I have one that looks just like the yellow on top. I was trying to ID mine yesterday. He (she) is supposed to be a Yellow Lab (Labidochromis caeruleus), but doesn't look much like one to me.
It's really hard to figure out what you have with these guys--or has been for me. There are so many that are nearly identical, and/or change so much as they mature/morph.
I'm not very experienced (in the sense of knowing what the heck I'm doing), but I have pretty diverse mix (all Lake Malawi) which got on pretty well until I separated out the non-African cichlid mix I kept with them. They're a lot scrappier now. I feel bad even walking up to the tank. They think they're going to be fed which initiates full-scale warfare.
I have two very dominant fellas in the tank: a male Kenyi (Metriaclima lombardoi), and a male Melanochromis auratus (don't know common name--I think he was labelled a Johanii something or other at the pet store?). They aren't too bad as long the others stay out of their hang-outs. They did both beat the snot out of other 'mates' I bought with them--to the death. From what I'm learning, I guess the others were males as well.
A couple of thoughts that might be helpful in choosing tankmates, from my experience, Plecos (particularly larger ones) can be a problem for some of the Mbuna that hang in their caves at night. I had one nice female Kenyi stripped by a pleco. And, big 'opportunistic eaters' like pictus cats and bichirs can make it hard to add new Africans at a later date, because larger adults/sub-adults aren't typically stocked at the pet stores--again, just my experience.
I have a few smaller tanks I keep on hand. I've been using one to "pre-condition" water changes (apparently a silly thing to do!)...but I have used them in the past to give tiny newbies some time to grow, so it is kind of nice to keep it up and available.
I'm not sure I'm giving good advice here...just my experience so far. I'm sure the "old-timers" will correct me if need be.
And, they are beautiful fish BTW. Congrats on your first cichlids!
ETA: I agree about the tall tank. I have a 150g tall (vat? marine? whatever the heck it's called!) and even thought it's BIG, it seems like the top half is sort of a waste. If it were possible to find tall rocks that would work in the tank, that might make a difference...but I've never seen fakes available that big, and I imagine anything real might be way too heavy...and way too expensive! ...anyway...
