Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Ecology
Freshwater; demersal; pH range: 7.4 - 8.4; dH range: 6 - 30. Tropical; 23°C - 27°C (Ref. 13614); 8°S - 15°S
Africa: Endemic to southern Lake Malawi. Also occurs in Vua and Deep Bay.
Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm ? range ? - ? cm
Max length : 11.2 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 5684)
This fish is a cave-dweller. The male actively digs under the rocks in the lake to build a secret nesting place. The female enters and leaves with a mouthful of eggs. They brood for 25 days; the eggs hatch in less than a week (Ref. 12251).
Life cycle and mating behavior
Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae
Konings, A., 2007. Malawi cichlids in their natural habitat. 4th edition. Cichlid Press, El Paso, USA. 424p. (Ref. 79521)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2024-1)
Threat to humans
Harmless
Human uses
Tools
Special reports
Download XML
Internet sources
Estimates based on models
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref.
82804): PD
50 = 0.5005 [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.01000 (0.00244 - 0.04107), b=3.04 (2.81 - 3.27), in cm total length, based on all LWR estimates for this body shape (Ref.
93245).
Resilience (Ref.
120179): High, minimum population doubling time less than 15 months (Preliminary K or Fecundity.).
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref.
59153): Low vulnerability (10 of 100).
