Can you ID these Africans?

[DonnieP]

Can anyone ID these Africans for me, I am new to the African tank.
http://www.cichlidforums.com/postimages/2003-09-19/16367-001.jpg
Also this guy?
http://www.cichlidforums.com/postimages/2003-09-19/16367-002.jpg

[tom]

Hi and welcome, Donnie

Top photo, left: M. estherae ("red zebra"). The other (with blotches) also appears to be an estherae, but I'm not sure.

Bottom photo: Pseudotropheus "acei"

I'll move this to the African ID forum; others may have a better eye than I.

[SGypsyMermaid]

i must disagree with our fearless leader; that fish on the bottom looks like a rusty(iodotropheus sprengerae) to me.

[truckpoetry]

I'm with gypsy on the second one. Looks like a rusty.

as for the top one, the left is most definitely m. estherae, but the one on the right I have no idea. Looks like maybe a hybrid with a little bumblebee (m. crabro) in it? Not sure.

Cm

[DonnieP]

Thanks for the ID's I also figured the bottom one was a Rusty..Thanks again..

[StructureGuy]

It is really pretty hard to be definate from the picture provided. But just for the heck of it, I'll disagree with everyone here. My guess would be either a Lab hongi or Lab mbamba in either case not showing very dominant coloration. Does the color change much when he is fighting or breeding?

Could be an acei but it looks like too much yellow in the fins to be an I. sprengerae (rusty).

Kevin

[DonnieP]

Just possitivly ID'd the one on the right in the top pic, its an OB Peacock, a hybrid, I was afraid of that.. After looking at pics of the Rusty on other sites, I believe the bottom is a rusty, the pic makes him look darker that he is, he is a light rust color and I have'nt seen him get mean yet :>)

[truckpoetry]

an OB peacock, really? I would have never gotten that out of the picture. not sure that I would consider that a BAD hybrid, though. Bad hybrid would be OB Peacock x yellow lab x acei x m.estherae x oscar x jack dempsey - :rofl: Granted, I most likely would not want the offspring of this chap, though, as it is most likely to morph the colors more and puke out some worse looking fish. But for an addition to your aquarium, it is a rather nice LOOKING little fish, even if you wouldn't want to breed it. I dunno - purists would tell you to flush it, but I'm not that anti-hybrid yet (though I wouldn't INTENTIONALLY breed hybrids and take them to the lfs).

anyway, glad you ID'd em.

Maybe if you are lucky, this one will grow up to look like the yellow one right above The Prosecution to the right (didn't know if using the pic would be a © violation so here's the link):

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/ob_peacock.php

Which is just ugly enough to be kinda nice looking.


As for that bottom one - I'm sticking with Rusty - looks like the rusties these people are selling:

http://www.fish2u.com/ciru.html

And the one on the left in this pic:

http://www.fishbase.org/Photos/PicturesSummary.cfm?ID=8349&what=species

Who knows - gonna go check some pics on those other suggestions, but still thinking not acei for sure...

Cameron

[StructureGuy]

My female Labidochromis sp "mbamba"
http://home.columbus.rr.com/baumancichlids/small_Mbamba%20female.jpg

Kevin

[SGypsyMermaid]

kevin could be right about the lab hongi. i turned down an offer of free hongi's because they look so much like rusties, that i figured that they would definitely hybridize.

[Mbuniac]

Gypsy,
I'll have to check with Tom to be sure, but I'd bet your monthly bonus just went down the tubes for disagreeing!:wink:
Sam-I-Am

[SGypsyMermaid]

:rofl:

[DonnieP]

Heres a little better pic of the (Rusty)?
http://www.cichlidforums.com/postimages/2003-09-20/16420-001.jpg

[SGypsyMermaid]

now that looks more like an acei...maybe fearless leader was correct. what is the actual color of the fish? purplish blue? or rust colored with purple shading?

[DonnieP]

When I feed them this one gets almost totally tan with black vertical bars, otherwise it stays like the picture.

[SGypsyMermaid]

tan? i give up.:confused:

[DonnieP]

Ok, I got this pic of the colors at feeding, its not really tan, still has the yellow fins, does this pick help? BTW, it must be a male, he is shimmying and displaying for my cobalt blue zebra's..
http://www.cichlidforums.com/postimages/2003-09-21/16438-001.jpg

[SGypsyMermaid]

ok, i've seen rusties that look like this, though mine have never displayed bars once they reached adulthood. the fry that survived the blackout are rust colored, and occasionally display bars. i wouldn't rule out lab. hongi, though.

[StructureGuy]

Originally posted by StructureGuy
My guess would be either a Lab hongi or Lab mbamba ......
Kevin

Okay, I officially take back my guess, since based upon this last picture it's definitely not a hongi or mbamba.

Kevin
(Never quoted myself before.)

[Mbuniac]

Oh man, I knew it! Really got ya thinkin' about that bonus didn't I "S"???:rofl:

[SGypsyMermaid]

did not!:razz:

[tom]

Could it be that scourge of the cichlid chic, that most dastardly of dangerous denizens........ a hybrid?????:yikes:

Pseudotropheus sprengerae "mbamba!"

OK. ahem.

Good lookin critter, though, whatever he is.

[ScoobyDoo]

I have several Acei, and I have to say that's what your first pic looked like to me.

[longstocking]

pseudotropheus aurora??? other wise I would guess Rusty.

[Stephen#1]

Definately not a rusty, I would have to agree with tom on the acei.