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Lake Tanganyika cichlids — species, locations & maps

Lake Tanganyika cichlids — species, locations & maps
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Pseudosimochromis babaulti 'Kabezi'.jpg Spathodus sp. 'erythrodon north' Kabezi.jpg Tropheus sp. 'black' Kabezi.jpg
Next pagePseudosimochromis babaulti 'Kabezi'
Tribe / Genus: Tropheini / Pseudosimochromis
Type locality: Uvira, Lake Tanganyika.
Biotope: Shallow intermediate habitat close to rocky areas, with sand- and mud-covered stones. Individuals are most often found in extremely shallow water, typically within the upper one to two meters.
Geographic distribution: Lake Tanganyika-wide distribution. The species is reported from numerous localities around the lake, with several geographically distinct variants documented.
Typical adult size: Maximum total length of about 11 cm.
Sexual dimorphism: Sexual dimorphism is present. Males are more contrastingly patterned and display a short black stripe in the spiny part of the dorsal fin, a feature not seen in females.
Recommended aquarium size: Due to strong intraspecific aggression, very large aquaria are required. Half-grown specimens may be kept together for a short period (less than one year) in aquaria of around 300 liters, but they should later be moved to larger tanks. Even in spacious setups, males rarely coexist for more than one to two years, and females may become quickly exhausted.
Aquarium setup: A layout resembling the shallow intermediate habitat with stone heaps that allow substantial algal growth and create narrow crevices where females can escape male harassment.
Water conditions should match those of other tropheines: hard and alkaline water (around pH 8.2) at 23–26 °C, with clean and regularly renewed water.
Diet: Herbivorous grazer feeding mainly on filamentous algae and diatoms picked from stones. Intestinal morphology, reported as three to five times the total length, is consistent with a vegetarian feeding strategy.
Breeding: Maternal mouthbrooder. Spawning takes place in the male’s territory. The female releases and immediately collects a few eggs at a time, which are fertilized as she snaps at egg dummies on the male’s anal fin.
Females brood approximately 25–40 eggs and release the fry after about two weeks; free-swimming fry may be guarded for an additional period in very shallow water.
Aggression: Males are territorial and extremely aggressive toward conspecifics, which may be harassed to death even in very large aquaria. Keeping them together with eretmodines and other tropheines may help reduce intraspecific aggression.
Females and juveniles are non-territorial and range more widely.
Special notes: Males are characterized by vertical flank bars and a distinctive short black stripe in the spiny part of the dorsal fin, a trait described as unique among Lake Tanganyika cichlids. Females lack this stripe but may show reddish patches on the cheeks and anal fin.
Individuals with irregular dark blotches on the body are reported from several localities, and considerable geographical variation in coloration is documented.
Pseudosimochromis pleurospilus was once regarded as a different species. Using morphology, DNA signature patterns, and parasite characterization, Van Steenberge et al. were unable to distinguish between Pseudosimochromis babaulti and Pseudosimochromis pleurospilus and therefore regarded the latter as a junior synonym. Pseudosimochromis babaulti is thus described as a species with considerable geographical morphological variation.

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Photo: © Patrick Tawil
Photo: © Patrick Tawil
Photo: © Patrick Tawil
Photo: © Patrick Tawil
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Lake Tanganyika cichlids — species, locations & maps.
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