Blackbelt?

[shawe1]

I currently have two 'blackbelt' cichlids however I'm starting to think that one of them may not be but not being an expert on this species I am not too sure.

So one is about 3.5 inch and is starting to colour up nicely so am confident one this one. The larger one is about 5/6 inches but has little to no colour but really bright yellow eyes. I would have thought by this size some colour would have at least started to show but pretty much grey/silver all over.

What do you think? (First pic is of the fish in question and the second is a pic of both BB's together as a comparrison).

 

[shawe1]

This is a better pic of the BB I am confident about

 

[tlindsey]

This is a better pic of the BB I am confident aboutView attachment 1342406

Gourami Swami
dan518

 

[duanes]

Color and shape can be deceiving with Vieja maculicauda, because they can vary tremendously, from different ancestral catch locations. With the largest range of any cichlid in Central America, habitat can be a major influence on color or shape.
If some in Costa Rica come from a heavily vegetated habitat, the genes that are favorable to that kind of habitat. may select for different traits than those in a rocky lake of Nicaragua, or a fast flowing stream in Panama.
That said, with the prevalence of hybrids in the aquarium hobby these days, the profile of both of your fish is quite different than many (not all) maculacaudas I've seen, or kept. It is much more pointed than the typical high profile of most Vieja.
Were they both purchased together, from the same tank? If so, and if by chance they are hybrids, one could just favor the genes of one parent (maculicauda) over the other a different species, or hybrid. Or...
Yours may also still be quite young, and not matured enough to acquire that high forehead Vieja look yet.

 

[duanes]

Here is what I mean about the typical Vieja profile.
First young malanurum, that still hasn't;t developed the high Vieja profile, its about 3".

Now a young Vieja bifasciata

Below same bifasciata, about 1 year older and much larger larger, note the color difference and profile

Now Vieja breidhori

above young female below older

Now below a breidhori male

Sorry no maculicauda to compare , I didn't have a camera when I kept them, in the 80s.

 

[Gourami Swami]

I agree with what Duanes is saying; They do not look like pure blackbelts to me. They do seem to have some blackbelt in them, but the profile is too pointed, and colors on bottom one are off for a pure maculicauda.

 

[shawe1]

View attachment 1342415 View attachment 1342416
Were they both purchased together, from the same tank? If so, and if by chance they are hybrids, one could just favor the genes of one parent (maculicauda) over the other a different species, or hybrid. Or...
Yours may also still be quite young, and not matured enough to acquire that high forehead Vieja look yet.

They were purchased separately but likely from the same source as they aren't that common around here. The larger fish is about 11 months old and the smaller about 7 months old.

I do hope they aren't hybrid's as I was really hoping for a pair of genuine Black belts as the main fish in the tank. Might have to reconsider my options now...

 

[shawe1]

Thank you duanes.

The more I look at these two fish, the more I can start to see the typical vieja profile (and colours) in the smaller much younger blackbelt and the lack of typical vieja features in the second. Especially for a fish that is nearly a year old, there should be more clear signs of its species by now.