need some help with ID

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so this Ob that i just posted is an Ob Estherae.... and it is a male, well that works for me because i have a few females in another tank of this type, I will look up for more information to be certain but i may have a good match ..thank you. I will post the female OB i have because i am pretty sure it is the same.. tommorrow..
 
straitjacketstar;497168; said:
Being that M. callainos should not have eggspots on the dorsal fin I'll retract improper id of him being an OB M. callainos.
Instead he is most likely an OB M. estherae. There are several variations of the red zebra, in it's solid morph as well as the OB morph. Also looks like a male.
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Are these two youngsters also M OB Estherae? I thought they were female until i took a closer look..thanks
 
Yes, they are both M. estherae. Unless you've been proven otherwise they might both be females but it's more likely that the top fish is male.
In this case you can see the difference in variation between OB variations in the same species, with you previous OB being much more blue than red/orange.
 
yes i see it now. with all the different variations in the OB Morph.. you have been a great help..would you say the top one is a male because of the egg spots..where as the bottom fish has very few? ..
 
Not quite the eggspots, since females can have them too. It's the comparison, the top fish has strong facial features. A larger, wider mouth and more rounded forehead. The red color is rich as are the dark blotches compared to the other. Coincidentally this fish does happen to have many well-defined eggpots and more drawn out and pointed finnage.
The "female" color is more subdued, while subdued color may also be evident in subdominant fish the different shape of the head compared to the other would lead me to believe the differences were gender based.
Using "classic" characteristics by themselves is often quite misleading. When used in conjunction with other defining characteristics you can come up with a more accurate gender ID though it's still not 100%. Only way to know for sure would be to vent but it takes a trained eye. :D
 
straitjacketstar;498177; said:
Not quite the eggspots, since females can have them too. It's the comparison, the top fish has strong facial features. A larger, wider mouth and more rounded forehead. The red color is rich as are the dark blotches compared to the other. Coincidentally this fish does happen to have many well-defined eggpots and more drawn out and pointed finnage.
The "female" color is more subdued, while subdued color may also be evident in subdominant fish the different shape of the head compared to the other would lead me to believe the differences were gender based.
Using "classic" characteristics by themselves is often quite misleading. When used in conjunction with other defining characteristics you can come up with a more accurate gender ID though it's still not 100%. Only way to know for sure would be to vent but it takes a trained eye. :D
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How did you get so much experience.. that is awsome that you are able to just look at a picture and tell so much..And everything i have read about color it is true that the female is usually alot more bland.. but to know the shape of the head and strong facial features that is superior knowledge.. thank you for your help that i finally know what they are and also now have a good idea of their sex.. would two OB breed OB's.. I Know i am picking your brain but i have alot to learn..thanks
 
Keep in mind that sex is not guaranteed, simply sharing my opinion based on what I can see. (although I think you've pretty well understood others may seem to think you can just "look and know" which is not what I do or claim to do)
I've kept my share of mbuna and you tend to pick up on things after a while. Observe closely and you can make educated guesses. A lot of information is available to you that is not to me. You can observe your fish's behavior and determine a lot by the way they act. Differ from aggressive chasing of a pesky subdoinant male and aggressive courting of a coy female.
Keeping a variety of species and dedicating hours upon hours of watching how they work. That's pretty much it. :grinyes:
 
Well thank you for all your help but even if a person is totally intune with their fish..i think that you are just a wee bit more gifted in seeing beyond what the average person can perceive...but i will look a little bit more because of you..
 
I still get em wrong! It's nothing special and even after the most educated guesses my fish can and have still proved me wrong! lol
Watching is fun, what better reason do you need to watch a bunch of mbuna than...they're friggin purty! On top of that they're incredibly social, got complicated heirarchies and move. That's just hard to beat. ;)
 
very well said.. and keep up the good work.. and remenber their are people out there who need your eyes sometimes, and then your perfect explanations..
 
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