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Lake Malawi cichlids — species, locations & maps

Lake Malawi cichlids — species, locations & maps
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Diplotaxodon macrops 'Chitande Island'.jpg Diplotaxodon macrops 'South East Arm'.jpg
Previous pageDiplotaxodon macrops 'South East Arm'
Genus: Diplotaxodon
Type locality: Off Monkey Bay (14°03'S, 34°56'E), Lake Malawi, 100 m
Biotope: Deep offshore waters over a bare mud floor; typically 80–130 m
Geographic distribution: Lake Malawi; recorded in the southern lake and extending at least as far north as Nkhotakota
Typical adult size: Up to about 14 cm total length (not known to exceed ~12 cm standard length)
Sexual dimorphism: Sexually active males are dark to black (often with a coppery sheen) and show a broad white to whitish-yellow margin along the spiny portion of the dorsal fin; males also have 1–2 large pale yellow egg spots on the anal fin. Females and immatures are more subdued, darker dorsally with a dusky dorsal fin; anal and pelvic fins are white and lack egg spots
Diet: Likely plankton-based feeding: intestinal contents reported as fragmented remains of insect larvae, crustaceans, and diatoms; the upwardly angled mouth suggests capture from the water column rather than from sediments
Breeding: Reproductive activity observed year-round; spawning likely occurs in deep water (reported around 100–125 m). Maternal mouthbrooder (as in the genus)
Special notes: A small, large-eyed deep-water species (generally not exceeding ~120 mm SL) associated with the informal Diplotaxodon macrops group. Adult males are diagnosable by breeding dress (dark body with a broad white dorsal-fin margin). Females and juveniles cannot be unambiguously separated from several undescribed Diplotaxodon taxa. Whole-genome data place D. macrops as sister to Diplotaxodon sp. ‘ecclesi white dorsal’ (Turner & Genner, 2025:23)

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Photo: © George Turner
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Lake Malawi cichlids — species, locations & maps.
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