fish id?

[anna]

hi - im new on the forum and pretty new ro fish (6 months). I would like some help identifying this cichlid, its about 8 cm and the colour is light like the the photo from the front usually most of the marking are not as prominet as in these photos - its quite dull colored with yellow on its tail and around the eyes. I found it all terrified in a tank full of kribs at a shop, they didnt really know exactly what it was - they told me it was a keyhole cichlid - which i knew it wasnt, but i think it is a laetecara, So now im wondering if anyone can tell me which Laetecara it is? Is there anyway to know if its a male / female.

Its very peaceful, lives with a pair of rams, a jurupari and and lots of different loaches. It spends most of its time literally sitting on the bottom of the tank, only gets up to ocasionally chase the juripari (which is bigger) and to eat, it eats a lot and has grown a lot the three months i had it.

thanks!

 

[alias]

I think its a sort of leatacara curviceps or under the old name eaquidens curviceps. Maybe a colordiffirence with they original but I could be wrong.
I don't know all the species of the seks leatacara or old group eaquidens.

good luck alias

 

[tjudy]

Laetacara thayeri... this is one of the larger Laetacara. Neat fish. Not too demanding.

 

[alias]

ah oke . Here were I live these species are not so available in the store so I didn't reconnized this one.

grtz alias

 

[Mike Wise]

Anna,

Both of the previous respondants were mistaken. This is Laetacara flavilabris, a fish rarely imported into the hobby. It might be found in older books under the names Acara flavilabris, Aequidens flavilabris, & Aequidens freniferus. L. flavilabris is found in many blackwater steams in the Peruvian Amazon (Rio Ucayal, Marañon, Ampiyacu, Yavari) & Rio Juruá in western Brazil. It is closely related to the Orange-finned/Orangeflossen Laetacara (from the Rio Negro of Brazil) & like this species requires soft, acid water to breed. You will know when they have eggs/fry. The head turns a deep sooty black. If you don't plan on breeding them, normal aquarium conditions will do just fine. I haven't had this fish for almost 20 years. Mine came in as contaminants with wildcaught Neon Tetras (Paracheirodon innesi). I am curious. Under what were they sold? The photos are very nice; show the diagnostic pink lower lip quite well.

 

[tjudy]

cool! I have never seen a flavilabris. My thayeri looked quite a bit like that fish but with slightly less color. I stand corrected.

 

[anna]

Hi all - thanks for the replies, I also thought it was probably a thayeri, although it didnt look quite right compared to some I recently saw in a shop.

Mike, thank you for the id. I had a quick search and found an image of Laetacara flavilabris on the web that look exactly like my fish.

I just have the one, I was hoping to try and get some more, but if they are rare it might be difficult - Im sure if I try I will just end up with a differnt kind of laetecera. Do you know the maximum size?

Im also a bit worried about it, it litteraly sits on the bottom of the tank most of the time, moving every so often to sit in another place. I am a bit worried about its lack of swimming. It seems to do it more now, then when I first got it. what do you think?

In the shop it was in a tank labeled kribs, which was full of kribs. It was hiding in a corner. One of the guys in the shop told me it was a keyhole cichlid, then the other said it was a smiling acara, I had just seen a friends curviceps the day before - so I thought that was what it was - untill i saw the curviceps again. Unfortunately I didnt ask the shop were they got it from, they didnt seem very interested. Ive never been back.

thanks, anna