Help identifying a fish!

[coryuo1986]

i recently purchased a Geophagus balzanii online and the fish is really healthy and active he’s eating well and doing great. My question is he doesn’t look at all like the balzanii I see online so I’m worried maybe I was sent the wrong fish. I know sometimes fish can look way different as they get older than they did initially. So here are a couple pictures of him he is roughly 3” maybe a little bit larger. I was hoping somebody could identify him for me and let me know if he is indeed a Geophagus balzanii or if he is some other species And if he is something else what species is he? Thanks a ton for any help!

 

[tlindsey]

i recently purchased a Geophagus balzanii online and the fish is really healthy and active he’s eating well and doing great. My question is he doesn’t look at all like the balzanii I see online so I’m worried maybe I was sent the wrong fish. I know sometimes fish can look way different as they get older than they did initially. So here are a couple pictures of him he is roughly 3” maybe a little bit larger. I was hoping somebody could identify him for me and let me know if he is indeed a Geophagus balzanii or if he is some other species And if he is something else what species is he? Thanks a ton for any help!

View attachment 1508490

View attachment 1508491

Looks like a juvenile Geophagus Balzanii.

 

[tlindsey]

Where did you get the Geophagus Balzanii from?

 

[coryuo1986]

I ordered him from imperialtropical.com

 

[duanes]

Looks like balzani to me, but very dark because you have in a tank with unnaturally dark substrate.
All cichlids will mimic their surroundings so they are inconspicuous to predation from above.
The most common predators of cichlids are birds, and even though there are "probably" no predatory birds in your fishes room, the instinct for self preservation doesn't go away.
If you wish it to present natural bright colors, a tank with a natural color sand substrate would go a long way.

female left, male to her right
This species seems to do best in shoals of 4 or more of its own kind, so if it is the only balzani in the tank, this may also make it even more apt to "not" want to show bright and obvious colors.
I kept a group of 8 Uruguayan "Bella Union" variant, 3 males and 5 females, with geographically correct (cool water) Cory cats.

 

[duanes]

One other thing, I would say the same goes in any un-naturally bright, white substrate (or any other off or candy colored substrate).
It's it's too white, instead of darkening, cichlids will wash out losing almost all color.
If you want your cichlids to show bright colors, and look like they do in nature, or natural photos, research where they live, and what they live over.
Any Geophagine (Gymnogeophagus, Acaritchhys, Geophagus or Satanoperca prefers natural color sand.

Many Central Americans like Herichthys, Thorichthys or Cribroheros, have evolved to live in the same type habitat.
There are 3 Herichthys carpintus complex on the shot below on the right , perfect coloration to avoid predation from above, yet from the side in a tank, stunning.
Put over black substrate, they would stand out like sore thumbs from above, and probably tend to hide more often than not because of it.

 

[coryuo1986]

Ah ok thanks for all the information. Will the balzanii’s head still round out like I see in your pictures as he or she gets bigger?

 

[duanes]

The males get the humps, females don't.