Is it hybrid? Yellow markings on adult scianochromis fryeri

[RD.]

Explaining "mixed tanks", to a hobbyist that is clearly not in the know of how many African cichlids are sourced, and sold, is not bashing. I am not a purist either, I have even kept fish such as flowerhorns in the past, and currently have a parrot in one of my tanks - but when it comes to African cichlids, if you do not know the source, then almost anything is possible, and in some cases more than probable. You can argue this until you are blue in the face, but it won't change reality.

When I was keeping and breeding African cichlids, if the vendor couldn't tell me the source of their fish (not just the species) I passed. If I was considering say S. fryeri as an example, I would also need to know the collection location, and have some sort of provenance back to the wild. There are more than one "type" of S. fryeri in Malawi, and this is quite common in the Rift Lakes. So to ensure pure geographical blood lines, I would only breed fish from the same collection location in the lake. This is what I consider the proper manner in which to breed all species of fish. Otherwise all bets are off as to what you are buying, and eventually passing off to other hobbyists.

Doing so removes any & all doubt from hobbyists such as yourself, who are then left posting on online forums, asking questions about what fish they bought. It elevates the hobby - unlike those who simply toss a bunch of fish in a glass box, and with whatever excuse they want to use, inform their customers that their fish are all legit. In the world of cichlids, especially African cichlids, talk is cheap, and hybrids are everywhere. Caveat Emptor!

 

[neutrino]

I've had my share of electric blue fryeri, sometimes groups of them, sometimes with larger, more aggressive fish, and I've never had a male without color at that size. In a group or community with multiple male fryeri, multiple individuals can have so called 'dominant' color. But even subordinate males still show color, typically just less intense, or at a minimum, early juvenile color-- blue in the head and along the dorsal-- but not practically colorless. Imo that's either a female with male-ish looking fins-- it happens occasionally in my breeding experience and even a hybrid with dull color should show some color... or something else is off, whether hybrid or something else.

Even a reputable, conscientious lfs can't control every single fish they get, especially if they come from a distributor and not importers or breeders they know personally.

 

[Adam GR]

I've had my share of electric blue fryeri, sometimes groups of them, sometimes with larger, more aggressive fish, and I've never had a male without color at that size. In a group or community with multiple male fryeri, multiple individuals can have so called 'dominant' color. But even subordinate males still show color, typically just less intense, or at a minimum, early juvenile color-- blue in the head and along the dorsal-- but not practically colorless. Imo that's either a female with male-ish looking fins-- it happens occasionally in my breeding experience and even a hybrid with dull color should show some color... or something else is off, whether hybrid or something else.

Even a reputable, conscientious lfs can't control every single fish they get, especially if they come from a distributor and not importers or breeders they know personally.

I’ve decided to vent this fish, can you guys have a look?

 

[qldmick]

I've sold adult male Sciaenochromis Fryeri Icebergs to a lfs but put in with bigger haps such as eye biters and fusco they lost most of their blaze and some color.

 

[duanes]

Beside S fryer, there are at least 14 other species in the genus Sciaenochromis.
Two others from the genus that appear similar to yours (to me) are S benthicola, and S pssamophilus.
And these could easily have come in as contaminants with fryer (even years ago to a breeder), believing in a shippers random ID.