#african cichlid

[nuanimistdatabase]

Amazing happens when I actually clean the Red Zebra tank.

[matcha-gh0st]

This is my ugly boy, his name is Neptune and he's always happy to see me

[oopsl]

This is probably the best aquarium video I've ever taken.

Behold my fry!

[fishaccordingtosteve]

A really cheap 45 gallon tank...

For those of us that need a save in the dollar region for our hobby, here is a great tip! You will have to be okay with some cons, but the pros also present well in my opinion. Glass aquariums are very expensive as is everything else these days. A simple solution is to go with some other type of water container suitable to house fish without harming them. I am always on the lookout for…

[mysticalbitches]

i just a little guy creaturing around the house

[subbalakshmisastry]

Blue Peacock Cichlids In Lokaranjan Aqua World / Underwater Zone Mysore

[aquariuminfobureau]

Although coral reefs indeed boats beautiful fishes, it is easy to forget the colors and diversity of the fishes, mainly cichlid, dwelling within East African lakes. Normally species from the environments of lakes Malawi and Tanganyika are loosely known to freshwater fishkeepers, yet regarded as for specialists only, and wrongly assumed, perhaps, to be difficult as a result. Cichlids from other Rift Valley lakes, such as the 'nyarerei hap', Haplochromis nyererei, remain obscure in the aquarium hobby.

Not all of the exotic fishes in the aquarium trade have a popular, common name in the English language. H. nyererei is thus clumsily traded labeled with such improvised names as 'nyererei cichlid', 'hap nyererei', etc. This is a small and omnivorous cichlid, growing to about 7 and a 1/2 centimeters, or three inches long. Feeding on algae and small, benthic prey, H. nyererei is a denizen of rocky nearshore environments, purely within the Tanzanian region of Lake Victoria, and no other lake on earth.

The Great Rift Valley of East Africa is a major geological feature, that was formed by the failed separation of eastern Africa from the rest of the African mainland. She includes the geographical features called the Great Lakes, a series of the most remarkable lakes in the world, by a number of qualities. Not least their status as 'Darwin's dream ponds', effectively islands in which diverse and disparate radiations of cichlid fishes and other organisms, evolving in isolation from outside, but descended from small populations of early colonisers, arriving from outside the lakes.

Thus the Great Lakes of East Africa constiture what biogeographers call ecological islands, resembling such oceanic islands as the Galapagos in their high number of unique inhabitants, that are found nowhere else on earth, and in the remarkable adaptation of their inhabitants into new lifestyles, processes often making them dissimilar to their relatives. Although the Victorian cichlid diversity was extremely high, it was also recent, the radiation of 'haps' occurring in the latest Pleistocene, a rapid recovery following a period in which the paleoenvironment had been dessicated.

Despite its diversity, then, the cichlid fauna of Lake Victoria was a youthful one, and species such as H. nyarereri are not as ancient as Homo sapiens.Regarding her cichlid diversity, Victoria is often overshadowed in the imagination by the more ancient cichlid diversity of her neighbors, Malawi and Tanganyika, despite her own status as the second largest freshwater lake on earth. Sadly, this is because human activities have devastated the 'Darwin's dream pond' that is and was Lake Victoria.

Usually the devastation is attributed, almost entirely, to the introduction of a single predatory species, the adaptable and efficient Nile perch, or Lates niloticus. A magnificent work of nature in itself, L. niloticus is prized by Africans as a food resource, and was translocated into Lake Victoria to found a fishery during the 20th century. The ecological impacts on existing, indigenous fisheries was not properly considered, although a native tilapia was economically important to local people. It is estimated that some 76% of the surviving, purely native species in Lake Victoria, are still threatened with global extinction.

Yet L. niloticus was not alone responsible, for all the indigenous fish extinctions and decimations in Lake Victoria. Historical records and archeology show that a decline of indigenous cichlids had already begun, with some evidence for the selective overfishing of larger fish species, before L. niloticus was introduced into the lake, which happened as recently as the 1950s. Other human activities in the 20th century contributed to the eutrophication of the lake, which must have severely affected the cichlid populations within. Eutrophication was surely, in fact, the major driver of the Lake Victoria ecological collapse.

Which is not to deny the introduction of L. niloticus had adverse effects for the native cichlids, but the severity of its impact is too often overstated, as a catchy explanation for what was a complicated ecological collapse. Such matters are inherently more complicated, because ecologies are, by their nature, complicated networks of interaction. Fisheries scientists were already warning against the introduction of L. niloticus, which was still introduced anyway, and in secret, by colonial authorities seeking instant economic results.

The introduction of the invader thus occurred during an anti-ecological fad, and nowadays, the Nile perch that are still fished from Victoria, are mainly caught to be exported as meat; the local people cannot afford to eat these new 'local' fish - although technically, the lake fisheries now have more value; and the former subsistence fishery was destroyed. In any case the cumulative effects of human activities have severely harmed the Lake Victoria ecosystem, although fortunately, N. nyarereri has remained common.

Fisheries records from the 1920s show that a number of native haplochromine species are now extinct. Some other species of Haplochromis in the lake are reduced to survival in marginal habitats, such as the papyrus beds. Piscivorous cichlids suffered competition with the Nile perch, and also became its prey. Snail and insect eating species of cichlid have also declined. The decline of snail predators has increased cases of snail fever among local people. The parasitic blood flukes that are responsible infect humans after a life stage within freshwater snails.

Patterns of gene flow altered during the ecological crisis, with natural selection, favoring natural hybrids among the detrivorous cichlids. The latter guild include 80% of Victorian 'hap' species, and their feeding activities are fundamentally essential for restoring bottom sediments back into solution, therefore moving nutrients back up through the water, so that they are no longer locked into the lake bed. The decline of cichlids in the food webs of Lake Victoria, has contributed to there being more toxic, cyanobacterial blooms, and therefore disastrous, en masse fish deaths in the lake.

The Haplochromis sp. from Lake Victoria display marked sexual dimorphism. The male H. nyarereri are much more colorful than are the females, and the latter find the prettiness of the male fish sexually arousing. Thus sexual selection favors extreme coloration, in the males of the species only, which also happen to be a little larger than their females. The colour patterns of the males vary according to their locality of origin, so the fish are often labelled with collection details, in order to preserve these natural color strains in aquaria.

When these fish breed the female practices parental care, in the form of mouth brooding behaviors. Cichlids can be behaviorally complex fishes, and male H. nyererei are competitive and aggressive to one another, and they may be violent enough to kill one another, and they may also bother specific females unless they outnumber the males. Yet when they are accommodated alongside dissimilar fish, such as mbuna from Lake Malawi, this species reportedly shows no particular malice.

The water parameters should match those of Lake Victoria herself. In the portion of the lake where H. nyererei originates, the temperature is quite stable, and is usually 24 or 25 degrees, sometimes maybe 23 or 26 degrees centigrade. The chemistry of the lake is hard and base, and Victoria cichlids are commonly kept and bred in conditions between 7.2 and 8.4. but it parts of the lake it has been measured higher or lower The wild localities where H. nyarereri originates, have been sampled and found to have pH values above 8 and lower than 9.

This freshwater fish, like many other cichlids in rift lakes, is a rock dweller. Therefore the aquascape provided for them, ought to be a secure structure of rockwork. In the wild the fish show an affinity for shelf-like structures, so this, too, should be replicated for accuracy. The fish are easy to feed, and in this regard pose no problems. Both animal and algal food sources should be offered them, and with items of animal derivation prefominating. In all, the painted cichlid of Lake Victoria is an evolutionary masterpiece, suitable for even novice aquarists willing to consider it's hardwater, nearshore origins in Africa.

[nuanimistdatabase]

Tropheus duboisi at the local PetSmart? Huh?

[matcha-gh0st]

My ugly boy Neptune and his bombastic side eye

[fishaccordingtosteve]

A selection of recent pics...

Hey everyone, thanks for checking in and for the continued support of fishaccordingtosteve.net. I appreciate the support from the aquarium community! Today, I am sharing a few pics taken from my current setup of a Lake Tanganyika aquarium.   These are some of my favorite fish. I love the colors and the interactions they have moment to moment. Here is a fish I acquired over 10 years ago.  A slow…

[mysticalbitches]

my baby is judging me for feeding his fat ass

so how is life going for y'all?????

[subbalakshmisastry]

Zebra Tilapia / Heterotilapia buttikoferi / St. Peter's Fish / Israeli ...

[fishenjoyer1]

Fish of the Day

Today's fish of the day is the kribensis cichlid

The kribensis cichlid, scientific name Pelvicachromis pulcher, is known in the aquarium trade as a popular freshwater fish. In the aquarium trade it is known by multiple names, krib, common krib, rainbow krib, rainbow cichlid, purple cichlid, etc. Outside of the aquarium trade, these fish are native along southern Nigeria, and coastal Cameroon, living in warm waters and semi acidic waters. There is also a non native population that has also been found within Hawaii, and is predicted to have been started by released pets. This species inhabits fast moving waters and lives only where there is dense vegetation, although they can survive in shallow and still waters, or even brackish conditions.  In the wild the kribensis has been observed creating small holes under plants, or living within underwater caves blocked by vegetation. 

The diet of the kribensis cichlid consists of worms, crustaceans, and small insects, although in the wild a large part of their diet is made up of algae, and other surrounding plants. This diet allows them to get to sizes between 3-5 inches in length. Male kribensis grow about 12.5 cm (4.9 inches) and females, who are smaller, grow about 3 inches in length.  They are predated on by African Pike, tigerfish, and nile perch, which share significant overlap in the wild.

Within the kribensis cichlid there is significant sexual dimorphism. Male fish are larger than female fish, alone with having a more rounded appearance, along with lacking the bright coloration. Breeding is done in holes that are produced under plants or in natural cave formations, so long as they are small and partially hidden. Eggs, when layed are adhesive, and form in rows along the upper surface of the cave, which are then brooded by the female for 20-30 days. After this, both male and female kribensis care for the fry, males acting as territorial guardians to drive away predators, and females feeding the young.

Have a wonderful Friday, everyone!

[eonars]

Every time I get really stressed I have dreams where I'm setting up/maintaining an absolutely giant african cichlid aquarium and I get like a double dose of that nice calm feeling I get from being around fishies and I get to look at them swimming around a bit before I wake up I'm truly the most one dimensional person alive

[typhlonectes]

Cycles of fusion and fission enabled rapid parallel adaptive radiations in African cichlids

Adaptive radiation produces a great deal of diversity during the process of evolution, but not all lineages radiate, and in fact, most don’t. For decades, researchers have been interested in why radiations occur and many studies have looked at this using the striking radiation of African rift lake cichlids. Meier et al. studied the radiations within Lake Victoria and confirmed that the radiation in this lake, covering many trophic guilds, occurred only 16,000 years ago. Furthermore, they found that the radiation was able to occur so rapidly because of a repeating process of hybridization and specialization.

Read more here: https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.ade2833