Lake Tanganyika cichlids — species, locations & maps

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Julidochromis marksmithi 'Katondo Point'.jpg Neolamprologus pulcher 'Katondo Point'.jpg Neolamprologus sexfasciatus 'Katondo Point'.jpg Neolamprologus sp. 'cygnus' Katondo Point.jpg Neolamprologus sp. 'eseki' Katondo Point.jpg
Previous pageNext pageNeolamprologus sexfasciatus 'Katondo Point, Cape Mpimbwe'
Tribe / Genus: Lamprologini / Neolamprologus
Type locality: Mtoto, Lake Tanganyika, Democratic Republic of Congo
Biotope: Inhabits shallow rocky to intermediate habitats. Compared to the similar N. tretocephalus, it mainly occupies areas with less sand.
Geographic distribution: Occurs in the southern part of Lake Tanganyika. On the western shore it is found south of Cape Tembwe, while on the eastern shore it occurs south of Isonga. The distribution overlaps with N. tretocephalus on the eastern Tanzanian coast from Isonga to Cape Mpimbwe, and on the western Congolese coast between the Livua River and Cape Tembwe, without apparent interbreeding.
Typical adult size: Reaches about 16 cm total length in the lake and may grow slightly larger in aquaria.
Sexual dimorphism: No marked differences except that males are noticeably larger than females.
Recommended aquarium size: 300 L (for a pair)
Aquarium setup: Provide a sandy substrate with numerous shelters created by rockwork, while leaving sufficient open space for swimming. The species lives in pairs and is highly aggressive toward conspecifics, so even in large aquaria only a single pair should be kept. Best maintained in a species-only tank or, in very large aquaria, together with other robust cichlids of similar size that occupy different areas of the tank. During spawning and parental care, the defended territory becomes very large and is aggressively protected; outside the breeding period, aggression toward other species is lower.
Diet: Carnivorous; feeds on various invertebrates including insects, crustaceans and mollusks, and occasionally on small fishes. In aquaria it accepts a variety of live and frozen foods.
Breeding: A monogamous species. Pairs usually remain together at least throughout parental care and often longer. The female typically excavates a pit beneath a rock and deposits the eggs underneath, hidden from view. Clutch size is large, around 500 eggs. Both parents guard the fry, with the female staying close to them and the male patrolling the territory borders. Parental care lasts about four months, after which the juveniles are expelled at a size of roughly 3 cm. During spawning, the black vertical bars fade strongly and may be reduced to dark spots along the mid-body. The yellow form breeds relatively easily in aquaria, while the southern blue form is reported to be much more difficult to breed.
Aggression: Very aggressive toward conspecifics; even in large aquaria only a single pair can be kept.
Special notes: Very similar to N. tretocephalus, but easily distinguished by the number of vertical bars: N. sexfasciatus has six, whereas N. tretocephalus has five. Several geographic colour variants are known. Blue-coloured populations occur in the south between Moliro (DR Congo) and Kala (Tanzania). North of the Livua River on the western shore, the upper body and head are yellow, while populations north of Fulwe Rocks on the eastern shore are entirely yellow. All variants share the characteristic six black vertical bars.

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