# Some kind of Peacocks?



## tycoonbob

First 3 photos are of one fish (yellow top) and the fourth photo is a second fish (pink top). What are they?









Blurry fish to the right is the Pink Top, as well








Bottom Middle









Mr. Pink Top


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## tycoonbob

Hmm, Lithobates maybe? Or Aulonocara Maylandi or Kandeensis?


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## anonimus

I think you have the same fishes than me...

I have two with yellow head that I assume is a Protomelas spilonotus Mara rocks

The one with "withe head" or is orange? I dont see the pink, I think is a Protomelas too, but I dont know wich one, I have a theard asking by the same to ID hehe


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## tycoonbob

Okay, so maybe not pink...but more like a peach color. I know the picture isn't the best, but I was hoping it would do.


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## m1ke715m

def not protomelas mara rocks.. 1 they dont color up that small 2 the shape is off.. top fish could be a maylandi sulferhead peacock dont think its a lithobates.. def not a kandeense.. the bottom one could be a ivoryhead mloto but i doubt it.. i suspect they are hybrids of some sort.. do they have stripes or spots?


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## Fogelhund

The top fish, and the bottom fish are likely hormoned... this can throw the body shape and finnage off. Most often these are fish imported from the Far East, and they appear to mostly hybrids.


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## anonimus

Fogelhund said:


> The top fish, and the bottom fish are likely hormoned


For me No looks hormoned, I dont know but I still thinking is protomelas. The ones in the pictures looks like maybe have around 4 or 5cm, I have two like those and they are not hormoned, they show his top yellow and the rest blue body as natural...

Also I have one with the white top head... i'm not really sure that is about Hybrids...


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## anonimus

m1ke715m said:


> top fish could be a maylandi sulferhead peacock dont think its a lithobates...


But maylandi sulferhead peacock is so dark and I never seen one with a line/spots that cross the body, thats why I still thinking is a protomelas


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## Fogelhund

anonimus said:


> Fogelhund said:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> The top fish, and the bottom fish are likely hormoned
> 
> 
> 
> For me No looks hormoned, I dont know but I still thinking is protomelas. The ones in the pictures looks like maybe have around 4 or 5cm, I have two like those and they are not hormoned, they show his top yellow and the rest blue body as natural...
> 
> Also I have one with the white top head... i'm not really sure that is about Hybrids...
Click to expand...

4-5cm fish don't show this level of colour, or fin development naturally.


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## anonimus

Fogelhund said:


> 4-5cm fish don't show this level of colour, or fin development naturally.


Then, we have exceptional case, because I have 4 months with my yellow head fishes, and in my small experience, the ugliest hormones effect, pass to be off or dissapears as totally, after feeding one month with normal and quality food...


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## ws812

all these fish are hybrids sorry they still look fine.


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## tycoonbob

ws812 said:


> all these fish are hybrids sorry they still look fine.


They may very well be...but can't you give more information supporting your opinion?

For the record, these two are a little bigger than 2"...I'd say around 2.5, which is still small but definitely a possibility for the colorings. Just trying to find an idea of what they could be.


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## 24Tropheus

tycoonbob said:


> ws812 said:
> 
> 
> 
> all these fish are hybrids sorry they still look fine.
> 
> 
> 
> They may very well be...but can't you give more information supporting your opinion?
> 
> For the record, these two are a little bigger than 2"...I'd say around 2.5, which is still small but definitely a possibility for the colorings. Just trying to find an idea of what they could be.
Click to expand...

Sad fact is many/most unlabeled Malawi cichlids are hybrid (as well as a good proportion of labelled ones) be it species or variant hybrid. Its kind of the other way round. You kind want proof they are pure. Kind of hard when they look not much like any pure variant. :wink:


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## 13razorbackfan

anonimus said:


> I think you have the same fishes than me...
> *
> I have two with yellow head that I assume is a Protomelas spilonotus Mara rocks*
> 
> The one with "withe head" or is orange? I dont see the pink, I think is a Protomelas too, but I dont know wich one, I have a theard asking by the same to ID hehe


Yes....that is what the first two in the pics appear to be and I have one as well.


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## ws812

I see no point in defending a non-labeled hormoned fish that you most likely got at a walmart. are you breeding them? if not then why does it matter. i said they still look fine.


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## 13razorbackfan

anonimus said:


> Fogelhund said:
> 
> 
> 
> The top fish, and the bottom fish are likely hormoned
> 
> 
> 
> For me No looks hormoned, I dont know but I still thinking is protomelas. The ones in the pictures looks like maybe have around 4 or 5cm, I have two like those and they are not hormoned, they show his top yellow and the rest blue body as natural...
> 
> Also I have one with the white top head... i'm not really sure that is about Hybrids...
Click to expand...

I am not sure if hormoned but I have a Mara rocks from a reputable online sponsor and about 2" it developed the yellow blaze and darkened body. It was not hormoned and looked EXACTLY like the fish in the two pics at the top. As it grew it became more yellow with the white fins and reddish anal fin. The one thing I have noticed with this fish is that some look a bit different than others.

Here is a pic of mine:










If this fish is a hybrid or been hormoned then I will be extremely agitated. That is the main reason I started ordering online to get away from places like Segrest farms. Again....the fish in the top two pics looks just like mine when it was a bit over 2.5" or so. When I first bought it was silver and no color. Developed color as it grew. What I was told about hormoning the fish is the colors became intensified almost immediately.


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## tycoonbob

ws812 said:


> I see no point in defending a non-labeled hormoned fish that you most likely got at a walmart. are you breeding them? if not then why does it matter. i said they still look fine.


Seriously? No...these fish came from what I would consider to be the better (of not the best) LFS in the Metro Louisville area. While that may not be saying much, I know the store doesn't feed hormones. I know they feed all cichlids they have, NLS. Their supplier is Bluegrass Aqutics, I think. They were labeled, but I am trying to find out if it was accurate or not based on opinions from CF.

They may be hybrids, but I'd still like to know what they are hybrids of. At the very least...haps or peacocks?

They are around 2.5", and I have had them for about 2-3 weeks now, and if they were hormoned, it would have faded quite a bit by now (considering the LFS doesn't feed hormones and they were in the store for at least a week.


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## ws812

I took things as seriously and personally as you did on this forum until I realized that what people were telling me was right. Why would it matter if the fish was a hybrid? You're obviously not a purist I mean look at that OB in your picture. Do you know what the OB is a hybrid of? Does it matter if you like the way it looks? I said they were good looking fish and I'm a dick.


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## 24Tropheus

Fogelhund said:


> The top fish, and the bottom fish are likely hormoned... this can throw the body shape and finnage off. Most often these are fish imported from the Far East, and they appear to mostly hybrids.


Good call I think. Its not the LFS that hormones em. Thats illegal in some states and in the UK (though enforcement leaves a lot to be desired) but the place they are bred. Sadly it is not illegal for anyone to import and sell these, I think.

Very hard to ID.

LFSs are not all bad. I had one that would happily tell me whhich fish were Far East rubbish and which were from good breeders, if asked. 8)

All the best James


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## tycoonbob

Not to resurrect an old thread or anything, but I have some update photos and a video of one of them (coming soon).

Colors really haven't changed much, and I have been feeding NLS for the past few months, so I don't think they were hormoned. Probably still a hybrid, and I think they are beautiful fish.


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## tycoonbob




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## 13razorbackfan

Yep....looks just like mine. I did sell him though. He was very unpredictable.


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## tycoonbob

Interesting. I have two of them, that are right at the same size. I am pretty sure they are both males, and the one pictures above is subdom, as he is normally a pink tint but in this breeder box he really yellowed up.

I don't really have any problems out of them, though.


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## lilscoots

To me the body still looks too elongate, I'll have to get some decent pic's of my legitimate "mara rock" and the "sulphur head hap" I got from a questionable store. The 'sulphur head hap' looked just like the first couple of pictures when he was 2.5" but at 5" looks very different from my real "mara rock".


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## tycoonbob

Mine is probably around 3.5" right now, so I'm guess he will be changing a bit in the next 1.5" inches. I think he has turned into a great looking fish, just want to know what he is, lol.


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## lilscoots

Your fishes coloring looks correct for mara rock, here's a comparison pic (sorry they're a bit blurry) of my mara rock and the sulphurhead hap that's becoming all too common in the trade.








You'll see on the mara rock it's more purple less blue, the stripe is solid yellow to the dorsal fin and then a paler blue for a 1/3 to 1/2 of the dorsal fin, the body is more round, less tube-ish. The "sulphurhead hap" is more blue less purple, and the stripe turns white and continues all the way to the tail and fills most of the dorsal fin, the body is more elongated. It's my guess that the "sulphurhead hap" is a hybrid of the mara rock and an S. fryeri...very pretty, but i wouldn't say it's prettier than the mara rock.


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## tycoonbob

Thanks for the pictures and info!

I do like the Mara Rocks, and I agree with you on what you think. I'm sure mine will only get better with age!


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## tycoonbob

Hey everyone. Just following up with some pictures taken over the weekend.


















Colors haven't changed much but the fish has grown. The pattern of the caudal fin and overall color, makes me think Sulfurhead hap.


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## 24Tropheus

"Sulfurhead hap". For sure. Dunno if you will ever pin it down to a species or variant as dunno if it is one.


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## 24Tropheus

But yep sure looks a lot like "Sulfurhead hap". or _Protomelas spilonotus_ (Mara Rocks) now. :thumb:
Just dunno if they are the same fish these days.


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## m1ke715m

they are lithobates x fryeri hybrids the farms are selling.. they are everywhere sold under different names.. true mara rocks have 2 horizontal stripes and don't color up until they are quite large.


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## Eugooglizer

I have a lot of experience with Mara Rocks Haps, and this one looks like a hybrid to me, body shape looks off as well as the horizontal lines. Not to mention that this fish does not usually color up until 6+ inches at the very least.

Someone also mentioned that they had to sell the fish because it was unpredictable. I would guess that particular specimen was a hybrid as well, as Mara Rocks is by far the most peaceful Hap I have ever kept, despite being one of the biggest.


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## Hock

I have true Mara Rocks, they look almost exactly like a Red Empress except the horizontal bar is broken instead of a straight line. I got 5 of them from a breeder at a fish auction when they were around 1.5 inches. I have grown them out to their 4-5 inch mark and 3 of them are just NOW starting to show color. Slight orange on the tops of their heads, orange/reddish around their gills and starting to get blue heads and some on their bodies. The "Sulpherhead Hap" like many have said are popping up and I actually got one from a reputable LFS last year. Just because it comes from a reputable LFS doesnt mean they arent selling hybrids or horomoned fish. Regardless, your fish does look very nice.


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