the first pic looks like a melanochromis johanni with nice color and i cant see the second clearly
1st post... gotta make it count :)
- Thread starter icepack
- Start date
i did some looking around on both species... and it looks to me like i might have both (melanochromis johanni male, and a Maingano female)... the female definitely has stripes like the maingano pics ive found, but the male does not.
my female looks exactly like the one on the left in the first picture on this page http://www.malawicichlidhomepage.com/aquarium/mel_maingano.html
and my juvenile looks alot like the ones in the second pic on this site
http://www.cichlidlovers.com/m_cyan_maingano.htm
my female looks exactly like the one on the left in the first picture on this page http://www.malawicichlidhomepage.com/aquarium/mel_maingano.html
and my juvenile looks alot like the ones in the second pic on this site
http://www.cichlidlovers.com/m_cyan_maingano.htm
Cylon said:
Dempsey? What dempsey? These are african cichlids from lake malawi....
Anyways, icepack, maybe you could post a good pic of both the male and female? I know johanii and maingano do look similar (im not even good at telling them apart) but with a pic of each I might be able to get a positive ID for you.
If the female is blue, though, she's most likely a maingano or hybrid thereof. The male though, might be either. However if you purchased them together its likely they are the same species.
I did a bit more digging and Im thinking they are both maingano. The proper name for maingano is Melanochromis cyaneorhabdos. Here's a link to both male and female pictures: http://www.malawimayhem.com/profile_show.php?id=309
-Diana
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well... ive been a bit reluctant to take pictures of her... if you havent noticed 
her health isnt getting any better and nothing i do is changing it her coat isnt shiney anymore and she isnt swimming straight (her tail is higher up in the water then her body)
But if you take me on my word i can tell you that the pictures from malawimayhem.com depict how the female looks exactly.
heres a better picture of the male...
the male doesnt look like the Melanochromis cyaneorhabdos
her health isnt getting any better and nothing i do is changing it
her coat isnt shiney anymore and she isnt swimming straight (her tail is higher up in the water then her body)But if you take me on my word i can tell you that the pictures from malawimayhem.com depict how the female looks exactly.
heres a better picture of the male...
the male doesnt look like the Melanochromis cyaneorhabdos
It sounds like something is definately wrong with your female. Is she eating? Does her stomach look big?
I will ask Raf about the IDs and see if he knows what it is. Often when johanii and maingano hybridize the horizontal striping will be broken.... but there are so many species of Melanochromis that look similar its hard to tell.
I'd like to help you with the female though... incase she has bloat or hex or something.
-Diana
I will ask Raf about the IDs and see if he knows what it is. Often when johanii and maingano hybridize the horizontal striping will be broken.... but there are so many species of Melanochromis that look similar its hard to tell.
I'd like to help you with the female though... incase she has bloat or hex or something.
-Diana
Raf mentioned another point which I failed to.... the baby is blue w/ stripes. With johanii all the babies are born yellow, and when the males mature they turn blue. The females and sometimes sub-dominant males will remain yellow.
Your fry looks like its blue, but it has hints of yellow. Was is born yellow? This leads me to believe that these guys are mostly M. maingano. Now, because the striping is different and broken, it suggests that these guys are not pure and at some point possibly have johanii or something else in them. Although, they are beautiful fish, and you should be proud of them. Its hard to say for sure, but I would suspect they are mainganos, to some degree of purity. Successive generations of captive bred fish can degenerate the quality of the colors (such as the definition of the striping) and not nessecarily mean the fish is hybridized.
But, the tiny bit of yellow on the fry might be an indicator.
HTH
-Diana
Your fry looks like its blue, but it has hints of yellow. Was is born yellow? This leads me to believe that these guys are mostly M. maingano. Now, because the striping is different and broken, it suggests that these guys are not pure and at some point possibly have johanii or something else in them. Although, they are beautiful fish, and you should be proud of them
. Its hard to say for sure, but I would suspect they are mainganos, to some degree of purity. Successive generations of captive bred fish can degenerate the quality of the colors (such as the definition of the striping) and not nessecarily mean the fish is hybridized. But, the tiny bit of yellow on the fry might be an indicator.
HTH
-Diana
YEA!!! you know what, it was born yellow...
i totally disregarded that. I thought that coloring on fry took time to appear
on the other subject... shes trying to eat but most of the time she misses the flakes stops trying. shes not bloated, but she is losing scales on her side i might just have to put her down
i totally disregarded that. I thought that coloring on fry took time to appear
on the other subject... shes trying to eat but most of the time she misses the flakes stops trying. shes not bloated, but she is losing scales on her side
i might just have to put her down
You could try treating her with meds, maybe Metro or something. It sounds like she has an internal problem, coupled with getting her butt kicked by the male. Its worth trying to save her, but sometimes its past the point of return.
Anyways, so I guess that solves it then. You have a maingano female with most likely a johanii or half-johanii male.
-Diana
Anyways, so I guess that solves it then. You have a maingano female with most likely a johanii or half-johanii male.
-Diana
re
~*LuvMyKribs*~,
Sorry, I did not relize there was an electric blue african dichlid.
I mixed it up with an elextric blue dempsey. Now I know why when I ordered mine and went to pick it up at the pet shop it was in the african tank. I told them those are centeral american cichlids.
This makes so much more sence now why they were mixed up as well.
Hope I didn't mix anyone up on this thread
~*LuvMyKribs*~,
Sorry, I did not relize there was an electric blue african dichlid.
I mixed it up with an elextric blue dempsey. Now I know why when I ordered mine and went to pick it up at the pet shop it was in the african tank. I told them those are centeral american cichlids.
This makes so much more sence now why they were mixed up as well.
Hope I didn't mix anyone up on this thread
