Yellow african cichlid?

Question

My friend got a bum deal on an african cichlid at the LFS, and she couldn't keep him in her small tank. She gave him to me because she knows i have a few aquariums.

He's a bright yellow cichlid, and he's about one inch big. She had him in a five gallon tank with a few glofish, and she said he was fine.

What I'm wondering is if it would be safe to put him in my 29 gallon tank. I have some cory cats, guppies, mollies, one male betta, and one dwarf gourami.

(it sounds like i'm over stocked, but each kind of fish is in moderation)

Answer 1

I agree with Angel that it's most likely Labidochromis Caereleus the Yellow lab, though I have seen older Red Zebras sometimes take on a yellowish look.  There are a couple other pure yellow only Africans too, but I don't really think this is going to be much of a problem either way and I'll explain why.

First is that the Yellow labs are very peaceful types with just the Males being really aggressive.  Secondly, is you have to consider that the Yellow Lab is a Mbuna type or substrate dweller.  Other then the Cories, which could be a problem, the Yellow lab will have little to no interaction with the Guppies, Mollies, Betta or Gourami as these are all upper level fish.

I would say go ahead and give it a shot.  You may need to move those Cories to the 5 gallon tank though.  If for some reason you see the Yellow going up higher in the tank, you may need to simply add a divider.  Another thing you can do to pacify the Lab is add in a large group of rocks, and stack them so they form a cave.  This should keep the Yellow lab very much occupied in the lower levels.  

Nothing directly against Angel as they seem to know more then people that just see the word cichlid and start making assumptions.  It's very anecdotal to see the word cichlid and just assume they can only be with other cichlids.  I keep almost every one of my African tanks with community fish and there are little to no issues.  Granted my tanks are larger then yours, but follow the steps I pointed out and you should be just fine.  You have to understand, so many people just come in, see the word cichlid and make outdated assumptions about them, but it appears Angel is not doing that.

Answer 2

definitely sounds like a caeruleus. they are the most commercially available yellow cichlid (often with a black edge on dorsal fin but not necessarily) and tend to be one of the most passive mbuna (type of rock dwelling african cichlid). I have about 10 along with many others in a 150 gal. Granted they are passive amongst my other cichlids though, and have never observed them with the mix you have. Honestly that is the most random mix I have ever heard of haha. You HAVE to include some rocks in there or the fish will be miserable. If you give him a home, he will defend it but more then likely JUST guard that particular area (hopefully), they do not tend not be much of  "free swimmers" (in open water) so they will feel secure in their cave. Also include a purely vegetable diet. Spirulina based flakes. Do NOT use any commercially manufactured flake such as that tetramin nonsense as it says it is forumlated for cichlids but often contains a high protein content and leads to malawi bloat due to their unusually long intestinal tract. You can occasionally include a protein based food but algae is there primary food in the wild. In conclusion I think it will be fine if it is a caeruleus, which I can almost guarantee it is if it was bought from a retail fish store. He may chase the others but look for damaged fins, and if no damage is acually being done, then he will just keep the tank more interesting.

Answer 3

No.. cichlids no matter what age cannot go with that combo of fish. It would only take a matter of hours and your cichlid would know his place in that tank. The biggest problem would be the betta since hes slow and cant fight back against the strong jaws of a cichlid. Best thing to do is return the fish. The corys  would be safe (until he gets bigger) but the rest would surely get picked on. Is your fish a Electric yellow? http://www.aquaticcommunity.com/fish/ele...

Most commonly sold yellow cichlid. Without more info it could be hundreds of other cichlids. Anyway hope i helped and Best of luck!! Angel

EDIT: note to jon V, im just going on my fishy experiences, i had some guppies in my tank when i had only yellows and one swollowed half a fish!! I know yellows are on the peaceful end of the scale but due to the fact this person is new to cichlids and to try  and make life a little smoother i thought the 'dont go there' aproch would work better. But with that said i do agree with Jon V and i say it your call, Beautiful fish... Best of luck!!

Another thing is too i had corys in with my fish not that long ago and the only problem i had where my electric blues (aggresive ones at that) kept 'nipping' them, not the yellows tho and i had 2 males and 1 female...just a note lol. = )

*Cheers mate = )