Reds are line bred from Aulonocara sp. "Stuartgranti Chipoka" is kind of like saying an Irish Wolfhound is a line bred wolf. :wink:
Sure one was bred from the other. :wink:

By the way does anyone know the modern terminology for Aulonocara sp. "Stuartgranti Chipoka"? Is it not a Aulonocara sp. 'stuartgranti maleri' (Chipoka) now?

It is all pretty hopeless trying to decide/find out which are line bred and which are hybrid now. The definition of Aulonocara species and variant has changed so much since the selection/breeding started. Pretty sure no breeder would have turned down the opportunity to breed in extra red from similar fish. But later of course claim they were all the same species and variant. Just as they do with "Eureka"


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## etcbrown (Nov 10, 2007)

First fish is Melanochromis joanjohnsonae, not Labidochromis.


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## 24Tropheus (Jun 21, 2006)

etcbrown said:


> First fish is Melanochromis joanjohnsonae, not Labidochromis.


+1
and
3 I'll vote for fire fish/Mbuna/Aulonocara hybrid too. Though more similar to Gold Peacock Hybrid http://www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/s ... hp?id=1315 than to the stuff we get in the UK as fire fish.

No 4 might be http://www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/s ... php?id=835 but need a better photo inc tail.

and
+1 for 5 being Ps. "elongatus" (prob an ornatus type or similar).


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## nmcichlid-aholic (Mar 23, 2011)

ILCichlid said:


> Nope, Dragon's blood or Ruby Crystal are just a line bred color variation of the Ruby Red.
> 
> Ruby Red's and German red's are just a line bred version of Aulonocara sp. "Stuartgranti Chipoka which have a few color variations of yellows, orange, red.
> 
> ...


Ok. I think your definition of what a Dragonsblood peacock is and everyone else's are different. Most people assign the names Dragonsblood, Firefish, and Strawberry peacock to a hybrid fish believed to have been bred from unknown Aulonocara and mbuna species. Like this one: http://www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/species.php?id=1315. If you are referring to the German red, or Rubescens variants, like this one: http://www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/species.php?id=1311, as the same thing as a Dragonsblood or firefish peacock, that's where the confusion is. They are not the same thing. Your lineage of the Rubescens and German Red variants is mostly accurate, but the Dragonsblood peacock is not descended from either of these - at least not the Dragonsblood peacock I'm aware of. Maybe where you're from they use different names for these fish.


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## nmcichlid-aholic (Mar 23, 2011)

24Tropheus said:


> etcbrown said:
> 
> 
> > First fish is Melanochromis joanjohnsonae, not Labidochromis.
> ...


Did they switch it back? It still shows up as a Labidochromis in this site's profile section.
http://www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/species.php?id=759
Says it was formerly a Melanochromis species.


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## meme (Apr 6, 2012)

Heres a better picure of #4. Also.. I feed my fish brine shrimp once a day and spirilina (sp?) flakes about 2 times a day. I didnt think they were over fed but maybe they are.. Also here is another fish I have.. any ideas what it might be. They told me at the shop it was going to change colors as it matures.. I've only had this whole setup for about 4 months and they were all babies. Thanks for all the input!
#4









and ideas on this guy?









thanks again :wink:


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## meme (Apr 6, 2012)

Heres another one of #5 its a little better maybe.. Not sure why the stripes but i highly doubt shes stressed because she pretty much runs the tank lol


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## 24Tropheus (Jun 21, 2006)

nmcichlid-aholic said:


> 24Tropheus said:
> 
> 
> > etcbrown said:
> ...


Your right sorry we are still so oldfashoned in the UK nearly all shops still sell em as Melanochromis and us hobbiests have not mostly changed yet, yep they have been moved to Labidochromis and not yet moved again  

Definatly not http://www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/s ... php?id=744
But the photos there are all wrong or at least not helpful.

Real ones here
http://www.malawi-dream.info/Labidochro ... s_Ungi.htm
or
http://www.malawi-dream.info/Labidochro ... umessi.htm
or
http://www.malawi-dream.info/Labidochro ... s_blue.htm

One time the common name is useful as these are so hopelesly mislabelled in LFSs due I guess partly to the name changes.

The OPs one is Likoma Island Pearl often labelled up as Melanochromis exasperatus or Labidochromis joanjohnsonae or any combination of these names.

No four is now clearly not what I said but not sure what it is.
Copadichromis sp. "Mloto Undu" or similar maybe????????????
Not quite enough white but maybe something similar or just a LFS Aulonocara hybrid.
New one is a young Aulonocara prob too young to even tell sex let alone guess species and variant if any. Most likely a Aulonocara hybrid unless labelled with species and variant.

Yep 5 is one of those Golden Aulonocara hybrids. Very variable in aggression. The Nimbochromis livingstonii will grow very big if it survives. Usualy bullied when young and a pain when big.

All the best James


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## nmcichlid-aholic (Mar 23, 2011)

Meme -

How big is this tank? I only ask because in that last group photo, I see a Nimbochromis livingstonii (the white one with brown blotches) - a fish that can be fairly aggressive and easily grow to 10 or 12"! Unless this is a 72" long tank, you may want to trade that one in soon. As for the blue one with the black stripe on it's dorsal, it still looks like Pseudotropheus socolofi to me, but as others have suggested it could be one of the Pseudotropheus elongatus species, or a hybrid of the 2.

The dark one from original pic 4 looks like an Aulonocara species in the more recent photo, but which one I can't say for sure. Maybe "Blue Regal"?

The next one is also an Aulonocara species, but the shape of the anal and dorsal fins indicate female, so you're likely never to know which species exactly (all female Aulonocara look very similar).

Also, brine shrimp is a very rich food and should only be fed as an occasional treat. Try just feeding the spirulina flake or another staple food like New Life Spectrum pellets daily, and the brine shrimp once every week or 2. Your fish should start to slim down after a few weeks on that diet.


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## meme (Apr 6, 2012)

Its a 55 gallon tank. They said I could have up to 12 fish in the tank and that I should overcrowd them to keep them from getting territorial and aggressive. I only have 9 fish in there plus a pleco. The "Nimbochromis livingstonii (the white one with brown blotches)" I picked out of a tank full of Peacocks. I assumed thats what it was. They killed a venustis (sp?) already and one of them ate his body pretty much. And picked a sun catfish almost to death overnight. I have no idea who the mean one is but I wish i would have done more research instead of ran out and got 9 completely different fish =/ Thanks for the reply's


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## 24Tropheus (Jun 21, 2006)

meme said:


> Its a 55 gallon tank. They said I could have up to 12 fish in the tank and that I should overcrowd them to keep them from getting territorial and aggressive. I only have 9 fish in there plus a pleco. The "Nimbochromis livingstonii (the white one with brown blotches)" I picked out of a tank full of Peacocks. I assumed thats what it was. They killed a venustis (sp?) already and one of them ate his body pretty much. And picked a sun catfish almost to death overnight. I have no idea who the mean one is but I wish i would have done more research instead of ran out and got 9 completely different fish =/ Thanks for the reply's


I have seen far worse starts than yours but yep a bit of swapping in and out and research you should be fine. Kind of hard if your only suplier does not label the fish right.


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