Identify my mystery fry!

[veerserif]

Hello! I have a small 8 gallon tank that is currently home to 9 chili rasboras, many snails, and one mystery fish. When I bought the rasboras back in September, there was a tiny baby fry (smaller than a grain of rice) in the bag with them that I decided to put in the tank. Fast forward to now, and I've started spotting this shy fella near the bottom of my tank.

This mystery fish started off as a very pale pink color but the body has steadily darkened over the past few weeks. The fins are clear but the dorsal fin in particular has a yellow fringe. Total size is around 2-3cm, or a little over an inch.

Behavior-wise, it keeps to the bottom third of the tank and doesn't venture far beyond the central rock and wood decorations in the middle of the tank, and never seems to swim outside of plant cover (the dwarf sag provides plenty of that). It is extremely shy and hides as soon as I get close to the tank, but comes back out if I keep very very still.

My first guess is some type of dwarf cichlid but I have no experience keeping them. Provided this guy doesn't grow large enough to threaten the well-being of the chilis, or doesn't grow so big that I'd feel bad keeping it in an 8 gallon tank, I'm happy to leave it as a part of the tank. Hit me with your best guesses.

[Biotope Biologist]

Calling all cichlid experts!

@Guppysnail @anewbie @Fish Folk

 

This area is my achilles heal. My guess is some sort of Apisto fry?

[anewbie]

I'm lousy at id but i'd lean torwards a shell fish from the fins i don't think he is any of the common species of apisto.

[Guppysnail]

I am so not a cichlid expert at all. However the fins and behavior definitely sounds like a Tanganyikan cichlid. 

[veerserif]

Thanks for the fast responses! I took a look at some of the smaller shell-dwelling cichlids (particularly Neolamprologus multifasciatus), and it definitely has a similar profile and fin shape. We also have pretty hard tapwater here so that checks out (I got the chilis from a fish swap meet).

Do you all think rehoming is in order? I have zero experience and not much inclination towards keeping cichlids and the tank is really set up for the rasboras. Unfortunately I'm a renter so another tank (especially a bigger one) might be difficult to get going.

[Guppysnail]

@veerserif rehoming would be wise. They get aggressive as adults and the chili’s may be a snack or at least get roughed up.  

[veerserif]

Well, there's a meeting of that same swap meet this weekend, so hopefully by then I can post a positive update. Wish me luck getting the fish out of the tank.

[Guppysnail]

On 11/29/2023 at 5:44 PM, veerserif said:

Well, there's a meeting of that same swap meet this weekend, so hopefully by then I can post a positive update. Wish me luck getting the fish out of the tank.

At our club they can look on the computer and see everything you have ever purchased. They can also see who the seller was. Maybe they can hook you up to the seller to return the errant fry or at least give you a positive id 

I sold an odd shaped rimless tank and a few months later found the lid. They looked up the buyer for me so I could give it to them. 

[veerserif]

Fish successfully caught, bagged, and handed in to the donation table at the swap meet. Thank you for the help folks!