ID please

[bushwhacker]

hey folks i got these fish along with some tanks on a swap.... been told that one is a male auratus. and one is a c. borelyi (yellow fin) but have no idea what the other 3 are. any help would really be great
thanks bush

http://i338.photobucket.com/albums/n438/bushwhacker_01/6-10-09004.jpg

[ibr3ak]

1. top (yellow barred) - ps. crabro, bumblebee
2. middle left (purple/yellow fins) - ps. acei
3. middle right (black/yellow/white) - male m. auratus
4. bottom left (orange) - m. estherae, red zebra
5. bottom right (blue barred) - ps. lombardoi, kenyi

all are mbuna, most, besides an acei, get way too aggressive.

[smartdog126]

wow hes smart (: i could only name 2. lol

[bushwhacker]

thanks, these fish lived in a 30 gal hex for 8 months. i just moved everyone into a 75 gal. sand bottom with prolly 60 lbs of rocks and it looks empty lol.... i know i need a few hundred lbs more rock but i want to add more fish to maybe dilute the aggression.... not really bad at the moment... but i know as they mature it will

[efors]

I totally agree with ibr3ak, but then I want to clarify that the supposed C. borleyi is really Ps. acei.

[blue2fyre]

I agree with all the IDs. I would remove the crabo, auratus and kenyi. Red zebras can be hit or miss. I keep some OB zebras and they mainly just pick on each other. I would get some more acei they are fun in groups and play nice with other mbuna :) In a 75 gallon you could have 4 species with 5 fish each species having 1 male and 4 females.

[bushwhacker]

ok so let say i rehome the auratus,crabro,kenyi, and zebra.... what would be good species to add with the acei? i hate to lose that auratus hes a gorgeous fish but if hes gonna be a problem he goes

[efors]

Aceis are lovely in groups of at least 5. I have my 5 aceis with groups of the same size of the following 3 species: L. caeruleus (yellow labs), I. sprengerae (rusties) and Ps. socolofi albino morph (snow whites). Also, I have 1 M. cyaneorhabdos (Maingano) with them in a 55gal. In your 75gal tank, I think that you can have 5 Mainganos as well. This is just an example of a setup; but it has worked for me nicely. You can see my tank in my signature thread.

[Pittbull]

I agree with Blue and Efors.. also right on ibr3ak on the ID.. you beat me to it hehehe..

[bushwhacker]

well, for what is supposed to be the least aggressive of those 5 fish that acei is hell on the lombardoi

[snoopy65]

More than likely the Acei is male then because the Kenyi /Lombardoi is a female.

[mostlycichlids]

I wouldnt be so sure the Kenyi is a female. It has female colors now but it is still small. They usually don't get into their male colors till about 3-4 inches. Also Kenyi are known for changing sex before maturity.

[snoopy65]

True, how big are the fish?

[blue2fyre]

I wouldnt be so sure the Kenyi is a female. It has female colors now but it is still small. They usually don't get into their male colors till about 3-4 inches. Also Kenyi are known for changing sex before maturity.I agree that the blue one is still small. I have seen Kenyi start changing colors as small as 2 inches so I would think if it's a male it may be coming soon. As far as changing gender, I don't think that's correct. There is a speculation that kenyi might be able to change gender but there's no proof of it.

As fr as aggression goes, fish don't read books and don't always follow the rules. Generally acei are more peaceful but sometimes there are ones that are more aggressive. Just like generally Kenyi are aggressive but sometimes there are passive ones.

[bushwhacker]

after doing a lot of searching i thought the acei is a female, dont mean i know what the heck i'm talkin about tho... i just pulled up the site again that fish is female as there is no blue in the dorsal fin its pure yellow

[blue2fyre]

I have a female, that I know is female because she just held eggs, and she had purple in her dorsal fin :) Acei are very difficult to sex since males and females look identical. Venting is the only way to know for sure.

[bushwhacker]

then i may be confused, but the point is moot as i had to take the lombardoi out of the tank as the acei was gonna kill it... i never saw this amount of agressin when they were all in the little 30 hex... i moved them into a 75 with lots of rocks and caves and that thing went ballistic

[efors]

Acei are very difficult to sex since males and females look identical. Venting is the only way to know for sure.

Yes, Ps. acei is one of the so called monomorphic species; because males and females look with identical coloration.

[mostlycichlids]

I agree that the blue one is still small. I have seen Kenyi start changing colors as small as 2 inches so I would think if it's a male it may be coming soon. As far as changing gender, I don't think that's correct. There is a speculation that kenyi might be able to change gender but there's no proof of it.

As fr as aggression goes, fish don't read books and don't always follow the rules. Generally acei are more peaceful but sometimes there are ones that are more aggressive. Just like generally Kenyi are aggressive but sometimes there are passive ones. I know it is off the topic but there is proof of changing sex...I will have to dig it up but there is an old post by liv2padl here on AC with documentation on Mbuna changing sex. I have also personally seen one of my Kenyi do so.

[blue2fyre]

then i may be confused, but the point is moot as i had to take the lombardoi out of the tank as the acei was gonna kill it... i never saw this amount of agressin when they were all in the little 30 hex... i moved them into a 75 with lots of rocks and caves and that thing went ballistic

That's because in your 30 gallon hex it was overstocked so aggression stayed under control. Once they moved to the 75 gallon it was very understocked so you had more aggression issues. You need to add more fish to solve your current aggression problem.


I know it is off the topic but there is proof of changing sex...I will have to dig it up but there is an old post by liv2padl here on AC with documentation on Mbuna changing sex. I have also personally seen one of my Kenyi do so.

I found an article on here posted by liv2padl talking about cichlids becoming male or female based on size, but I didn't find anything about them changing gender. Did you vent the Kenyi before and after the gender change?

[efors]

That's because in your 30 gallon hex it was overstocked so aggression stayed under control. Once they moved to the 75 gallon it was very understocked so you had more aggression issues. You need to add more fish to solve your current aggression problem.


:iagree:...100%

[mostlycichlids]

That's because in your 30 gallon hex it was overstocked so aggression stayed under control. Once they moved to the 75 gallon it was very understocked so you had more aggression issues. You need to add more fish to solve your current aggression problem.



I found an article on here posted by liv2padl talking about cichlids becoming male or female based on size, but I didn't find anything about them changing gender. Did you vent the Kenyi before and after the gender change?
No actually the events were like this.....as itwas changing to Yellow coloration it had laid eggs...the fish was yellow with brown bars as they look when they first get their colors....A few days later it was back to the beautiful blue color...I kept an eye on the fish because I was wondering what was going on. The fish is now about 5.5 inches and a definate dominate male....correct me if I am wrong but only females can lay eggs, the fish is now 100% male.

[ibr3ak]

No actually the events were like this.....as itwas changing to Yellow coloration it had laid eggs...the fish was yellow with brown bars as they look when they first get their colors....A few days later it was back to the beautiful blue color...I kept an eye on the fish because I was wondering what was going on. The fish is now about 5.5 inches and a definate dominate male....correct me if I am wrong but only females can lay eggs, the fish is now 100% male.

Interesting, has it bred with any females?

I've had a kenyi in an all male tank go from juvie blue to yellow and then back to blue, it was still a male though, before and after (I've vented both times).

[blue2fyre]

I'm not looking to argue I just don't think color is an accurate way of telling gender in mbuna. I was just curious if you had vented the fish to be sure.

[mostlycichlids]

Interesting, has it bred with any females?

I've had a kenyi in an all male tank go from juvie blue to yellow and then back to blue, it was still a male though, before and after (I've vented both times). It has never bred with any females although I only ended up with two females in the tank and they were harrassed so I only kept the males...I have three males in there now...including this one. I have some pics around somewhere on here although I might have to look back almost two years to find them.

[efors]

Mostlycichlids, have you vented this fish recently to confirm it is now a male?

[mostlycichlids]

Mostlycichlids, have you vented this fish recently to confirm it is now a male?


No but here is a current pic...
http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=41&pictureid=11006
Always fighting with my dominant male Kenyi here...
http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=41&pictureid=11005

[efors]

This is a very interesting case, indeed and as I'm too curious, I would vent right now those 2 kenyis to compare them.

[bushwhacker]

i keep hearing "vent" the fish ..exactly how is this done please?

[mostlycichlids]

This is a very interesting case, indeed and as I'm too curious, I would vent right now those 2 kenyis to compare them. I don't think it is necessary, Have been keeping these long enough to know he is a he.


i keep hearing "vent" the fish ..exactly how is this done please?

Here is a source for venting....
http://www.malawimayhem.com/articles_venting.shtml

[bushwhacker]

thanks mostlycichlids that was a great read and wonderful pics... so its a lot like puppies... flip em upside down and read the label

[blue2fyre]

I don't think it is necessary, Have been keeping these long enough to know he is a he.

I know my female afras are capable of taking on male coloration. Also in my tank my female greshakei rules all. She doesn't have full male coloring but she's very light colored with a definate blue sheen. If it were me I would want to know for sure aka venting. Especially with such an odd case.