Please Help Identify Cichlid

[martiemcg]

My daughter got it from Walmart. The sign just said African Cichlid. It was in the tank with other paler orange ones and some light blue with dark stripes around them. Is it Ps. Saulosi?

Sorry for the foggy pix. It's in a 15 gallon Sterilite storage container with a cycled filter hung on the side :-)

[hari-goshi]

Metriaclima estherae(Red zebra)

[martiemcg]

Thank you for the help. I wanted to be sure so I'd know what to feed it.

According to what I've read, these are difficult to sex? This one is about 3 inches including the tail.

[Crispy]

Yup, definitely a red zebra. One of the easiest africans to keep and breed (mouthbrooders),

[kaybee]

According to what I've read, these are difficult to sex? This one is about 3 inches including the tail.

Determining gender isn't that hard with this species, particularly with fully matured specimens. Based on what I can discern from your photo's your sub-adult red zebra appears to be a female (based on the rounded shape of the dorsal and anal fin tips, proportionally smaller pectoral fins, and a dorsal fin lacking the a distinct blue-hue or sheen which males develop by the time they're 2.5".

'Wild type' red zebra's (Minos Reef) are even easier to sex as males are gray-blue at birth and are blue has adults (females being orange).

[martiemcg]

Thanks for the info. I thought it was a girl but all the egg spots had me wondering. Plus she "owned " the tank she came from. But the other Cichlids were a bit smaller than her.

I gave her a black coffee cup on it's side for a cave and she seems to like it. She hides in there when I turn on the light, but I want to grow her some algae...

Will she be happy as a lone Cichlid?

[Dixie]

I doubt it. For her to be happy you should get at least a 55g. tank and some tankmates for her. A 55g. is the minium size recommended for this type of fish. In a tank that size you could have breeding groups of 3 species mbuna (1male & 3-4 females per species). If you decide to go this route, let us know and we can recommend some other fish to go with her.