New baby red zebras??

[guppiesplus]

Ok I bought a holding female today at my LFS and while in the bag she spit out her fry. About half of the babies are normal reds and the other half are almost black (could be blue, but very dark)...what could she have bred with to make this kind of babies?? Any advice is appreciated, thanks!!

Edit: If say that the fry's daddy was from some other form of zebra just a different color...would that be consider hybrization??

[~*LuvMyKribs*~]

Its likely they are hybrids, but there is a varitey of zebra called the blue/red. In this variety the males are blue and the females are red... and they are born that way. So it could be, if you are very lucky, that you have the blue/red variety of Maylandia estherae.

When dealing with africans then even if the fish are the same species but different variants then its hybridization, since different varients can look so dissimilar.


;)
-Diana

[guppiesplus]

Thanks for the reply...are the blue/red ones the ones they call red top zebras? They are blue with orangy red fins (atleast the males are).

The female I got was very pale compared to all the others in the tank but yet still orange so I don't know if that makes a difference. They were labled "Red Zebras".

EDIT: I went to this website http://www.malawimayhem.com/profile_show.php?id=548 and yes that looks exactly like them. So they are ok then right. I have always thought it was wise to cull fish from two seperate species cuz the babies will be hybrids, and that's a bad thing. I would hate to have culled these guys...they are so cute!!

[~*LuvMyKribs*~]

Its not to say that those are what you have, but its likely since its rare to get a female spit two different colors of fry. Congrats! Those are more rare in the hobby. Just watch as they grow older to make sure there are no weird characteristics, since you never know who she bred with.

:)
-Diana

[guppiesplus]

Yeah...I realize that. Maybe as they grow older I will be able to tell what they actually are...or if they don't make it then they were probibly hybrids or something. I seem to recall a blueish male in the tank with her but I'm not positive plus they had just got this shipment in and if she spat them yesterday...it was about a month ago she got pregnant...so who knows...I guess time will tell!

Thanks again for all your help!!