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. :P 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.

[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...

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

[Lonewolfblue]

Originally Posted by 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!

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.