Victorian frustrations - part 3

[StructureGuy]

AquaBid

Here is a fish identified as a blue bar:
http://www.aquabid.com/cgi-bin/auction/auction.cgi?fwcichlidsv&1241625005
Not really all that close at all.

And here is a supposed Hap Bloyetti:
http://www.aquabid.com/cgi-bin/auction/auction.cgi?fwcichlidsv&1241773202
Once again, not even close.

Here is A. latifasciata
http://www.aquabid.com/cgi-bin/auction/auction.cgi?fwcichlidsv&1241534407
Which is actually a correct ID (even though the stripes are a bit odd) except for the hybrid in the upper right that shares the tank.

Is it any wonder that vic ID's are so tough when the people that breed and sell them don't have a clue.

buyer beware.

Kevin

[Redeye75]

Funny thing, i was on aquabid last night and looked at all of those fish and thought about posting the so called blue bar here to confirm or deny its purity.

[deadman-1]

below are some pictutures of a blue bar, it seems that there are more and more mis identifications and out right hybrids comming on the market.

http://www.cichlidforums.com/postimages/2009-04-21/255549-001.jpg
http://www.cichlidforums.com/postimages/2009-04-21/255549-002.jpg
http://www.cichlidforums.com/postimages/2009-04-21/255549-003.jpg

[Bre]

I agree...That is why my vics only come from respectable places....Also, if people knew what they were looking at and took the time to research they would know those fish aren't right.

Love the pic with the teeth deadman!!!! Awesome!!!

[williebone]

if people knew what they were looking at and took the time to research they would know those fish aren't right.You mean to tell me that there are people who aren't looking up a Species before they look to purchase it?:yikes: Just kidding, but it is the truth.

"Ditto On That Bre"

Laters,

[Glaive]

Thjis yet more proof that a rating system for aquabid sellers might be a good thing.

[Mac]

Thjis yet more proof that a rating system for aquabid sellers might be a good thing.

I wish it were that simple...

Aquabid does have a rating system. The first candidate, mr. blue bar hippo, http://www.aquabid.com/cgi-bin/auction/auction.cgi?fwcichlidsv&1240400405 , actually has 244 out of 244 positive ratings from buyers. That's pretty impressive.


I agree...That is why my vics only come from respectable places....Also, if people knew what they were looking at and took the time to research they would know those fish aren't right.

Now, here's what's going to frustrate StructureGuy even more: I am a perfect case study for how bad things are. Now, I don't know much about vics, but thanks to this site, I do know enough to be suspicious and do my homework a bit before buying a vic. So let's say I want a vic tank, and Hap. sp. blue bar is on my short list. So when I go to aquabid, i see a picture of a blue stripey vic with red highlights on the tail. I then check out a reliable site for blue bar, such as http://www.african-cichlid.com/Blue_Bar.htm :wink: where i see a blue stripey vic with red highlights on the tail. I note the blue color differences, but I'll probably write that off as different camera lighting. What I mostly see is someone with 244/244 rating, suggesting that he's really on the up-and-up and knows what he's doing, so if he says blue bar, and I have no particular reason to doubt him, I'm probably gonna assume blue bar.

Truthfully, I have no reason -- or ability -- to doubt that identification, and if StructureGuy hadn't specifically said NO, I would not question it. Since a reliable source has told me that it's not blue bar in this instance, I've gone back and taken a really good look to decide for myself. What I see is that the specimen does not have as much red on the fins as he "should", and the tail shape seems a bit flat, rather than convex, and (again) the actual blue coloring is a bit dark. But on the other hand, I've seen other blue bar pix with relatively flat tails as well. So basically, I'm :confused:

Fortunately, I personally am very lucky, since I have this site at my disposal, and so I'll never buy a vic that hasn't been blessed by one of the knowledgeable "vix pix" posters here. Sadly, though, there exist people on this planet who are buying vics who are not members of cichlidforums.com (strange, I know, but true). And the worst part is, at the end of the day, the only reason that I know that the vic in question is not a blue bar hippo is simply because StructureGuy said it wasn't.

So... I'm a semi-educated buyer, and yet I can be fooled by a vic on Aquabid.

Yes, it is frustrating.

[StructureGuy]

AquaBid has some very good breeders mixed in with all the others. I didn't mean to pick on these particular sellers, after all, they did at least post a picture of the actual fish for sale. I just find it frustrating that week in and week out there are at least 2 or 3 (or more) mis-identified Victorians on that site. It often takes very little effort for the seller to do minimal research to know that what they have isn't ID'ed correctly. I've just always felt that the seller bears a lot more responsibility to correctly ID what he/she is selling and that the buyer should have some expectation of an accurate ID without requiring extensive research. After all, the sellers are the ones getting the cash. It is the sellers that frustrate me, not the buyers.

StructureGuy feels better after a bit of venting.

Kevin

[Dragonkeeper]

I don't use Aquabid except for the occasional hardware purchase. Never livestock.

Keeper

[BarroomHero]

What is this "blue bar"?

I have ordered from Eric Dykemyster and received extremely nice fish, and I have always heard good things about him. Everyone makes mistakes at times though I suppose, and it seems that mistakes tend to happen a lot more when it comes to vics.

[LadyBarbara001]

I actually have bought quality Victorians off of Aqua Bid. I did my research, however, before making a purchase. I asked an expert for his opinion on the fish in question, and was told that this particular person had an excellent line of a hard to find species. I was very pleased with the transaction.

After saying that, however, I don't tend to buy much by the way of Victorians from there.

The "Blue Bar" is Pundamilia sp. "Blue Bar" Hippo Point.

[BarroomHero]

I actually have bought quality Victorians off of Aqua Bid. I did my research, however, before making a purchase. I asked an expert for his opinion on the fish in question, and was told that this particular person had an excellent line of a hard to find species. I was very pleased with the transaction.

After saying that, however, I don't tend to buy much by the way of Victorians from there.

The "Blue Bar" is Pundamilia sp. "Blue Bar" Hippo Point.

I know what a blue bar is, I didnt phrase it very well I guess, I wanted to know what the fish labeled as blue bar actually is.

[LadyBarbara001]

I know what a blue bar is, I didnt phrase it very well I guess, I wanted to know what the fish labeled as blue bar actually is.


Oh, sorry. I'm not sure what that fish is.

[BarroomHero]

Oh, sorry. I'm not sure what that fish is.

No need for apologies, I didnt phrase my question very well lol.

[deadman-1]

the fish in question looks to me to some type of pundamilia sp. crimnson tide. i have seen them blue before, actually there are some fish being sold as juvies as crimnson tide back east thet as they grow are blue. i know this because some were sent to me to try and make good on a previous blunder.
there seem to be some strange "pundamilia species" floating around recently. i have a good idea where they are comming from. but until i know for shur ill keep that quiet.

to be fair to eric, i will say that i have herd of a darker variation of blue bar being kept in europe than the strain that is here. let me check this out further and ill let every one know.

[deadman-1]

ok i looked into it and they are almost identicle to the ones herein the states, so im not really shure what that is.