Fish Id

[amyw2008]

I have 3 fish that I got free to collector a couple of months ago...
After spending an hour or so looking at pics I cant decide if they are firemouths!

Pics are below so if someone could confirm what they are (as they had 250+ babies in the tank last night) then that would be brilliant

Alsoooo....
Can I still do a 30% water change with the babies in there? Will the new water have to be the same temp before i add it?

 

[meguro]

theyre a new world cichlid possibly from the genera archocentrus or amatitlania or cryptoheros

 

[amyw2008]

Thanks for the reply...
I googled the ones that you had put but it says they all get to a max of 5" and these are about 7"-8"...

They look a bit like the second one but when they were breeding the male was black with bright blue/red/green spots instead of the yellow in the pics of the second one

 

[rdp50734]

The first pic looks like a black belt cichlid! I have one they are very nice.

 

[meguro]

i thought the pics were of breeding colours as ur post talked about fry. but im thinking now they could be vieja synspila or the already suggested black belt cichlid, though i would have thought a nuchal hump would be more prominent for such fish

 

[minxfishy]

They are most definately a Vieja species, clearer pics of their colours and markings would help to distinguish which Vieja they are.

 

[rdp50734]

without a doubt a black belt! Has it got a black splodge at the base of the tail? Does the black markings fade and get darker?

 

[Davo86]

I'd go with either paratheraps hartwegi or paratheraps bifa (both previously vieja sp.) but as Minx says colours and markings help a lot with these guys as they can be so similar in appearance.

 

[Athena]

Just to answer your other query about water changes...yes, when you have fry you still need to do water changes, some even do them more frequently, as this encourages growth.

As with any water changes, you should try to get the temp of fresh water as near to your tank temp as poss to avoid stressing/shocking the fish and use an appropriate water conditioner.

Regards, Athena

 

[amyw2008]

Thanks for all your replies

i have looked at all the options and have settled with paratheraps hartwegi as the pics on google look exactly the same as my fish!

Cant wait for the babies to grow and start getting colours

 

[england]

The first pic looks like a black belt cichlid! I have one they are very nice.

Iam agreeing with RDP, however if you can get some nice side on pics for a sure id,thatd be great, deffo a vieja so beware when they mature they can get very aggressive, good luck,they are stunning

 

[amyw2008]

What size is classed as mature? They are 7"-8" now and all 3 of them get on so well

 

[england]

They used to have a breeding pair in a local fish shop,the male was between 12-13inch,a massive boy,she was about 9-10inch..

 

[amyw2008]

The 2 in the pic have babies which is why I started this thread as I thought they were firemouths but wanted to check before I sold the babies on as firemouths

 

[england]

The third one hasnt been killed? wow you've got a nice mild pair then keep your eye out mind