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I have a video that i took of my fish, i can't identify him, because he isn't the right colors. he was almost all white when i bought him. if you can help then please do. i will try and get some more pics or videos of him later if needed. the video is bad, but here is a pic too.
http://s130.photobucket.com/albums/p252/renegade545/aquarium2/?action=view&current=Picture028.flv

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p252/renegade545/aquarium2/Picture016.jpg

Renegade545,
king of the frontosa

It's really hard to tell from either of those but to me it looks like a Malawi cichlid most likely from the Pseudotropheous family. Did he start off looking something like http://www.cichlidz.com/pics/socolofi01.jpg

BTW, how does he get along with that Golden?, she looks like a beauty.

First question: is this aquarium an African Rift Lake setup?

Second question: is the fish you want identifying the dark one in the middle of that photo?

Third question: did you buy this fish as an African Rift Lake fish? Was it specifically labelled as such, or was it just listed as a 'mystery cichlid'?

Trouble is, from that photograph, it could be a Rift Lake Cichlid (and could well be Pseudotropheus socolofi. though that usually looks more like this]http://www.cichlidae.com/gallery/species.php?s=139[/link]), but equally it could be a juvenile of [link=this fish, which is Neetroplus nematopus from Central America!

If you want to try hunting for a lookalike yourself, you could try going to the Cichlid Room's catalogue page, namely here but be warned that you will have a LOT of Cichlids to wade through as that site has photos of over 1,000 species!

Even if you restrict yourself to 'likely' genera in that catalogue such as Pseudotropheus, Melanochromis and Metriaclima, you'll still have a LOT of fishes to wade through. Made all the worse by the fact that some species are sufficiently close in appearance to require very close examination to separate them definitively. The classic examples being Pseudotropheus socolofi and Pseudotropheus lucerna (one pairing you don't want to get mixed up because socolofi is relatively mellow tempered whilst lucerna is a thuggish reprobate), and of course my favourite lookalike pairing, Pseudotrpoheus minutus and Pseudotropheus elongatus (another pair you don't want to mix up because minutus is well behaved whilst elongatus is a total psychopath on a par with the infamous Melanochromis chipokae).

So, wading through those should keep you occupied for a few days.


Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

I looked but couldn't find him. I too am in the same boat as you, I have a fish, I thought it was a certain kind but he looks almost exaclt like another at PETsMART. Can anyone help me?

http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j73/underOATH8711/Picture906-1.jpg

Underoath,
Your fish looks like a Hyphessobrycon bentosi. (Rosie Tetra)

That Characin photo looks interesting. Two possibilities exist here.

First, depending upon whether this has been done, you could have a captive bred long-finned variant of the Serpae Tetra. I haven't seen any long-finned variants here in the UK, so it's possible that these fishes are not in circulation here (yet).

Second, you could have a Rosy Tetra. However, Rosy Tetras usually have slightly different markings on the body (though the dorsal and anal fin markings are very similar) and the tail of a Rosy Tetra is usually hyaline with two large splashes of claret colour in the fin lobes, instead of being solid red like your fish. A solid red caudal fin is usually a Serpae Tetra attribute.

I do have to say at this juncture though, what on earth possessed someone to breed a long-finned Serpae Tetra, given the species' reputation as a notorious fin nipper?

Oh, by the way, it is NOT a Bentosi Tetra. "Bentosi Tetra" is another name for the Ornate Tetra, Hyphessobrycon ornatus, and males of that species do not have black markings in the dorsal fin. I've got a nice illustration of that fish in my Braz Walker pocket book right next to me as I type this, and the fish is visibly and manifestly different from the one in your photo. Also, see here for a photograph of a Bentosi/Ornate Tetra.

Here is a Rosy Tetra (scroll down to find it)

Here is a standard Serpae Tetra


Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

Renegade, is there anyway you could get closer pictures of the whole fish? It resembles a Pseudotropheus to me, but not exactly sure which one. I'm pretty sure its not socolofi, as they are a light blue color usually and don't have the visible stripes (pictures I've seen of juvies have very light stripes though, but not like your fish). A closer pictures would really help, but I know its not always possible.

*Kristin*