Kennyi Coloration Questions

[MoonstruckMuse]

I bought an adorable lil blue Kennyi about a year ago, fed him on cichlid flakes, veggies, and bloodworms. And he's rewarded me with beautiful coloration and fun behavior, as cichlids are wont to do.
Buttttttt....I read that males are bright yellow, females bright blue. The submissive males are supposedly blue-yellow, though? My beauty is stuck at a mix between the two, and since he's the lone fish in the tank, I don't think its a dominance/stress issue. Could anyone tell me what's up? Is this normal? What sex is it (I assume male)? Is it a diet issue? He's quite iridescent, haha.

He's also digging a hole under a shell, perhaps a breeding cave of some sort. Do they do this even if they have no other fish to breed with/defend against?

Hey there, Tiger.

Mmm, dinner.

Digging a cave

And getting squished/cozy?

 

[Boids-n-more]

your doing fine its a BOY. Africans dig just for the fun of it. Give him time and he'll rearrange your whole tank.

 

[Ferris]

He's a male that hasn't yet reached full maturity.

 

[MoonstruckMuse]

Haha, okay. Thank you guys, that's good to know.

When do they reach full maturity, roughly? Can't wait to see his final colors.

 

[Ferris]

He's not far off now - he should lose the blue and the yellow will brighten. One of my favourite ever Mbuna was a huge male Lombardoi. He grew to 7" - they are only supposed to reach 6" but i guess no-one told him.

 

[MoonstruckMuse]

Thanks Ferris, sounds good. They really are lovely fish, so fun and full of vigor. ^^
And here I thought they were supposed to stop at 5". All the cooler, haha.