Muzz Posted November 17, 2008 Report Share Posted November 17, 2008 Hi people, Can anyone help to identify this fish, I got him at LFS in New Plymouth and they had him listed as an ice blue but I think not, he is about 100mm long and they seamed to think that he is full grown, any ideas Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ryanjury Posted November 17, 2008 Report Share Posted November 17, 2008 Definately not an ice blue... He is probably what you would call a "blue zebra" of unknown origin probably a mix of all sorts of random zebras through various generations.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muzz Posted November 18, 2008 Author Report Share Posted November 18, 2008 was thinking it might be Maylandia estherea "blue/red" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phoenix44 Posted November 18, 2008 Report Share Posted November 18, 2008 its definitely what ryan said it is. blue zebra. cool looking fish though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
firenzenz Posted November 18, 2008 Report Share Posted November 18, 2008 Not blue ice? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muzz Posted November 18, 2008 Author Report Share Posted November 18, 2008 have you been talking to phill again :lol: :roll: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phoenix44 Posted November 18, 2008 Report Share Posted November 18, 2008 the ice blue (greysheki spelling??? ) is light blue with a yellow top fin for the males. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dixon1990 Posted November 18, 2008 Report Share Posted November 18, 2008 Just call it a star blue icy zebra cichlid Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ryanjury Posted November 18, 2008 Report Share Posted November 18, 2008 firenzenz - lol I guess you could make up any name you wanted if you were the best in NZ.. Muzz while you could go and look through photos and pictures on the internet to try and id your fish you will probably never find out what it is.. Zebras cross so readily that probably 70-80% of them in the market are crosses, the problem with crosses is that some of the offspring may resemble pure fish even though they are not pure. Without knowing for sure where the fish came from (ie who bred it and what they bred it as or knowing what it was imported as) it is very hard to id. Best to stick to "blue zebra" which basically means its a zebra of some sort thats blue.. If you want pure fish you have to buy them straight from the importers with a name or from a breeder who knows what they're doing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phoenix44 Posted November 18, 2008 Report Share Posted November 18, 2008 lol... should chuck a few more names in there for good measure. ive seen these sold as electric blues. when I asked why and how they were electric blues - I was told by an angry know it all that the fish were clearly electric blue in colour and so must be elec. blues. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ryanjury Posted November 18, 2008 Report Share Posted November 18, 2008 the ice blue (greysheki spelling??? ) is light blue with a yellow top fin for the males. Ice blues males are light blue with a red/orange top fin.. And females are dark brown with marone type top fin.. This fish is not an ice blue (Metriaclima/ps. greshakei). edit : heres the profile with pics.. http://www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/s ... php?id=794 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muzz Posted November 18, 2008 Author Report Share Posted November 18, 2008 that sounds nice dixon have you got a mate for him Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phoenix44 Posted November 18, 2008 Report Share Posted November 18, 2008 ryan, you must teach me more about the african fish - especially the haps and peacock species. :bounce: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muzz Posted November 18, 2008 Author Report Share Posted November 18, 2008 thanks ryan was having a hard time on the net but found this was the closest link. http://www.malawimayhem.com/profile_show.php?id=548 dont know his history but is a nice looking fish photo doesnt do him justice Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
firenzenz Posted November 18, 2008 Report Share Posted November 18, 2008 And Ryan is a good guy to ask IMO. http://www.cichlidforum.com/profiles/re ... p?genus=17 A good resource for peacock pictures , in fact they also have good info on many cichlids. Much talk on hybridising these fish, and the more people learn about them, I find, the more interested they are in the pure breeds that actually live in the wild. We don't in all honestly get the greatest array of peacocks, but lets at least do the best with what we have. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ryanjury Posted November 18, 2008 Report Share Posted November 18, 2008 lol I dont know much still learning have been keeping/breeding them for a few years now so have half an idea.. A good place to start is here http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/ there is so much info here just sit down and read you will pick up heaps.. Phoenix have you been out to Bulls and seen my tanks? Did I get a giraffe off you? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phoenix44 Posted November 18, 2008 Report Share Posted November 18, 2008 yeah man that was me... how is that giraffe btw? still alive i hope?? l Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johannes Visser Posted November 18, 2008 Report Share Posted November 18, 2008 Here is a Ice blue male & female all welcome to have a look through our photo bucket below in our signiture :oops: We dont have these fab fish anymore Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
firenzenz Posted November 18, 2008 Report Share Posted November 18, 2008 thanks ryan was having a hard time on the net but found this was the closest link. http://www.malawimayhem.com/profile_show.php?id=548 dont know his history but is a nice looking fish photo doesnt do him justice http://www.cichlidforum.com/profiles/re ... ?genus=124 All these will interbreed I think Maylandia is an outdated definition. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ryanjury Posted November 18, 2008 Report Share Posted November 18, 2008 Hey Marto, yeah know what your talking about with the blue/red Maylandia estherae I have yet to see them in nz so far I have the reds where the males are pink and the females are orange have never seen a blue male pop out in the babies would be worried if I did as it would probably mean they're crosses.. I am sure he is an awesome looking fish and I started out with a bunch of randoms 4 years ago for my first africans.. I spent hours on the net posting photos looking through profiles trying to find out what they were, I got nowhere. They were unknown and remained that way great fish to start with and enjoy but they went no further than blue zebras. Its the worst thing about zebras and peacocks they all cross so readily and people always take and sell babies out of mixed tanks. Phoenix giraffe is going strong she (although I was convinced "she" was a he due to the big gold blaze) actually bred the other day and bred with my male kadango so on the look out for a male giraffe (have 10 babies growing out from johannes but dont know if I have the patience for them to mature). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ryanjury Posted November 18, 2008 Report Share Posted November 18, 2008 firenzenz Metriaclima and Maylandia are both accepted at the moment.. http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/m ... landia.php Johannes thanks for the pics I was going to dig some out too.. Are they the ones you guys got off me? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phoenix44 Posted November 18, 2008 Report Share Posted November 18, 2008 kadango + giraffe? what will the kids look like? hopefully got the same pattern as a giraffe but red! :bounce: lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muzz Posted November 18, 2008 Author Report Share Posted November 18, 2008 Hey Marto, yeah know what your talking about with the blue/red Maylandia estherae I have yet to see them in nz so far I have the reds where the males are pink and the females are orange have never seen a blue male pop out in the babies would be worried if I did as it would probably mean they're crosses.. I am sure he is an awesome looking fish and I started out with a bunch of randoms 4 years ago for my first africans.. I spent hours on the net posting photos looking through profiles trying to find out what they were, I got nowhere. They were unknown and remained that way great fish to start with and enjoy but they went no further than blue zebras. Its the worst thing about zebras and peacocks they all cross so readily and people always take and sell babies out of mixed tanks. ok just to throw a fly in the ointment. If these fish interbreed so easily and all of them come from the same lake what stops them from breeding in the wild and how do you now that they are not crosses. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
firenzenz Posted November 18, 2008 Report Share Posted November 18, 2008 These fish have locational variances. they live in rocky outcrops and reef formations within the lakes. these formations are seperated by large open or Utaka areas that may be a few metres or 100mtrs in size. This is a large expanse of water for many fish to cross remembering the Utaka residences are the larger hap predatory species. Ad konings has recorded accounts of natural hybridisation and this does occur. this is why some of us are so keen to keep pure what we know is pure. thats the short answer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ryanjury Posted November 18, 2008 Report Share Posted November 18, 2008 kadango + giraffe? what will the kids look like? hopefully got the same pattern as a giraffe but red! :bounce: lol lol babies will look like d. comp food or thrown on the lawn for dog food if they don't get eaten As firenzenz said they all live in different areas of rocks seperated by large areas of sand which they don't cross as they are mbuna (translates somehow to "rock dwelling"). Apparently the open areas are also "patrolled" by larger predators which also help keep the fish seperate. There are also theories that the males can tell their females apart but when we cram them all into a tiny tank (even the biggest tank is small compared to nature) the most dominant one will breed with all girls, in the wild there would be enough space and right females for everyone.. There are going to be hybrids in nature as habitats change due to climate or other factors causing 2 different species to be united I guess after time these 2 will become another species or strain? Just because it happens in nature doesn't mean that we should encourage it in our tanks we have such a diverse range of fish that are pure and we need to keep them this way so they dont all blend into one crap fish.. There are ways of telling your fish are hybrids, generally shape and colour of any fry will be a good place to start (would need a male and female of the same "unknown" strain to start with), also the fishes shape and colour in itsself. It is very hard with zebras to determine as alot of them look the same, generally if you brought it without a name it wont get one unless it is obvious. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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