Trying to ID cichlid- any ideas? (PICS)

[severum mama]

I got these guys for my 20H right before I moved, at the LFS in Bloomington I used to frequent. They were in a tank full of a few species of apistos, and since their color got really drab from stress, I couldn't tell what they were. I thought I was buying a couple of nannacara anomala- I was trying to get a couple more for the one I already have. They were really small when I got them (about an inch), and as they grew I realized I have no idea what they are. I seem to have a male and a female. I've looked up pics of a lot of apisto species and can't find any that look like what I have. Has anyone seen these guys before?

This is the one I assume is the male:

The female, I presume:

What are YOU lookin' at?

These two are quickly becoming some of my favorite fish. The male is really gregarious and hangs out in front most of the time, and he is really coloring up nicely. I'd love to find out what in the world they are. 8)

 

[JustOneMore20]

They look very much like Bolivian Rams to me, but the colors aren't like Bolivians I've seen. They could be young though. That's my first thought, though I could be wrong. The female is a bit different looking though, than Bolivians I've seen. Its pretty much a wild guess...but I thought I'd try to help.

I hope you find out what they are though! They are very pretty!

 

[severum mama]

Thanks for the input! I've owned Bolivian rams for about 3 years now, and these guys look totally different. I think Bolivians are very pretty fish, but this male is much more colorful than any Bolivian ram I've run across. I can't wait to see what they will look like as adults!

 

[toddnbecka]

The closest match I could find in Axelrod's Atlas (AKA the big picture book) is Apistogramma steindachneri. Colors vary between specimens, mood, and a variety of other factors, but the female looks almost identical, and the male has the same markings. (Spot on the side, bar through the eye.) The male should be fantastic when he's in breeding colors.

 

[severum mama]

Hey, I Googled A. steindachneri and I think that's what I have! Thanks for looking that up, toddnbecka. I'll be happy if I ever see the male's breeding colors. I've kept fish for 4 years now, I have 5 tanks at this point and never a single spawn. The babies would never survive in that tank, but it would be super sweet to watch anyway.

Thanks again for the effort, I should get that book sometime.

 

[toddnbecka]

Axelrod's Atlas is a BAD book. You see hundreds of pictures of beautiful fish that are NEVER available...

 

[Guest]

look like bolivians to me too. that was my first guess.

 

[Lonewolfblue]

They look very much like Bolivian Rams to me, but the colors aren't like Bolivians I've seen. They could be young though. That's my first thought, though I could be wrong. The female is a bit different looking though, than Bolivians I've seen. Its pretty much a wild guess...but I thought I'd try to help.

I hope you find out what they are though! They are very pretty!

Nope, not Bolivians. They are an apistos I believe, but not sure which one.
These are Bolivians:

 

[severum mama]

Definitely not Bolivians. The stripe on the eye is similar, but the shape of the body and the coloration is much different. Also, Bolivians are not really sexually dimorphic (at least, I can't sex them for the life of me), and in my case the differences between the male and female are much more pronounced. I didn't mention this, but there is already a big difference in size too- the male has gotten a good bit larger than the female, but she was larger when I bought them. That probably wouldn't have happened with Bolivians.

Lonewolf: yours are looking very plump and healthy! Good job!

 

[Lonewolfblue]

Actually, the males do get bigger for the Bolivians. In my pic, the male is on the left, and the female on the right. The male is about a half inch bigger.

 

[JustOneMore20]

I know what Bolivians look like... I have a male. That was my first thought when I saw the pictures (must have been the eye line)....but like I said in my post the colors aren't the same and the female looks different than a bolivian. It was just a guess. I also thought they were Apistos, but when I googled Apistogramma for pictures, nothing looked like yours so I didn't look any further. They look alot smaller than Bolivians to me....which is why I said it was a guess. There are more than one type of German Rams (Blue, Gold...) so I didn't know if there were different types of Bolivians.

Glad you found out what they were! Maybe you'll get some fry!

 

[MSU Fan]

THANK YOU!!! I had what I thought was a GBR (I had purchased 2 at the time), and one died shortly afterward from Ich and water quality issues. I had mine for about 2.5 months, and he (actually, it was the female version I now know) died recently, and had never shown the colors that a GBR (or a Bolivian) does. Now I know what he (she) was: Apistogramma steindachneri! Thank you for clearing up that mystery!!!

 

[JRagg]

Those are some really good looking apistos. I've never seen that species before. The coloration is amazing.

 

[severum mama]

MSU fan: Glad you could ID your fish, but sorry you lost them.

JRagg: I had never seen this species before either. I'm glad I found them though! My fish are still under 2 inches, and the male's coloration is already blowing me away. I'm sure both of them will look great at adult size.

Another question: does anyone know if the males must have multiple females to spawn? My male doesn't really show any interest in my female. Does he need a few to choose from? I know they are still quite young, will they be more interested in each other as they age?

 

[Sicklid]

Most of the Apisto species females get an obvious gravid spot. I dont think you have a male and female, I think you have two males and one has made himself the Dominant One... The other will not show his true colors for fear of getting his little arse kicked... It happend to me with a pair that I bought as a "Breeding Pair" of Apistos.

 

[RoLeX]

hybrid is my guess

 

[Guest]

RoLex, I was just thinking the same thing. I bet they are a Ram/Bolivian mix. Maybe a boliv or ram/convict mix.

 

[JRagg]

I disagree. I do think that you have a male and a female. The female will color up some when she's ready to mate. Check these pictures from the krib. The've got pictures of a female in brood coloration and in regular coloration.

Link to the krib

And I also believe that you have got the right species in Apistogramma steindachneri. I'm trying to get a hold of the Cichlid Atlas, but I haven't had any luck so far. No bookstores carry it, and my emails to Dave Shoals have gone unanswered so far.

 

[toddnbecka]

The book I consulted is Axelrod's Atlas of Freshwater Aquarium Fishes, 3rd edition. It was published in 1989, bought it used years ago for $60. It has over 4500 color photo's, handy for ID of most any aquarium fish from tetra to catfish, as well as cichlids.

 

[JRagg]

I know this is a bit off topic, but I looked into axelrod's atlas after seeing you post about it. It really didn't have very good reviews. The biggest complaints were that it was mainly pictures and species names without much other description. I'm mainly interested in cichlids, so I'll probably go with the cichlid atlas. It's hard to find, but it's supposed to be really good.