Mystery Fish

[WindDrinker]

I'm new to this forum. I currently have two aquariums with the addition of a huge tank in the future for my goldfish and/or a pond. I haven't really decided just yet. I prefer fresh-water fish keeping and really enjoy caring for and expanding the health and life of my fish. A friend jokingly convinced me to buy a goldfish a few years ago which turned into a downward spiral of goldfish obsession. I LOVE them and now have seven (including the original one from about three years ago). They're fun, interactive, and a joy to watch.

I also prefer live plants in my tanks.

Recently I purchased two mystery fish from a petstore. They arrived with their feeder goldfish and are definitely NOT goldfish. I thought maybe a cichlid of some kind. I'm not sure. They went from the size of my pinkie nail to about an inch in length within a few weeks. They're aggressive eaters and can be nippy with each other. They're in my 25 gallon tank with my dwarf gouramis. They ignore the gouramis entirely.

Photos attached if anyone can help identify them. They're also pretty social in regards to coming right up to the tank when they see me. Petstore wasn't entirely sure what they are supposed to be. Said sometimes random fish arrive with the feeder goldfish. They sold them as if they were feeder goldfish.

They have thin vertical stipes down their bodies and a darker circle near their gills on either side.

Thanks!

 

[Astronomiii]

Gourami?

 

[WindDrinker]

Gourami?

You think so? I may just have to wait until they're bigger. If so, they're in the right tank since I've got Dwarf Gouramis in there already.

 

[WindDrinker]

A closer picture of each one.

 

[Naughts]

They could be multis/ shell dwellers? The aggression fits with cichlids - do they fight with their mouths?

Neolamprologus multifasciatus — Seriously Fish

www.seriouslyfish.com

 

[Colin_T]

the one on the left could be a juvenile Rift Lake cichlid from Lake Malawi (maybe a peacock cichlid Aulonocara sp).

the one on the right looks like a north American native sunfish/ blue gill or whatever you lot have up there.

 

[Astronomiii]

A closer picture of each one.

could be some kind of ram if ur thinking or noticing aggression

 

[WindDrinker]

They could be multis/ shell dwellers? The aggression fits with cichlids - do they fight with their mouths?

Neolamprologus multifasciatus — Seriously Fish

www.seriouslyfish.com

Just one of them picks on the other. The slightly bigger one with the smoother looking fins. It bites at the other one and chases it at times. Then there are times they are fine and just hang out. They completely ignore the gouramis like they aren't even there.

 

[itiwhetu]

I think the lift hand one is a peacock cichlid or similar. The right hand one, I was going to say a female american flag fish

 

[emeraldking]

I'm not sure what they are for they look still young to me. But they do look like some kind of a geophagus or a microgeophagus species to me. But they also look a bit like pumpkinseed (lepomis gibbosus) also known as sunfish. last one mentioned are mostly kept in ponds and have a high tolerance in low temperatures.

 

[emeraldking]

I think the lift hand one is a peacock cichlid or similar. The right hand one, I was going to say a female american flag fish

No a female flag fish looks different. I'm keeping those in my community tank in the livingroom.

 

[WindDrinker]

I'm not sure what they are for they look still young to me. But they do look like some kind of a geophagus or a microgeophagus species to me. But they also look a bit like pumpkinseed (lepomis gibbosus) also known as sunfish. last one mentioned are mostly kept in ponds and have a high tolerance in low temperatures.

They really do kind of look like a sunfish. I'll keep everyone updated as they grow.

 

[Naughts]

We are assuming they are the same species but as Colin said, the one on the right could be a sunfish and the left a cichlid. The colours are different, we could put that down to the photo, or gender, but the fins differ indicating 2 species.

 

[MonsieurLaGrenuoille]

Sunfish in English, I believe

 

[WindDrinker]

These guys have definitely grown since my last post and for sure look like sunfish.