What is this?

[phitchy]

This cichlid is close to a year old. It is 3" long. It is fairly aggressive, does not eat my plants. Was purchased at a large department/grocery store, so it can't be anything really rare. I will never again buy a fish without writing down what it is.....

[Wild Turkey]

Looks like a lab to me, maybe electric yellow but it the colors are a little different.
Did you buy him from a "mixed african cichlids" tank?

[Jacko]

Looks like a red zebra to me, I used to have a couple of them. Pretty neat little fish but are better off in an african cichlid tank.

[phitchy]

The color is orange, just like the original goldfish were orange. It was in a tank of mixed cichlids, but were they african or s. american? I don't know.

[btate617]

They would be Africans not Americans

[OscarFan]

Red Zebra cichlid female by the looks of it

[kaybee]

Concur with AlexW and Oscarfan.

[Sharon]

Definitely Red Zebra...mean little fish! I rehomed one awhile ago...his name was Lucifer!

[phitchy]

I've been looking for anything called red zebra and I can't find anything. Wanted to look at the pictures. What else might I look under?

[Sharon]

I just googled Red Zebra...Hope this helps!

http://www.aquahobby.com/gallery/e_redzebra.php

[kaybee]

'Red Zebra' is the common name for Metriaclima estherae (alternatively known as Maylandia estherae and previously known as Pseudotropheus estherae).

A very common mbuna species in the hobby.

As previously noted, can be somewhat aggressive. Mine tend to occupy the top slots in the pecking order of my african cichlid tanks.

[Gemini]

I just got given the same fish and was trying to get a good enough pic to post to ID it. Hehehe thanks phitchy thumbs2:

[Sharon]

If you were given a Red Zebra, PLEASE don't put him in a community tank...he will wreak havoc....

[Gemini]

He's in my african tank with other cranky fish. He's doing fine - and so is everyone else.

[Sharon]

Glad to hear it...I think I'm paranoid with the red zebras. I rehomed one that killed four fish...

[phitchy]

Great picture. Thanks! I still don't know for sure. The body color was perfect, the shape of the head was perfect, but mine has orange fins- identical to the body. No highlights, no nothing, just orange. I'm starting a new post, 2 more to identify.

[phitchy]

The fish pictured there looks very similar to mine, but it looks like it has blue or blueish highlights on it's dorsal fin and elsewhere. The picture is supposed to be a psuedotropheus estherae. Elsewhere I found a picture of metriaclima estherae, and it looks just like mine- all orange, no highlights. It was also listed as red zebra. So, apparently, I have a red zebra, but WHAT KIND of red zebra has yet to be determined. I appreciate your help!

[Brookfish]

'Red Zebra' is the common name for Metriaclima estherae (alternatively known as Maylandia estherae and previously known as Pseudotropheus estherae).

A very common mbuna species in the hobby.

As previously noted, can be somewhat aggressive. Mine tend to occupy the top slots in the pecking order of my african cichlid tanks.

I think Kaybee has covered your id it's a Metriaclima estherae (Red Zebra)

[kaybee]

The fish pictured there looks very similar to mine, but it looks like it has blue or blueish highlights on it's dorsal fin and elsewhere. The picture is supposed to be a psuedotropheus estherae. Elsewhere I found a picture of metriaclima estherae, and it looks just like mine- all orange, no highlights. It was also listed as red zebra. So, apparently, I have a red zebra, but WHAT KIND of red zebra has yet to be determined. I appreciate your help!

You have a female red zebra. They're usually carrot color in appearance (to include dorsal fins coloration):
http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a259/y2kenny19/African%20cichlids%202007/femaleredzebrajuvie.jpg

Males develop a blue sheen to their sides as well as blue-hued dorsal fins. The dorsal fin pigmentation develops early on:

Male juvie red zebra's engaging in a dominance contest (note the blue finnage):
http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a259/y2kenny19/African%20Cichlids2/redz.jpg


As the males develop they transition from carrot color to lighter shades or orange, approaching pinkish:

Matured male
http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a259/y2kenny19/African%20cichlids%202007/maleadultredzebra.jpg

Interestingly, in the wild, particularly in the area of Minos Reef in Lake Malawi, the majority of male red zebra's are actually blue. M. estherae is one of the very few dimorphic mbuna species where gender is determined immediately, or when 'born' so to speak, as theydo not transition from orange to blue. Upon casual glance they may be mistaken for m. callainos ('cobalt blue zebras'), which are an entirely different species

Male metriaclima estherae (wild type 'red zebra'):
http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a259/y2kenny19/African%20cichlids%202007/b1.jpg

Red or orange-morph males do exist but are extremely rare (constituting 1-5%of wild males observed in the wild). Most red zebras in captivity are of the orange-morph variety. The females of both morphs (orange/red and wild type blue) are practically identically (the wild type females may be of a deeper orange).

[Amazon]

female electric yellow lab definantly

[kaybee]

Various physical (particularly head shape) and color differences (lack of black fin markings, etc), in my opinion, preclude it from being a female yellow lab.