I Don't Know What Fish I Have.

[mikerawr]

Hey guys,

I'm new to this forum and a beginner at keeping fish. I've had a tank for a year now and I've made numerous additions and deletions to the flora throughout this time. However, I've had pretty much the same fish for this entire time. I started with some tetras and my friend put some guppies in the tank. However, there are two species of fish I have that I cannot identify. Hopefully someone can help me figure this out! 

 


This is how the tank looked March 2013:

 
Got too messy so i removed a lot of the plants. Left only 3 or 4.
 
The fish I want to identify as of now:
 

 

 

[Lillefishy]

Top one looks like it could be a kribensis, & the other a weather loach

 

[fluttermoth]

The bottom one is definitely an albino Chinese sucking loach; a potentially aggressive fish that can grow to between 8 and 12 inches.
 
The first one isn't a krib. Can't place the specific species, but it'll be a South American cichlid of some sort; someone will know it!

 

[N0body Of The Goat]

Laetacara dorsigera?

 

[fluttermoth]

Hmm, I was going to guess one of the acara family!
 
L. dorsigera don't have the blue reticulations on the gills though, do they?

 

[Wills]

I think its L.Curviceps as the lateral stripe runs all the way through - Dorsiger stops half way down the body. Im actually wondering if you have L.Arugaie (spelling) aka sp. Buckelkopf? But I dont know how to distinguish them off the top of my head sorry - will have a read tonight
 
Dont suppose you got these from MA in Beverley did you? they have some in that look like this that are quite confusing in the same mannor.
 
Wills

 

[fluttermoth]

Yeah, I think you're right, it does look like L. curviceps.
 
I've never even heard of L. araguaiae (thank Google for the spelling, lol!).

 

[Wills]

Yeah there are a couple of different Laetacaras coming through now - they are really popular in Germany and Holland from what I hear. Theres an L.Flabripinis (again spelling sorry) and an sp.Orangeflossen
 
Wills

 

[biggerfish]

the bottom is a sucking loach that sadly needs to go, he will get around 11" long and aggressive. as for the other fish, its a flag acara, a small south American cichlid that will get 3.5-4 inch long give or take a little and generally peaceful as long as they are not in pairs, they're like convicts in that way. Harmless alone devastating in pairs. I have seen a pair of 3 and 5 inch convicts corner a 10 inch Jack Dempsey lol.

 

[Sophie]

Good luck catching the Loach - if there's one fish I do not like it is them! 
Fast, aggressive - they're lovers of eating other fishes eyes and attaching themselves to the sides of flatter bodied fish.
 
The top fish is absolutely stunning though, very lovely colours

 

[mikerawr]

Thanks so much. Google images seem to agree with the conclusion that it is L. curviceps. I do actually have a pair of them though, but they aren't aggressive towards each other and pretty much ignore all my other fish (neon tetras and a few guppies). I do however, agree that the loach are getting large and it is becoming a problem as they're becoming aggressive and territorial. 

 

[biggerfish]

It's when they breed they get aggressive, and it's not so much "aggression" per say as much as extremely protective, and territorial, so just watch out for that and good luck. 

 

[the_lock_man]

It's when they breed they get aggressive, and it's not so much "aggression" per say as much as extremely protective, and territorial, so just watch out for that and good luck. 

 
This is referring to the cichlids, not the loaches, which are going to get nastier and nastier as they get older.

 

[biggerfish]

yeah i was refereeing to the flag acaras, their kinda like convicts but not quite on that level, I have a pair of convicts now that if i get in the water with them (4000G pond) they will attack me. never seen a fish so aggressive before.

and yeah loach gotta go asp, unless you want your other fish dead.

 

[Wills]

the bottom is a sucking loach that sadly needs to go, he will get around 11" long and aggressive. as for the other fish, its a flag acara, a small south American cichlid that will get 3.5-4 inch long give or take a little and generally peaceful as long as they are not in pairs, they're like convicts in that way. Harmless alone devastating in pairs. I have seen a pair of 3 and 5 inch convicts corner a 10 inch Jack Dempsey lol.

 
 

It's when they breed they get aggressive, and it's not so much "aggression" per say as much as extremely protective, and territorial, so just watch out for that and good luck. 

 
 

yeah i was refereeing to the flag acaras, their kinda like convicts but not quite on that level, I have a pair of convicts now that if i get in the water with them (4000G pond) they will attack me. never seen a fish so aggressive before.

and yeah loach gotta go asp, unless you want your other fish dead.

 
 
Sorry but got to say - there is a massive massive difference between Laetacaras and Convicts. Even when breeding Laetacaras would rarely kill an other fish - just completely different fish. Im assuming your grouping the cichlids together but they are so so diverse its impossible to do so.
 
That said though I want to see some of this pond Are those your Arripima?
 
Wills