# Please help Identifying my fish



## firemedic1169 (Jan 9, 2011)

This one is almost the color of orange shebert








This one is yellow with light brown vertical stripes and yellow egg spots








I think this is some sort of peacock








This one is electric blue with white egg spots


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## Fogelhund (Dec 3, 2002)

1. Metriaclima estherae... not great quality
2. Labidochromis caeruleus .. poor quality
3. OB Peacock hybrid
4. Need a better picture.


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## firemedic1169 (Jan 9, 2011)

Here is another pic. 
When you say "not great quality" and "poor quality", what does that mean?


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## dielikemoviestars (Oct 23, 2007)

I don't see anything particularly wrong with the RZ. Looks average. Then again, I guess that's what fogel said.

The YL has barring as well as a very muddy "beard." Neither of these are desired in a specimen, so it's considered to be "poorly bred" or "poor quality."

That last fish looks like a Met. callainos.


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## firemedic1169 (Jan 9, 2011)

That kind of bums me out because I paid $25 each for the 1st and 2nd fish because they said they were purer bred cichlids than my Lfs normally carries. The last fish is the same as the single fish pic I posted


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## bmweiler09 (Nov 17, 2009)

You were told they were "more pure" than your LFS yet you weren't told the name of the species?


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## firemedic1169 (Jan 9, 2011)

My options for buying fish are either 2 national chain stores, or a locally owned pet shop. I have bought all of my fish at the local owned shop. I usually pay $8-9 a fish and when I went to buy the orange one and the yellow with strips they were $25. I asked why the drastic price increase and was told that they are not ordering "mixed breeds" any more which is more expensive but a better quality fish.


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## Guest (Mar 2, 2011)

1 looks like a red zebra or some kind of pseudotropheus hybrid.. i had one that was kind of peach till he got an infection and died... 2 looks like a hybrid of an ellectric yellow and a saulosi or demasoni something with purple bars...3 ob peacock 4 cobalt blue zebra.. and poor quality on here always means they are hybrid and not pure fish that you would find in the lakes in africa itself.... however i think if you have a fish and you like how it looks then how can it be poor quality... if it works for you.. it works for you.. dont let anyone rain on your parade.... you goooo girl!!!! lol i personally think some hybrid fish look awesome... im a hybrid of a person ( 4 nationalities) does that make me less quality? umm no


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## 24Tropheus (Jun 21, 2006)

m1ke715m said:


> im a hybrid of a person ( 4 nationalities) does that make me less quality? umm no


Hybrid of races or nationalities is different from hybrid of species.
My guess is you are not half chimp. :lol: 
Anyhow looks like a decent rade on a LFS but if you want regional variants of pure species of Malawi cichlids then you have to go to folk who specialise in this stuff.

If you want species hybrids then go to your LFS.

The prob with the last one is two or more species can look like this, given the source no idea which one it is or if it is a mix.

Definition of quality is what you like. For sure got little to do with wheather a cichlid is a pure cichlid species and a pure variant.

Those that like to know exactly what they are getting rairly vissit thier LFSs.

All the best James


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## Guest (Mar 2, 2011)

lol 24 tropheus.. *** been called worse lol... i see what you are saying... i think the bottom line is that people are too concerned with having pure breeds and putting people down that jus like pretty fish... idk thats jus me i guess.. i have a bunch of flowerhorn mixed iwth other species and they are gonna look awesome and i could care less what anyone else thinks  its like a being a fish snob.... and also people are so worried about making their tank look like the fish's natural environment when in reality the fish are in fish jail... theres no way around that... your fish are captive... so why not make the tank as pleasing to your eye as possible... now if your eye likes natural look then ok.. but dont snub others for their tastes.. thats all im sayin


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## 24Tropheus (Jun 21, 2006)

For sure it depends on what you want.
Me I have been burnt too many times with good looking cichlids from LFSs that when I breed em the young are worthless and ugly. The hybrid makers and line breeders are not hobbiests they are proffesionals and select hard to get good looking cichlids from crosses. Me I get rubbish when breeding from them. On the other hand when I get some WC of a known variant or F1 from wild from a good sourse and breed those, the young look great and folk want them at very good prices.

Kind of a hobby VS professional breeder thing.

Me I am an interested hobbiest and think random hybrids are bad for the hobby as it adds so much confusion and argument. If the hybrid keeping and breeding could be kept separate then we would all be happier?
Prob is it just takes a few to try and pass of a hybrid as a wild type and the trust system fails.
LFSs selling stuff as what it comes in as are part of the problem.
The hobbiest keeps and breeds these and then finds out they are ripping other folk off with fish not as labelled.

No big deal lots of hobbies have similar problems.

All the best James


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## firemedic1169 (Jan 9, 2011)

My LFS said I should try a frozon food which contains a variety of things including spirulina, blood worms and brine shrimp. I know blood worms and brine shrimp are supposed to be avoided with some types of cichlids. Would my fish by included in that?


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## Fogelhund (Dec 3, 2002)

firemedic1169 said:


> My LFS said I should try a frozon food which contains a variety of things including spirulina, blood worms and brine shrimp. I know blood worms and brine shrimp are supposed to be avoided with some types of cichlids. Would my fish by included in that?


Yes, I would avoid feeding them the bloodworms. In small does, brine shrimp isn't bad, though I would prefer feeding Mysis shrimp.

Having said that, you really don't need to feed anything besides a good quality pellet and/or flake food.


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## MalawiTopTeam (Feb 11, 2010)

m1ke715m said:


> its like a being a fish snob.... and also people are so worried about making their tank look like the fish's natural environment when in reality the fish are in fish jail... theres no way around that... your fish are captive... so why not make the tank as pleasing to your eye as possible...


I fail to see the logic here. Seems like a very selfish and uneducated view.


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## Guest (Mar 7, 2011)

yea i have a few hybrid fish i def dont plan on breeding them.. they are in my all male tank... so i can see your point as far as breeding goes... i suppose i am selfish.. they are MY fish lol uneducated.. no.. *** done nothing but read and research everything about this hobby since i started... i jus happen to not agree with some of the viewpoints of people... if i dont have a diy styrofoam background does that mean my tank doesnt look good.. not to me it doesnt... hey diff strokes for diff folks... malawitopteam is your name a reference to american top team the mma school ? if so that rocks.. i train myself... if not nevermind cuz u prob dont know what im talking about anyways lol


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## kyboy (Oct 30, 2009)

could pic #2 be one of these http://www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/s ... php?id=824 ?


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## Ant-man (Jul 23, 2010)

During all this hybrid talk kuboy says hush! This may not be a hybrid at all! LMAO! Sorry its just funny! IMO some of my best looking fish have been hybrids, but I'm not breeding or selling those fish.


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## firemedic1169 (Jan 9, 2011)

kyboy said:


> could pic #2 be one of these http://www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/s ... php?id=824 ?


Looks like him, unfortunately he died last week. Thanks for the effort.


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## RRasco (Aug 31, 2006)

The issue of hybrids mainly revolves around unsuspecting keepers. LFS sell them as one thing and the unsuspecting buyer takes their word for it. This hybrid is then bred and distributed back to the LFS or other keepers as whatever they claimed it was and the cycle continues. People say they are not going to keep the fry, but I see it all the time, "OMG, is my fish pregnant?! I want to keep the babies." "What kind of fish is it?" "IDK, but its so pretty!"

There really is no issue with keeping a hybrid if 1) you know it's a hybrid 2) you don't plan to breed it, and 3) if you trade the fish responsibly. I have a hybrid in my mbuna tank, only difference is I know it's a hybrid and I'm willing to cull any potential fry. I strip my yellow lab female every time because I don't have male lab. I don't want they fry and nobody else does either.


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## 24Tropheus (Jun 21, 2006)

firemedic1169 said:


> kyboy said:
> 
> 
> > could pic #2 be one of these http://www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/s ... php?id=824 ?
> ...


Rats looks like he maybe was a pure good fish Petrotilapia sp. "mumbo yellow" and not the usual hybrid rubbish you often get from a LFS.

All the best James


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## firemedic1169 (Jan 9, 2011)

Yes, I thought he was a gorgeous fish


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## Fogelhund (Dec 3, 2002)

24Tropheus said:


> firemedic1169 said:
> 
> 
> > kyboy said:
> ...


Doesn't look like a Petrotilipia to me, just looks like a Lab.


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## kyboy (Oct 30, 2009)

firemedic1169 said:


> This one is yellow with light brown vertical stripes and yellow egg spots"
> I still think it looks more like Petrotilapia sp. "mumbo yellow"
> http://cichlid-forum.com/profiles/species.php?id=824
> than a yellow lab http://cichlid-forum.com/profiles/species.php?id=713 doesn't *always *have to be " poorly bred" or hybrid - To each his own.


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