''Nimbochromis polystigma'' is a species of

cichlid Cichlids are fish from the family Cichlidae in the order Cichliformes. Cichlids were traditionally classed in a suborder, the Labroidei, along with the wrasses ( Labridae), in the order Perciformes, but molecular studies have contradicted this ...

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

Lake Malawi Lake Malawi, also known as Lake Nyasa in Tanzania and Lago Niassa in Mozambique, is an African Great Lake and the southernmost lake in the East African Rift system, located between Malawi, Mozambique and Tanzania. It is the fifth largest fre ...

, in the

Great Rift Valley The Great Rift Valley is a series of contiguous geographic trenches, approximately in total length, that runs from Lebanon in Asia to Mozambique in Southeast Africa. While the name continues in some usages, it is rarely used in geology as it i ...

system of Africa. This species prefers areas with rock/sand substrate or areas with plentiful vegetation. It can grow to a length of TL.

General

Occurring throughout the lake, ''Nimbochromis polystigma'' is a

piscivorous A piscivore () is a carnivorous animal that eats primarily fish. The name ''piscivore'' is derived . Piscivore is equivalent to the Greek-derived word ichthyophage, both of which mean "fish eater". Fish were the diet of early tetrapod evoluti ...

fish, often preying upon juvenile

cichlids Cichlids are fish from the family (biology), family Cichlidae in the order Cichliformes. Cichlids were traditionally classed in a suborder, the Labroidei, along with the wrasses (Labridae), in the order Perciformes, but molecular studies have c ...

. The local name for the fish is ''Kaligono'', meaning 'sleeper' in the chiCheŵa language. It shares this name with other ''Nimbochromis'' species due to their hunting technique, which involves lying motionless on the bottom, sometimes on its side as if feigning death, until small fish approach to investigate, then pouncing on the prey. When hunting this way their colour will fade, apparently as the whiter colour attracts more small cichlids. They will also sometimes launch ambush attacks on small fish from the cover of vegetation, with their colouration acting as

disruptive camouflage Disruptive coloration (also known as disruptive camouflage or disruptive patterning) is a form of camouflage that works by breaking up the outlines of an animal, soldier or military vehicle with a strongly contrasting pattern. It is often comb ...

. Like most Lake Malawi cichlids, ''Nimbochromis polystigma'' is a

mouthbrooder Mouthbrooding, also known as oral incubation and buccal incubation, is the care given by some groups of animals to their offspring by holding them in the mouth of the parent for extended periods of time. Although mouthbrooding is performed by a va ...

, with the female carrying her young in her mouth for two to three weeks before being released.

In the aquarium

''Nimbochromis polystigma'' is a relatively peaceful

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

, as long as its cohabitants are not small enough to be considered prey. It's an enthusiastic feeder, and will eat all of the usual foods given to

s, and has the rather endearing habit of leaping from the water to try to get at food or fingers. In aquaria it can grow to 30 cm (12 in), and requires a large aquarium—at least 300 litres (80 US gal)—and can be kept with other

haplochromine __NOTOC__ The haplochromine cichlids are a tribe of cichlids in subfamily Pseudocrenilabrinae called Haplochromini. This group includes the type genus (''Haplochromis'') plus a number of closely related genera such as '' Aulonocara'', '' Astat ...

s and most

mbuna Mbuna (pronounced Mmm-boo - nah ) is the common name for a large group of African cichlids from Lake Malawi, and are members of the haplochromine family. The name ''mbuna'' means "rockfish" in the language of the Tonga people of Malawi.Loiselle ...

. It is best to have some rocks for them to hide in when threatened, but they also need room to swim.

References

*Konigs, A. ''Malawi Cichlids in Their Natural Habitat'', 3rd edition
Cichlid Press
2001.

External links

Cichlid ForumMalawi Mayhem
Polystigma Fish of Africa Taxa named by Charles Tate Regan Fish described in 1922 {{cichlidae-stub