ID these cichlids please

[Nicka]

I was wondering if anyone could ID these cichlids. I purchased them a month ago and they are now getting their colours.

The first one is 4/5", has a yellow strip from its mouth to its dorsal fin, the dorsal fin is white going to brown at the end with white dots. It's body is blue with vertical stripes, but appears purple in certain lighting.

The second is pretty much the same but it's dorsal fin is yellow, has a defined horizontal stripe as well as the vertical lines and it is 3/4". This one also has a purple/blue body, but it hasn't developed its colours as much as the first.

Any help would be appreciated.
Thanks.

 

[Fishkeeper88]

okay it will take about an hour or two to ID the one on the left but I will get rite on it The one on the right you need to wait a few weeks for it to color before I can ID it. I am glad to help. let me check that beautiful fish on the left for you.

 

[Fishkeeper88]

You are in luck I have two fish similar to this in the Protomelas family
you have on the left a Haplochromis Protomelas spilonotus (Mara Rocks)

 

[Nicka]

Thank you very much. I'll do lots of research on it now.

 

[Fishkeeper88]

Welcome when the right one gets its color post it again

 

[Nicka]

One other question, I purchased this one as a male red empress but I don't think that's right. Could it be a female or did they sell me the wrong fish?

 

[Nicka]

The images don't seem to want to upload. They are in my albums under unknown cichlids.

 

[PolyptRus]

Definitely some kind of peacock i don't know too much about the variations though i don't keep peacocks but definitely looks like one

 

[Nicka]

Thanks. I'll post another image when he gets more colour

 

[Fishguy1997]

I'm not trying to cirticize but why do so many people need to have their fish id-ed? Doug not looking at the name in the store before buying them.

 

[severum mama]

Mislabeling of fish in stores is very common. Speaking from experience, sometimes what a store receives is not exactly what the store ordered. As consumers, we often tend to expect that every employee in a lfs is an expert on every fish they sell.... but everyone makes mistakes.

 

[Nicka]

I purchased these fish as three male red empresses from a person selling the, on a site called gumtree in Australia. They didn't look like red empresses when I got them home.

 

[severum mama]

I see. I was under the impression they came from a shop. My fault.

 

[Andrew McFadden]

I know.for a fact some sites will send you something comparable if they are out of what you or anybody ordered. It has happened to me aswell. They have all the buyers info so I don't see why they.don't contact the person. You would think they would for better business.

 

[Nicka]

The site is not only for the sale of tropical fish. They get you in contact with people who are selling things and you go to their homes and pick them up. They had already bagged the fish when I got there.

 

[PolyptRus]

I'm not trying to cirticize but why do so many people need to have their fish id-ed? Doug not looking at the name in the store before buying them.

Sometimes at my lfs fish are put into tanks with a mix of cichlids either small medium or large the species aren't labeled. Could be the same reason for others who need id-ing. Or maybe its because of the name that fish was labeled with perhaps that person buying the fish is not familiar with the scientific name therefore doesn't know what the fish is or maybe they weren't familiar with the common name used there are so many different common names used for some fish it just gets confusing so i could see someone mistaking one for being a completely different fish just because they never heard the name that was used before.

 

[Fishguy1997]

Sometimes at my lfs fish are put into tanks with a mix of cichlids either small medium or large the species aren't labeled. Could be the same reason for others who need id-ing. Or maybe its because of the name that fish was labeled with perhaps that person buying the fish is not familiar with the scientific name therefore doesn't know what the fish is or maybe they weren't familiar with the common name used there are so many different common names used for some fish it just gets confusing so i could see someone mistaking one for being a completely different fish just because they never heard the name that was used before.

Ohh I seee