Need ID !

[eltylT]

I'm not sure what I bought but I went to my LFS "Petsmart" and purchased what was labeled as asst. African Cichlids . I have searched the gallery and IDed one as an Auratus . The others I can't find yet but 2 of them I'm assuming are a male and a female because of the "eggspots" on one of their fins. These two are a very bright goldish color , no stripes or other markings. other than the spots ( on one of thems anal fin ) . The last of the four is a darker almost gray or black with vertical stripes . I will try to get the pics up as soon as I can and I hope these desriptions are enough to get some kind of maybe ID . If you all need more let me know .Please Help .

[escamosa]

Really need those pics, to have a decent shot at IDing them. What are you putting them in with? If you're adding them to an African tank, I would take the Auratus back, unless the tank is full of REALLY aggressive species. Auratus are nasty pieces of work.

[eltylT]

They are the only ones in it and its a 55 gallon . 4ft. long standard tank . I wish I had kept a journal to record progress but I didn't . My girlfriend is going to help me post the pics so they should be up soon .

[escamosa]

Just be prepared to think about making some changes, after we get to have look at the pics. A 55g is the absolute smallest tank that I would keep Africans in, and you will be very restricted on the amount that you can have, and what species you can have. Yellow Labs, Acies, or look to the Dwarf species of cichlids. I would definitely start by taking the Auratus back though. They're far too aggressive for a 55g tank.

[eltylT]

Heres a picture of the African I need IDed , hope it comes out good enough .

[eltylT]

Im putting up more now that I can thank you ecomosa ,

[eltylT]

The first one I think is the female the second is what I think is the male because of the spots on the ?anal fin?

[Lab_Rat]

Red zebras, possibly hybrids.

[escamosa]

I agree with Lab Rat. And you're welcome!

It can be difficult to tell between males and females, when they're young, just by looking at them, as sometimes both sexes have egg spots. Once the males have matured a little, they can develope a blueish colour that will come through on their fins. The other way to tell is to vent them. That's where you catch the fish, turn it over and look at its anus and vent. If the vent is larger than the anus then it's female, if it's the same size or a little smaller then it's male.

This is a good link to help you see the differences in males and females when venting them.
http://www.malawimayhem.com/articles_venting.shtml

[eltylT]

Thank you both so much. Now that I know how I'll post some pics of my JD's. Again Thanks for your time and the sharing of your advice. U2 Lab_Rat.