What is it

[Malawi Master]

I have one of these. Mine is a female because it laid eggs before. Can someone tell me what it is and some stuff about this fish :?: :?: :?:

http://www.users.bigpond.com/gary_lee1/page2/lombardim.jpg

[tom]

Hi MM

The fish pictured at that site is a <I> male </I> Maylandia <I>lombardoi.</I>

(While females are known to take on male color under certain circumstances, odds are it's a male.)

On the other hand, I shouldn't assume you were using the specimen's color for identification (besides, his bars remain quite visible).

Information on the lombardoi is plentiful, as they're quite common. The bare basics:

Your typical Mbuna yard-dog.
Feed mostly veggies; by all means avoid a diet rich in protein.
While lombardoi abound in first-time Malawi set-ups, their aggressive temperament (which rivals that of the Melanochromines) makes them unfit for less experienced hobbyists, at least in my experience.

[SGypsyMermaid]

here is a pic of the male and the female together. when searching for information on these fish, you can also get a lot of hits using their old genus name: 'pseudotropheus' and either of their species names: 'kennyi' or 'lombardoi'.

[Malawi Master]

[quote:286a4e2285="tom"]Hi MM

The fish pictured at that site is a <I> male </I> Maylandia <I>lombardoi.</I>

(While females are known to take on male color under certain circumstances, odds are it's a male.)

On the other hand, I shouldn't assume you were using the specimen's color for identification (besides, his bars remain quite visible).

Information on the lombardoi is plentiful, as they're quite common. The bare basics:

Your typical Mbuna yard-dog.
Feed mostly veggies; by all means avoid a diet rich in protein.
While lombardoi abound in first-time Malawi set-ups, their aggressive temperament (which rivals that of the Melanochromines) makes them unfit for less experienced hobbyists, at least in my experience.[/quote:286a4e2285]


what's bad about a high protein diet? Is is that way w/ most malawi cichlids? thanx

[jonah]

Not all Malawi cichlids, just most mbuna species tend to get bloat related to high intakes of animal proteins. I'm not sure how dangerous it really is. I mostly feed spirulina, but I feed other foods as well that are higher in protein. I've never had a bloat case before. Most of my mbuna aren't herbivores though.

The majority of haps actually need protein in their diets.

[SGypsyMermaid]

most mbunas' digestive tracts are set up to process a lot of vegetable matter/roughage...on a high protein diet, even if they don't get bloat, they can get seriously constipated. :twisted: