# Please help my ID my Cichlids



## Kaitlin1227 (Jun 3, 2009)

I've had my tank set up for only a few weeks and we decided to get Cichlids, right now we have 6 and I have no idea what kind they are. We got them from Petland and all it said was African Cichlids. They were all together in the same tank there so I'm hoping that I wont end up having any problems with them.
#1








#2 (they said this one was a bumblebee but wanted to make sure that was correct) 








#3 (this one is really small so I'm not sure if it will be easy to ID)








#4 (I think I may have found this one but not sure, Melanochromis auratus, thats my guess)








#5 (a little out of focus, couldn't get a better pic)








#6 (now when I first got this fish it was dark black and it just keeps getting lighter, it kind of looks like a bluish/gray color now, I'm not sure if it's suppose to get like that or if its sick)








The last pic if the a little better pic of 5 and 6









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## bac3492 (Jul 25, 2008)

1.) Metriaclima Lombardoi
2.)Psuedotropheus Crabro
3.)Psuedotropheus Elongatus (which one i have no idea)
4.) Melanachromis Auratus
5.) Either a Metriaclima Estrethae or a young orange female psuedotropheus saulosi
6.) might be a Psuedotropheus Acei (yellow tail)


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## xalow (May 10, 2007)

I agree with the IDs for 1,2, and 4 which is all I can help with.



> They were all together in the same tank there so I'm hoping that I wont end up having any problems with them


Well, if I had to pick out the three most aggressive species of african cichlids I could think of they would be Auratus, Lombardoi, and Crabro. While no one can say for certain that something will go wrong it is very likely that these species will cause problems eventually. Those three fish are generally recommended to be kept in an aquarium of at least 75 gallons with one male and several females.

What size aquarium do you have?


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## a7oneal (Dec 30, 2004)

I thought Melanochromis for #3.


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## jjleetest (Mar 12, 2009)

a7oneal said:


> I thought Melanochromis for #3.


^some hybrid of the such


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## Kaitlin1227 (Jun 3, 2009)

xalow said:


> I agree with the IDs for 1,2, and 4 which is all I can help with.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


We only have a 55 gallon, I believe it is, we actually purchased the aquarium from someone a few years back so I'm not 100% on the size. 
See I've had an aquarium set up a lot of different times and I'm good with fish but I've never had something that were as aggressive as these are, I just wanted to go with something a little different. The guy that worked in the fish dept. at the store I got them actually sounded like he knew a lot about fish but he never told me that it was a bad idea to have them 3 together but I guess its all a sale though to them..


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## xalow (May 10, 2007)

It would be a good idea to measure the tank to figure out how big it is for sure.

Maybe the store worker knows more than me, with only one of each fish in the species the aggression typically isn't as bad. Hopefully someone else will chime in as I have never seen or read about these agressive fish mixed together before but I assure you they are particularly aggressive species.

When in the pet store fish rarely fight as they are typically crowded to the point of not being able to establish territories. This is somthing that keepers of these type of fish try to recreated to an extent with enough fish that no one in particular is picked on too much.


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## Kaitlin1227 (Jun 3, 2009)

one thing I have noticed is the Lombardoi has taken over the tank.. The others all seem to get along pretty well except for the Auratus also picks on the bluish/gray one that I'm still not sure of the ID yet. 
As of right now I only have them 6 fish in the tank so I'm kind of scared that if I do add anymore that it may have a big effect on the ones I have in there and they may become more aggressive toward each other.
Thanks so much for the help you've given me I knew only a little about these fish but I hope I can keep them in a good environment so they dont get to aggressive with each other.
Oh and one other question is there anything that I can do that may help the aggression stay down?


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## 24Tropheus (Jun 21, 2006)

Yep 6 fish is not really enough Mbuna. aggression tends to be less (or at least spread more evenly) with more fish rather than fewer. But you want to get smaller more peaceful types. If you buy unknowns they can often/usually be the troublemaker species and or hybrids (M.lombardoi and Melanochromis types) not really suitable for the smaller type Mbuna tanks of 55g.

The sort of Mbuna you really want for a 55g can be found here.
http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/c ... er_55g.php

The only one of these 6 suitable would be the acei. and maybe number 5 whatever that turns out to be 
I would bet these are the two that are getting bullied?
It will prob only get worse unless you replace the more aggressive 4.


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## Kaitlin1227 (Jun 3, 2009)

Actually the only one thats being bullied is the Acei. But that might be because the Crabro has been kind of protecting #5 (orange one). Them two are almost always together, its been like that ever since I added them.
Thanks for the help!


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