Help Id Fish?

[Bre_B]

Okay, so these fish have been in my dads very ill-kept aquarium for over a year now... obviously theyre very hardy, since when my dad handed the tank to me, he informed me he HAS NOT CHANGED THE FILTER IN OVER A YEAr.... and they were being overfed too, and nitrates were absolutely through the roof...

so anyway...

I took them out, these pics dont do justice, so ill try to point out key colors/patterns/etc to help you identify... thanks!!

They seem to have two different colors on their body, though its hard to see (perhaps because of bad conditions, or maybe the colors are just naturally faded) it seems to be a blue and another color (seemed orangy, yellowy..... hard to see, only in bright lighting can i see it) Their fins seem to be half yellow half plain, and then they have red tips to them, with red around their mouth (could perhaps be illness hope not though, they both have it haha)

i would love to know the name so i can figure out what they need, etc, so any info along with a name is cool too!

 

[Tokis-Phoenix]

I could be wrong, but it looks like a chinese algae eater to me, they come in a variety of colors from brown and grey to orange/yellow;

http/www.thetropicaltank.co.uk/Fishindx/algeater.htm

Or a very stressed out siamese(or false) algae eater or flying fox;

False Siamese Algae Eater

Flying fox;

Siamese Algae Eater

?

 

[Bre_B]

they dont seem to suck on anything though? so i dont think theyre algae eaters... maybe, but i dont THINK so... and if i had to guess id say theyre at their full size now (its been about 1 year and a half since we got them... ill assume they were at least a half year old, which would mean 2 years old... full size?) which is apprx 4 inches, give or take half an inch.... does that help at all?


EDIT:
oop, just noticed you updated it w/different stuff.... and yeah, they look ALOT like them..... so im going to get a closer look at my fish and see how that looks. maybe ill wait a day to see how they are once recovering from the stress of nitrates/tank transfer.... yeah, i think i will.... so i guess ill update this tomorrow, but if anyone else has ideas, or opinions on which they are, let me know!

 

[Bre_B]

got a better picture of the coloration on the fin, and a picture of its head

hope this helps in determining what it is.

 

[The-Wolf]

looks like a garra garra pingi to me
http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showtopic=35036

 

[Mad Duff]

I think it could be a False Siamese Algae Eater, I have just bought some and that is identical to my 3. The shop was selling them as flying foxes which I knew they weren't, for me the dorsal fin gives it away with the small dark triangle at the base of the fin turning yellow then red.

I have 3 in 3 different tanks and each one is slightly different when it comes to body colouration but the fin colours are the same in them all.

Also the red around the mouth seems to be getting more prominent as they grow.

Mark

 

[Disco]

gara sp. of some sort

 

[Bre_B]

looks like a garra garra pingi to me
http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showtopic=35036

that looks ALOT like it, like nearly identical... but all these other suggestions look alot like it too =/ if it is that, though, i can keep it, since its smaller than the other suggestions were... but Mad Duffs description works as well, however if it was wrongly labeled i dont know how you know exactly what they are...

but if that IS what they are, i have to get rid of them - and i definately do NOT want to give it away under possibly the wrong name!
man this sucks....


anyone else.... is anyone -posative- about any of this? im thinking i gotta get rid of them, so i want to make sure of what they are, first.

 

[Mad Duff]

however if it was wrongly labeled i don't know how you know exactly what they are...

I have had them before, I was just pointing out that they were been sold as flying foxes which they obviously weren't.

This is a pic of one of mine:

Take a look at this link it shows the difference between the Siamese Algae Eater and False Siamese Algae Eater, the False Siamese Algae Eater is also referred to by some wholesalers as the Siamese Flying Fox.

 

[Bre_B]

however if it was wrongly labeled i don't know how you know exactly what they are...

I have had them before, I was just pointing out that they were been sold as flying foxes which they obviously weren't.

This is a pic of one of mine:

Take a look at this link it shows the difference between the Siamese Algae Eater and False Siamese Algae Eater, the False Siamese Algae Eater is also referred to by some wholesalers as the Siamese Flying Fox.

i just plain dont think its one of those. its now calmed down, and it still hasnt gotten any dark stripe. It has stripes, but they arent solid- it looks more like the one above, the garra pingi little guy.

the only difference that calming down made, was that his body is now darker, not so silvery, more a dull brown, like he looks in the pic where hes in the net.

 

[BiggieBiggie]

Before i saw Wolfs post i thought garra garra pingi but the link says they are rare but my lfs has them all the time...

 

[sylvia]

Though I don't know what it is, it deffinately isn't any of the 'algae eaters' mentioned (ie: not a flying fox, not a siamese algae eater, not a false siamese algae eater or false flying fox and not an oblongus either).

Some kind of garra, besides the false siamese algae eater - which is the wrong color, sounds plausible though. However, if it's stressed, the color may simply be due to that and, ocne recovered, it may well end up looking like garra taeniata/cambodgiensis.

Mad Duff, I have to ask, what exactly is it you think your fish is? Flying foxes do have red on their fin tips BTW. I cannot tell from the pic you posted what it is (because I can't see the head or tail or fins clearly), but the only thing it could be besides a flying fox is garra taeniata/cambodgiensis.

edit: I'll take a looka round and see what I can find

 

[nmonks]

Hello,

The giveaway for 'Chinese algae eaters', Gyrinocheilus aymonieri is the pair of spiracles above the gill slits. These are very unusual among bony fish, and allow the fish to breathe in and out through the gills. This is what allows it to use the mouth to suck onto stones in fast flowing water. So, if the fish has a small hole above each gill slit, that's what it is. But you're pictures don't show the spiracles, so I don't think that's what this fish is. This is lucky, as Chinese algae eaters are (in community tanks at least) terrible fish: big, aggressive, and not at all fond of algae once mature.

If not, then it's obviously a cyprinid of some type, and I concur with The-Wolf that they are most likely some species of Garra. A lot of these are being imported at the moment, often without a common name. It's quite common to see species of Garra being sold in the UK as "algae eaters" of some type. They all seem much of a muchness as far as size, requirements, and temperament go.

Cheers,

Neale

 

[Bre_B]

Hello,

The giveaway for 'Chinese algae eaters', Gyrinocheilus aymonieri is the pair of spiracles above the gill slits. These are very unusual among bony fish, and allow the fish to breathe in and out through the gills. This is what allows it to use the mouth to suck onto stones in fast flowing water. So, if the fish has a small hole above each gill slit, that's what it is. But you're pictures don't show the spiracles, so I don't think that's what this fish is. This is lucky, as Chinese algae eaters are (in community tanks at least) terrible fish: big, aggressive, and not at all fond of algae once mature.

If not, then it's obviously a cyprinid of some type, and I concur with The-Wolf that they are most likely some species of Garra. A lot of these are being imported at the moment, often without a common name. It's quite common to see species of Garra being sold in the UK as "algae eaters" of some type. They all seem much of a muchness as far as size, requirements, and temperament go.

Cheers,

Neale

Yes, thats what my dad had bought it as. He said he got them at walmart yesterday when i asked him, so i went to walmart and i found some (they are so small, compared to mine!) and they are listed as "algae eaters" but they are mixed, two different kinds, one that looks like mine and one that looks more like a Chinese Algae Eater (from what ive seen) so im leaning to everyone saying Garra. how would i know what species of garra it is? is there any site that would show me different kinds, likenesses and differences? It has now been decided that i cannot keep them (theyre in a ten gal together now, as a temp. home till i get a name for them =/ ) so i'd like to have more info so my LFS wont sell them under the wrong name, you know?

 

[sylvia]

Couldn't find any sites with info but it looks like garra annandalei