Juvie Cichla ID Thread

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo

fwlion

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
May 24, 2005
1,057
8
0
39
NASHVILLE,TN
Can we make a thread devoted to IDing JUVENILE Cichla there is an ID thread in the stickies but its more Adult fish, and what you see in LFS most of them time are Juvies, so I think it would benefit alot of ppl. if we made a Photo ID species thread for juvies...

I don't know just a suggestion I guess
 
They are too hard to ID at juvi size most the time. I honestly don't think a beginner would be able to accurately ID them even with pictures. It takes years of keeping and raising baby cichla to be able to spot the subtle differences.
I've been in the game a while now and I still have trouble IDing them.
 
I agree with Tim most people even veterans cant id cichla 99% of the time its a guess head shape and markings are not defining characteristics of cichla in smaller sizes they change with growth and depending on feeding behavior i see it all the time posted well the head shape tells me its a mono my answer to that is well you trying to identify a baby cichla makes you stand out as a :screwy: i sit and stare at the pictures and look to my side at a fish that looks identical to the one in the picture and know i bought it from a reputable vendor as an occell and laugh .
I too think a defining list that we can all use would be a great thing but truth be told it wont happen without dna that is the only way to identify a fish with 100% certainty and im willing to bet there isnt a person on the site that wants to fork out the clams to make that happen i would venture a guess that the 8" inch size is the best way to identify cichla by physical appearance until juvy or better yet adult stages they arent much different
 
Blackshark that Orino is one of the nicest I've seen. How many do you have?

Fwlion, as everyone has said no one can be sure when they are juvies, but a good rule of thumb is that if the LFS have them cheap then they are either Mono, Ocell, or a hybrid of both. When in doubt, ask Troutking.
 
wen u id juvis ur going to break it down to either tems/azul, orinos, mono/occels(hard to tell between the two unless bought from reputable vendor or they are older), kelberi(may look similar to mono/occel if no gold is showing), xingu, broko etc. most likely if bought from a lfs, like stated above, it will be mostly monos, mono/occel hybrid, but rarely a true occel like a guyana. u get what u pay unless they rip u off and con u.
 
MonsterFishKeepers.com