HELP!!! what kind of cichlid is this?

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Lupin

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:welcome: to AC!

Tilapia buttikoferi.:) It's an aggressive fish. What size is the tank and what fish are in it besides that?
 

mcmillins

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Jan 15, 2008
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they are in a 185 with all sorts of different kinds of cichlids. Blues, yellows, green terrors, green severum, 2 cobalt blues, a brichardi, a peacock, a parrot, a manganese, a bala shark, & other misc cichlids. We paid $5.00 a piece for them when we got them. They were only 3 inches long.
 
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mcmillins

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Jan 15, 2008
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Thank you so much for your quick responses. We have been trying to figure out what they were forever.
 

mcmillins

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Jan 15, 2008
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they are in a 185 with all sorts of different kinds of cichlids. Blues, yellows, green terrors, green severum, 2 cobalt blues, a brichardi, a peacock, a parrot, a manganese, a bala shark, & other misc cichlids. We paid $5.00 a piece for them when we got them. They were only 3 inches long.
 

fwfan

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Jan 10, 2008
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Out of curiousity, how much do large cichlids usually go for? A lfs near me has a ~10-12" Zebra Talapia in one of their tanks for $19.99 just seemed awfully cheap to me. But not being a cichlid person I wasn't sure Considering I pay $5.00 a pop for 1" dwarf neons)
 

TheFanatic

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Those things look great when they are small with the blue edges to their fins, but when they get older they lose all that color and look like crap. This fish pretty much should be avoided...
 

AikidoGuy

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Jul 3, 2001
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Tilapia buttikoferi

Great powerful species. I had a Giant pair for 12 years. The male was a True 16" power house and the female was 14" of absolute terror. One of the toughest species I've ever kept. Happens to be my wifes favorite.

Unfortunatly, they will eventually male short work out of the rest of your tankmates.

They are vegitarians by nature so keep them on a spilrulina based diet and offer shrimp and worms as treats. Unlike most african species these tolerate Central American Cichlid type habitats. By keeping to the correct diet they WILL NOT lose all the color. As they mature the 'perfect for pecking' snout will look more elongated with a huge, wide jawline and the head will have a steep slope to it, almost looking slightly hunchbacked.

My pair shared a 180gallon aquarium with nothing more than gravel in it, as they took up the rest of the tank with their body mass.

BTW: This species has a 20-YEAR life span!
 
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