pictures from the side are a must.
but going on pattern I'd say these are all petricola.
petricola as well as lucipinnis are very variable.
usually lucipinnis has an uneven pattern of larger and smaller spots and petricola has an even spotted pattern of large OR small spots.
this is NOT counting the head; almost ALL spotted Tanganyikan Syno's have small spots on the head and larger on the body.
the problems are these:
southern Zambia imports can be mixed! I've seen fresh imports still in transit boxes arrive at Verduijn and both species are caught at the same location. at one occasion 6 different species arrived in 1 sending from 1 catching station
lucipinnis, polli, petricola, "polli White Zambia wildcaughts, dhonti/tanganicae and irsacae. I was there to sort em out; not an easy job, mind
they can and do breed quite easily. so even if someone tells you they are wildcaught they might be bred. although the true petricola is a fair bit harder to breed than the easier lucipinnis, it's not impossible at all. I've bred both species and once you got the spawning, you're up to the eyebrows in baby cats in no time at all
when kept together in numbers they tend to fight (own experience), but I think a sole petricola can breed with a sole lucipinnis.
but when both species are mixed in the same tank, for some reason they recognise each other as 'different' and petricola individuals are shunned by lucipinnis. there is however no guarantee that all fishes are 100% pure species if somneone's word is all you have.
petricola are usually much more elongated than lucipinnis, but we really need a side view to spot that.
