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Lake Malawi cichlids — species, locations & maps

Lake Malawi cichlids — species, locations & maps
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Diplotaxodon sp. 'limnothrissa blackpelvic'.jpg Diplotaxodon sp. 'limnothrissa blackpelvic' Nkhata Bay.jpg
Next pageDiplotaxodon sp. 'limnothrissa blackpelvic' (unknown locality)
Genus: Diplotaxodon
Geographic distribution: Lake Malawi, northern basin; confirmed from Nkhata Bay northwards to Ngara and Chilumba.
Sexual dimorphism: Breeding males show a distinctive “reversed countershading” or “dorsal blaze” pattern, with a pale dorsum contrasting darker flanks and ventral surfaces, plus conspicuously dark pelvic fins; fine dark freckling on the dorsum may remain useful when breeding coloration is weak. Females and immature fish are predominantly silvery and countershaded with no diagnostic external markings reported.
Breeding: Maternal mouthbrooder.
Special notes: Females and juveniles cannot be reliably separated from Diplotaxodon limnothrissa by morphometrics or meristics and are diagnosable only with genomic data. Genetic analyses support reproductive isolation from D. limnothrissa and several other Diplotaxodon. Phylogenomic results (limited sampling) place this taxon basally within the Diplotaxodon/Pallidochromis clade, but additional genomes from males with well-developed breeding dress are needed to confirm this placement.

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