Help Identifying A Mbuna

[fish_keeper2]

i have a muna that was sold to me as a colbalt blue african....thats all the store knew about its name. after looking it up i thought it was a colbalt blue zebra http/cichlidforum.com/profiles/species.php?id=787 only a little darker but now it has developed stripes like a kenyi in the past couple of days. i know he is a bit stressed cuzz my p. socolofi has been on a rapage a few days ago. any ideas guys?

 

[Ferris]

Callainos will not display any stripes so it sounds like you have yourself a Lombardoi but if you can post a pic, we can check for sure.

 

[fish_keeper2]

i dont think its a lombardoi the stripes look different. i dont have a digi cam or a camera phone so i cant post a pic to make it easier.

 

[Ferris]

Does it have a darker stripe through the dorsal fin? Could be a Socolofi. Other possibilities are Cynotilapia Afra and Pseudotropheus Elongatus.

 

[fish_keeper2]

the stripes are very faint.....not full dark stripes.

 

[fish_keeper2]

sorry to double post but ive been looking at dif mbuna and found this: my "colbalt blue" has stripes like this: http/www.aquahobby.com/gallery/e_lombardoi.php but is the color of this: http/www.aquahobby.com/gallery/e_callainos.php

when i got it i was told it was a psuedotropheus(SP). it has no markings on any fins except the egg spots. and when i first got it had no markings what so ever except the egg spots. based on this info any ideas of what it could be? also i dobt its a hybrid as there was a tank full of them and they all looked a like.

 

[Ferris]

I think we're really gonna need a pic on this one. Any chance of borrowing a camera?

 

[fish_keeper2]

i doubt it........i get paid friday so i can try and get a digi cam with my pay check.

 

[Ferris]

Are you sure its not a Lombardoi, in a tank full of them, most of them would display submissive colouration to avoid aggression, this might explain the lack of stripes when you bought it.

Here's a pic of a Lombardoi that shows their dorsal fin markings, which could be what you are describing, see what you think.

Lombardoi

 

[fish_keeper2]

that does kinda look like mine. the only difference is that on mine the stripes arent as bold and there are no markings on any of the fins. also mine hass egg spots if that makes any difference.

edit: found this pic:
this is a female lombardi. its very similar to mine except like i said no markings on any fins and mine has eggs spots.

 

[fish_keeper2]

sorry to double post but i just found my fish: http/www.cichlidsrus.com/cgi-bin/quiksto..._list_page&and=
mine looks just like it.

so what exactly is its scientific name? and are they compatible with yellow labs and p. socolofi? and how aggressive are they compared to labs and socolofi?

 

[Ferris]

Looks like a cross between a blue P.Zebra and Callainos i'm afraid, nothing wrong with that IMO but it's definately not a pure species. Zebra's and Callainos are compatibile with most Mbuna so i don't see any major issues there, although you might have some problems with the Socolofi due to their similar appearance (unless you have albino socolofi).

 

[fish_keeper2]

my socolofi is albino. thats good to here. too bad its not a pure species though.

 

[Ferris]

No problem, if its like the fish in that last pic, its a beauty.