Unknown African

[MojoDex]

ok i picked up a few fish for my tang tank today and when i got home and looked into what should of been a bag with Julidochromis marlieri i find this little guy.

im not very sure what he is, with the yellow fins i'm thinking Neolamprologus caudopunctatus but the stripes on him dont match caudopunctatus.

any help is appreciated

 

[MojoDex]

i realise the pic is a bit on the crappy side but someone must know

 

[MojoDex]

should i give up

 

[darrel69]

im not sure, maybe its some kind of Labeotropheus trewavasae ? or even some sort of hybrid. it only looks young though. you may have to wait for it to grow and develop its colours properly for a more accurate ID.

 

[dthoffsett]

I'd say its definately a tang of some sort. I'm not very good with tang id's, any chance of some clearer pics?

 

[4ftguppy]

yeah, it needs to grow up a bit - and settle in - the we'll see its true colours

So did this just get put in the same bag? You could go to the shop and see what else is is that tank....

 

[MojoDex]

already tried going to the shop it must of been a one off for them as well or i happend to get the last 1 by accident!

i'll do my best for a clearer pic

 

[MojoDex]

i have not managed to get a better picture of the fish it just wont stay still!

but i have noticed some behavior i have never seen in any of my other cichlids, there is one piece of wood in the tank and this cichlid appears to of dug himself a little cave under the wood and is chasing away fsh twice his size from it! this may not help with anything but i thought it was interesting

 

[kubora666]

it looks very much like a Fryeri, or as its known

Electric blue ahli. the males are known to have the bright orange anal fin,
my male hasnt, because of his locality, but that looks alot like a juvie =)
just my input i guess

 

[MojoDex]

i have some blue ahli so i tyhink i can say he's not one of them but thatnks for the input all the same

im really struggling with him i cant find anything that looks even remotley close to him, maybe he is a hybrid of sum kind?

 

[Thaifighter]

Hi Mojodex!
That fish is a Malawi cichlid called " The Pearl of Likoma", Melanochromis joanjohnsonae!
Your fish is a female, the males have a beautiful irridescent blue colored body with a blackstriped dorsalfin!
They live only in one locale near the island of Likoma in Lake Malawi and are getting more rare in nature!

Thaifighter

Some links:
Malawi Dream
Fishbase
IUCN Redlist
Sam Borstein's Cichlid Site

 

[chishnfips]

thai fighter is that the same as melonchromis exasperatus, I have one of those in my tank,

Mojo if you look for my post with my tank on it there is a pic of my one in there you could match it up if you like, if the pic isn't there I will post it up.

 

[mbhw]

it could also be a labidichromis textillus

 

[Ferris]

Hi Mojodex!
That fish is a Malawi cichlid called " The Pearl of Likoma", Melanochromis joanjohnsonae!
Your fish is a female, the males have a beautiful irridescent blue colored body with a blackstriped dorsalfin!
They live only in one locale near the island of Likoma in Lake Malawi and are getting more rare in nature!

Thaifighter

Some links:
Malawi Dream
Fishbase
IUCN Redlist
Sam Borstein's Cichlid Site

Spot on! - Well done Thaifighter, this ones been bugging me big time.

 

[Thaifighter]

thai fighter is that the same as melonchromis exasperatus, I have one of those in my tank,

Mojo if you look for my post with my tank on it there is a pic of my one in there you could match it up if you like, if the pic isn't there I will post it up.

Yes, it's the same species, has gone under a lot of different names incl:
M. exasperatus and Labidochromis caeruleus.

Thaifighter