Let's have another go at this fish ID!
- Thread starter Aquafreak
- Start date
Marcus has got the closes guess so far that I see, that first fish look a hellalot like mine, just mine has incredible and I do mean incredible pink color pigments all through the fish. Seems we're getting very close to the true identity of this strange cichlid.
dont forget they egg spot on the anal fin, which would lead me away from thinking the talapia, most pet stores sell their mixed zebras as assorted, as they dont know themself what they have.
marcus how big do those talapia get, my friend has one thats at least 10 plus, and a very aggresive eater.
bob
marcus how big do those talapia get, my friend has one thats at least 10 plus, and a very aggresive eater.
bob
Egg spots on the anal fin would be attributed to whatever the tilapia was crossed with IMO. The facial structure looks nothing like a zebra IMO, and definitely has more the shape of the aulonacara that Marcus posted. The eyeset has more resemblence to the tilapia also.
Then again, who would be silly enough to disagree with Marcus? He can find 15 pictures to make his point with in less time than I can type a reply
Barbie
Then again, who would be silly enough to disagree with Marcus? He can find 15 pictures to make his point with in less time than I can type a reply
Barbie
I am thinking it is definently a tilipia of some type. Are those egg spots or just glare or some other anomaly? They do not really look like egg spots in those two pictures. One tilipia in particuler has some markings on the anal fin that look like that. That would be Oreochromis aureus. It also has all the same patterns throughout the body. This fish could be a xanthic form of that fish. Also lets not discount that it could be an undescribed species of Tilipia or Oreochromis. Sometimes odd fish come in as something other then what they should or mixed in with something else. Whatever it is it is very nice looking. The light is not changing this fishes colour at all is it? Do you feed a lot of krill or brine shrimp? Those foods enhance colours in the red spectrum. It is a type of shrimp that gives flamingos their pink colour. If you ever do find out what it is I hope you post it so we all can know.
Those are indeed egg spots on the anal fin.
In reply to Darkangel's post, no the lighting does not affect the fish's color at all, in the 2 photos I've provided you'll see why, the first photo actually had one actinic together with the normal white spectrum flourescent, and the second photo is of the fish in only its normal lighting.
For the second query, since the day I got this fish, I've only fed it the OSI cichlid pellets. I've fed nothing else other than that, so I suppose the fish's color is all natural, cause I haven't fed any hormones and or even frozen food for that matter, let alone fresh krill or brineshrimp.
Nice guess so far by everyone, this time the thread seems to be getting somewhere for once, btw this is the 3rd time I've put up these photos for identification, and none has come as far as marcus so far, good work and thanks for all your opinions.
In reply to Darkangel's post, no the lighting does not affect the fish's color at all, in the 2 photos I've provided you'll see why, the first photo actually had one actinic together with the normal white spectrum flourescent, and the second photo is of the fish in only its normal lighting.
For the second query, since the day I got this fish, I've only fed it the OSI cichlid pellets. I've fed nothing else other than that, so I suppose the fish's color is all natural, cause I haven't fed any hormones and or even frozen food for that matter, let alone fresh krill or brineshrimp.
Nice guess so far by everyone, this time the thread seems to be getting somewhere for once, btw this is the 3rd time I've put up these photos for identification, and none has come as far as marcus so far, good work and thanks for all your opinions.
Very cuurious...But arent most Tilapia native to continental Africa, while Aulonocara are Malawiian? That makes it very unlikely they could cross. I'm at a loss too, but my guess is its some sort of tilapia...An oddly patterned Red Tilapia, perhaps...
Cool fish though.
Cool fish though.
I looked it up in a book....
I think it might be a variation of a chromide, scientific name: Etroplus sp.
I'm looking at a orange chromide, but it looks A LOT like the fish in the picture, just a different color,
might be a red or pink variation.
I think it might be a variation of a chromide, scientific name: Etroplus sp.
I'm looking at a orange chromide, but it looks A LOT like the fish in the picture, just a different color,
might be a red or pink variation.
OK, first off, it is not H. bocourti, E. maculata or any other CA or Asian cichild. Guaranteed.
As far as whether a Tilapia could cross with a Lake Malawi Aulonocara, stranger things have happened. By the way, there are Tilapia species indigenous to Lake Malawi. Both genre have similar breeding styles and due to the fecundity of most Tilapia species it would not surprise me in the least. In addition to this, in aquariums, fish are much more like to breed across genus boundries.
As far as whether a Tilapia could cross with a Lake Malawi Aulonocara, stranger things have happened. By the way, there are Tilapia species indigenous to Lake Malawi. Both genre have similar breeding styles and due to the fecundity of most Tilapia species it would not surprise me in the least. In addition to this, in aquariums, fish are much more like to breed across genus boundries.
