Can anyone tell me anything about this fish?

[Krisvalkyrie]

A neighbor stopped by and asked me to trade fish.  She had an aggressive cichlid (not on one of the cichlid forums because I don't know if it is african or south american), and it has killed its tank mates over the years.  I happened to have my 30 gal. empty, so I traded her some far more calm tetras, and took in this mystery fish.

It is female (neighbor bought a pair, male and female 2 years ago, the female killed the male), and that is all my neighbor knew.  Can you tell me what species it is, and what it might get along with?  The fish in question is about 2 years old, and less than 4" long I would say.  

Here are pics:

[Hanson77]

Re: Can anyone tell me anything about this fish?

Melanochromis auratus  

Looks like it's going through it's color change phase.  They are just plain mean, there are no two ways about it.  If you are going to add it to anything you have, make sure it's a highly populated tank of other agressive mbunas preferrably to keep some of it's agression in check.  Do a search on Cichlid Forum for Lake Malawi Mbunas and you'll find it and be able to read a little more about it.

[Zulaab]

Re: Can anyone tell me anything about this fish?

Hanson -- I would say the same but Kris says that the neighbor had the fish for the last two years.  A male would have changed colors a long time ago if he was solo in the tank.
I am agreeing with Hanson.  Its a high possibility that its a  Melanochromis auratus, and for almost sure its a  Melanochromis family of fish.
Going home in a few minutes and then I will look in my Malawi book at home and see there if I can find it.

[Hanson77]

Re: Can anyone tell me anything about this fish?

I figured that it would have changed awhile back too but the finnage is almost text book auratus.  I am definitely in agreement that it's part of the Melanochromis family.  Some fish don't change as quick at you would think depending on environment and other factors.  I had a Red Empress that took almost that long to even remotely change colors but when he finally did....holy crap...well worth the wait.

[Krisvalkyrie]

Re: Can anyone tell me anything about this fish?

Is this a male then?  She insisted that it was a female.  She said the male was blue stripped like a Demasoni or female Kenyi.

She recently tried to add it to a tank with two large electric blue Ahli's, a Peacock, an oscar (young) and another type of cichlid and this fish was fighting with all of them.  I have it mostly alone right now - there is a juvenile crawfish in the tank, but it hides most of the time.  She got near it and it chased her off, so I think it will be fine.  My cichlid tank is a 55 with mostly very young mbuna - yellow labs, demasoni, 1 kenyi, 2 peach colored cichlids - no clue what kind - also a pair of convicts, and a jewel cichlid.  The neighbor said that i shouldn't put her in with them, as she thought that she would kill them.

Kris

[Hanson77]

Re: Can anyone tell me anything about this fish?

I don't know about kill per say but definitely harass to no end.  The other issue you might have is that pair of convicts, have they bred yet???

[imagirlgeek]

Re: Can anyone tell me anything about this fish?

She told me at the Swap that the convicts had not bred yet.

[Krisvalkyrie]

Re: Can anyone tell me anything about this fish?

Yeah, if they started getting to be too much, I was planning on moving the convicts.  They are male and female, but do not really seem to be a pair exactly.  

The convicts chase the others, but not too much.  The jewel and the kenyi were getting a bit much though - that is why I moved all the fish - the 30 hex was too tall, and not wide enough.  They all seem to get along well in the 55.  The yellow labs don't mind getting chased - they are perfectly happy to be cute and yellow elsewhere LOL.

I am mostly trying to identify the species - and now I guess the sex - of my mystery fish.  I wouldn't add them to my baby cichlids now, but wanted to know if I could add it to that tank when everything in there finished growing.  If not, I wanted to know what I could house with the mystery fish.

If it is a melochromatis, is it male or female?  

Kris

[Krisvalkyrie]

Re: Can anyone tell me anything about this fish?

Looking at web articles on M Auratus - none of the pictures look anything like my fish, though body shape and temperment seem about on par.  The tank she tried to add the fish to was a 29 gallon - seems kind of small.  

This fish has since been kept in a 5 gallon aquarium by itself.

Kris.

[edmlfc]

Re: Can anyone tell me anything about this fish?

I really don't think it is a Melanochromis auratus  , I have one and it don't look like that. The M auratus female stays yellow and the male turns black. Still it don't look anything like my auratus. Just don't know what it is.

[imagirlgeek]

Re: Can anyone tell me anything about this fish?

Here's a pic of a Melanochromis auratus that looks much more like her fish....

http://animal-world.com/encyclo/fresh/cichlid/Auratus.php

[Zulaab]

Re: Can anyone tell me anything about this fish?

Here is the problem I have with the Melanochromis auratus verdict.
1.  Colors of all the pictures I have seen are not washed out
2.  The dorsal and anal fin are both black on Kris' fish, and those who look like hers, are not black.
3.  Face of a Melanochromis auratus show stripes going though it.  Her picture shows no stripes going though it.
4.  The fish Kris has, has a lot green/gold coloration in the face.  None of the Melanochromis auratus shows to have this.

Kris -- Any chance you can get more of a face shot and a good picture of the tail.
Make sure that the fish has settled down and start coloring up if its a male.

Thanks
Jesper

[armthehomeless]

Re: Can anyone tell me anything about this fish?

Its pattern is very similar to M. auratus, but its coloration is off. This could be simply due to lighting. As mentioned earlier(edmlfc), it is the male auratus that turns darker. Therefore, it is most likely a male. Its propensity to kill off tankmates only adds to this likelihood. Melanochromis are mean buggers. One would be hard pressed to get tankmates for this guy in anything less than a 4' long tank.

For those that don't think this is a M. auratus, I would raise the possibility of a hybrid.

[Krisvalkyrie]

Re: Can anyone tell me anything about this fish?

Maybe that is possible.  The other picture posted looks alot like the fish I have.

What doesn't show in the pics is the stripe down the side, like the one girl geek posted.  Also, the yellow in the tail and dorsal fin isn't showing up well in my pics, but the fish has yellow in the tail and dorsal fin.

I will try again tomorrow.  It is still pretty hyper.  It went from 5 gallons to 30, so it is exuberant at all the space...

Kris

[Zulaab]

Re: Can anyone tell me anything about this fish?

Kris -- how about the face.. you seen any stripes that makes it look like it has a mask on ?
Because the pictures I see from you do not show the mask.  This is one think the M. auratus does have.