# Blue & black one?



## beachtan (Sep 25, 2008)

What is the scientific name for this ? pseudotropheus elongatus? Male right? he's just under 2"


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## ibr3ak (Jan 4, 2008)

Looks like a socolofi.


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## xalow (May 10, 2007)

I agree with ibri3ak, it looks like a socolofi.

Here is the link to cichlid-forum's profile for the fish.

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/s ... php?id=919

Here you can view a variety of pictures and view some facts about the fish. As far as it being a male or female, you will see that the profile says the fish is monomorphic. This means that figuring out whether it is a male or female can't be done just by looking at the fish unless you look at its vent area. For smaller fish such as ones still around 2" it can still be difficult to tell the difference without seeing it holding eggs or something similar.


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## chapman76 (Jun 30, 2004)

I agree with those two.


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## a7oneal (Dec 30, 2004)

Me too.


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## beachtan (Sep 25, 2008)

Is the faint black striping on the body supposed to fade as he gets older or is this a variation?


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## bulldogg7 (Mar 3, 2003)

This was mine at around 5" after 3" he never got the barring back. But before he'd occasionally get it from time to time when he was smaller.
http://s220.photobucket.com/albums/dd84 ... =boxer.flv
Sorry, I can't find a pic of his younger days :?


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## ibr3ak (Jan 4, 2008)

Yep, the barring should go away.

This was mine at around 1.25":










And about 3" later:


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## beachtan (Sep 25, 2008)

Great! Thanks for the help! beautiful pics! I like 'em better without the bars so I'll just wait : ) and any way to id a female at 1.5"? How big do they need to be to breed? is it an age issue or size issue... i do 25% water changes at least once a week and they are in a 55 gal. How fast will he grow from 1.5" (now) to 3"?

oh and Bulldog7: cool video ! Thx! what was he doing when shimmying on the gravel??


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## bulldogg7 (Mar 3, 2003)

He had a thing about his reflection, instead of fighting my other fish he just fought his own reflection.
Should grow pretty fast, you'll probably be able to vent it around 3" pretty easily.


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## beachtan (Sep 25, 2008)

Update on this fish: he is becoming a major bully and I have raised the water temp to 80 for about 3-4 days now which might be adding to his aggression. I just fed them and he is a crazed maniac! biting on everyone just spastically shooting all over the tank. He wont leave anyone alone. he took a big bite out of the Female Ruby Crystal peacock pectoral fin while I was watching (same size) . I plan to add new fish in a few days - should another socolofi or two be my first purchase to distract him? I rearranged the tank but that didnt help.


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## chapman76 (Jun 30, 2004)

Yes, I would add at least a few more socolofi to help distract him. He sounds like he might be going hyperaggressive and that's never a good thing. Hyperaggressive basically means he tries to attack anything he sees. "Normal" aggression is typically limited to fish of the same species or ones that look similar to themselves.


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## beachtan (Sep 25, 2008)

Yes! hyperaggressive describes it! is it just a temporary thing usually? cuz he's acting like a spazoid. If any other fish is even looking closely at the gravel, he'll fly over and bite them out of the way and look at what they were messing with. I'm thinking he's gonna fly outa the tank! he wasnt this way before I put the water up to 80 degrees... I'll try to buy one or two bigger ones to get him in check. Isnt this type of african usually one of the more peaceful ones??


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## chapman76 (Jun 30, 2004)

Try lowering the temp back down and adding some more.

Is it temporary? Maybe. As far as how aggressive they are, I've never kept them, but from what I've read on here, most seem to be a little more aggressive than say a yellow lab or a rusty, but not as aggressive as say an auratus.


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## beachtan (Sep 25, 2008)

Thanks! I could afford one more socolofi and 3 danios for distraction - it seems to be working ! THanks!


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## cichlidaholic (Dec 7, 2005)

These aren't "pairing" fish, so adding one more won't change his attitude for long.


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## beachtan (Sep 25, 2008)

yep got it. they are getting more at the lfs later this week. I got the last one. :wink:


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